Must ask questions to find out whose for "real" and not for "real"...

This is my list of top 10 questions to ask a home staging professional. 

 •1)      How do you work?  (there is no right or wrong, just listen to how they answer the question and that will give you an idea of their knowledge and experience)

•2)      Is there a charge for bids?  (before the gas price hike, charges for bids were unheard of, although I do see a lot more charging...)

•3)      How long have you been in business?  Don't let the one or two years scare you...this is a relatively NEW industry.  Actually, it is 30 years old with Barb Schwarz who paved the road for us with this incredible industry, but the oldest ASP (accredited staging professional ) has been in business "only" 5 years.  Home Staging took off in California & Washington, and only really swept into the East Coast in the last couple years riding the popularity of HGTV, and now with shows like The Stagers (I hate the way they portray stagers) it is officially "here."

•4)      Can we see your portfolio of before and afters?  Ask if they are pictures that they have staged or if they are pictures downloaded from someone/somewhere else.

•5)      What is the aggregate value of properties successfully staged?  An increasingly common statistic.  A newer stager may well do great work, but it can be reassuring to know that a prospective stager has experience with say helping to move over 10 million in value. (If they specialize in larger multi-million properties, obviously more than this!)

•6)      What are your statistics? What are the average days on market after staging the property before it sells?  (Professionals should be able to recite them to you in their sleep, they keep numbers and safeguard their statistics)

•7)      What accreditation or certification do you have?  Beware of people saying they are certified - it really is not regulated and you should check online to see what kind of training it is.  Some are fly-by night, 2 hour tutorial online and voila, you are now "certified."  You can check out Accredited Staging Professionals by checking online, www.stagedhomes.com, and click under "find an asp." Individual skills vary but this can help protect you against unscrupulous persons.

•8)      Would you give me at least 3 clients or realtors who have used you and their phone number as references?

•9)      How much does it costs? (trick question, a professional never quotes their rates over the phone as it is impossible to do so...just as it would be hard for you to give a homeowner a LIST PRICE of their home over the phone just based on neighborhood, square footage and their description of their home.)

•10)   What is your specialty as far as staging goes?  (It could be that they do more consultations than home stagings, some do only occupied home stagings, and others have a whole warehouse full of furniture who only opt to do vacant home stagings.)

 I hope this helps as a guideline when you are interview home stagers in your local area.  I'd appreciate any feedback you have as to whether or not this has helped you.  I suggest you interview and find 2 or 3 home stagers you feet comfortable with, and put a star by the one you are going to use as your "primary" stager.  There comes a time, when stagers may not be able to fit you into their schedule, especially as a lot of the calls I receive are "last minute, needed it yesterday" stagings.

Marcyne Touchton, ASP, ASPM, IAHSP, is the founder and principal stager for Domaine Staging LLC.  Domaine Staging is a world class home staging service provider. She is located in Charlotte, NC, and has expanded her services to the DC metro area.

To date, Domaine has assisted 60+ Charlotte and Washington, DC area home sellers and agents, with over $20 m worth of property. 75% of all Domaine's properties have sold in 23 days or less.