People have been so inundated with the buzz words - home staging.  People really don't know what it entails of, but they do know it benefits in selling homes, usually faster and for more money.

It is disturbing to me how people are so blase about it.  Many people want to "wait" to see how they do in this marketplace, then are shocked that they haven't had traffic or it hasn't sold in 3...6..9 months.  It is based on the premise of perception matters!  Anyone who ever had an interview knows just how important the freshly ironed slacks, or the "interview suit" that was purchased just for that purpose knows ...YOU ONLY HAVE ONE CHANCE TO MAKE AN IMPRESSION. The rumpled shirt can mean the cost of their livelihood to someone ELSE who may not be as qualified, but the hiree did look the part.

So it is shocking that when it comes to the bottom line and investment (typically, homes are people's MAJOR investment) that people dismiss Home Staging as a new phenomenon, that it is only is available to the wealthy or people take risks when they can just sit and wait to see if their property sells.  Of course, they think their home is beautiful. What they don't know is that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  When they live in their homes, they become desensitized to their surroundings.  That is why we (stagers) are in the REAL ESTATE industry and not the decorating industry.  We depersonalize a space, whereas a decorator/designer personalizes a space.  The major point is, especially in today's market, that it is IMPERATIVE to stage a home to sell it, that is IF they want a short waiting period to sell their home and IF they want to get the most money for their home.

In the nation, we have a crisis.  The economy with the sub-prime mess have us upside down. The Government is asking lenders to forgive and help homeowners get back on their feet so they don't lose their house.  I've had my training from Stagedhomes.com, the only Nationally Recognized training program by the National Assocation of Realtors, and as Barb, the creator and founder of staging always said, ""We can improve the lives of others through our magic of Home Staging."  When I heard about the "forgiveness campaign" (forgive me, it isn't officially called that but it's what I'm calling it), I thought, what they need to do is  Stage the home, so the homeowners can sell and move on with their lives.  Even banks who are carrying millions of debts can benefit.  A lightbulb moment for me, when I thought, "Aha,"  "Home Staging saves the world campaign."  Our national economy is very weak and it does affect the world, so that may be stretching it, but it sounds good and I'm sticking to it.

I believe we need to rally and make our voices heard with a renewed joint effort in making this work, and with the support and nudging from the Government, the banks, the realtors, the homeowners, this may work.

Home staging is about perception, in that IT really matters that the house be in pristine shape and looks great.  When Staging helps sell a home, that has a trickle effect: the homeowners about to foreclose, can now save their credit and dignity; the banks are sparred from having to foreclose on a house; and if EVERYONE participates in the Home Staging Saves the World Campaign©, it can save our economy, locally and globally!  We should start a campaign to ask government for a tax deductible allowance for homeowners or investors, AND especially BANKS, who stages a home so we can flip the economy rightside up.  They should help finance staging... trust me, I'm not about government spending, but when we can impact our economy as a whole, I'm all for it.  "The investment of staging in your home is less than the price reduction of your home," says Barb Schwarz.  It could save the nation, England (as their economy is always affected by our economy-still wondering how), and the rest of the world as our global spending has curtailed, therefore; the world you know.  Who's in?  Anyone??  Do you think we could start a petition...am I crazy? 

I know the Stagers, on HGTV and Designed to Sell have hit mainstream, but TLC, is offering a new genre, focusing on homeowners who have hit a rough patch called "Hope for Your home."

The word is out there.  Who else is listening?