STAGINGS FOUR BIGGEST CHALLENGES:
REALTOR Magazine Online: Kala Callahan of Addressed to Sell in Wilmette, Ill., and Lori Matzke of Center Stage Home in Minneapolis share their biggest staging headaches and tell you how to make them go away.
1. Owners don't want to change their decor. "You can't force them to do it. You have to show them the value," Matzke says. To make sellers more open to staging, present it as a service you do for every client. That is, you're not singling them out. "I use myself as an example," Matzke says. "I tell them I'd also have to remove art from my house to sell it so that the listing would appeal to the masses." Adds Callahan: "Let sellers know you need to protect grandma's antique bureau by putting it in storage so that nothing happens to it."
2. The listing has languished on the market for months before the owner or salesperson calls a stager. "Stage the house right before it's listed," Matzke says. Otherwise, it may lose its selling momentum.
3. A confused layout makes the home seem cramped and unlivable. Multifunction rooms (such as those with an eating area, TV hookup, fireplace, and sitting area) are often confusing to buyers, especially when vacant, Callahan says. "People wonder, ‘Where is my couch supposed to go?'" Stage those rooms to show buyers the possibilities.
4. A vacant home seems cold and uninviting. It's important to warm up an empty home, Callahan says. You may need to rent some furniture, but don't feel you have to go nuts in terms of expense. "You're selling the home, not the furniture," she says.
WATCH THE VIDEO/INTERVIEW: http://www.realtor.org/rmomag.NSF/pages/feature1july07_stagingtips?OpenDocument
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