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Smart Banks in Portland OR are Staging Foreclosed Homes!

By Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

Home Stager with Room Solutions Staging, Portland OR

January 22, 2012 07:12 PM

https://activerain.com/droplet/rLb

A few years ago, some mortgage loans were easy to obtain ... staging foreclosed homes in portland OR

... but eventually many of the loans defaulted, drastically changing the real estate market.

Many banks were left with homes that they had to sell. Typically, these homes sat on the market for months and many of them looked neglected and weren't appealing to buyers.

However, a few smart banks in Portland Oregon realized that by cleaning up these homes, staging them and listing them with realistic prices ~ they'd have a much better chance of selling. By selling these foreclosed homes more quickly, neighborhood values have been preserved as much as possible, and lucky buyers have snapped up bargains.

Our Portland home staging company has staged many foreclosed properties. Most of them had lingered on the market as new or nearly new construction for up to four years. Eventually, the bank took them back and then realized that staging would make them irresistible to buyers ~ and they were right! Here are a few examples of the foreclosed Portland-area homes that we've had the privilege to stage ...

This Portland house was on the market for 2+years as a vacant; then staged & sold in a couple of months:

This Lake Oswego OR property was on the market for 4 years! After staging, it sold in 90 days:

This foreclosure in Beaverton OR was on the market for 2+years & sold 6 weeks after staging: This Tigard OR foreclosure was on the market for nearly 3 years; after staging, it sold in 3 months:

And this West Linn, Oregon foreclosure sold in just 15 days!

These are just a few examples of the foreclosed homes that smart Portland-area banks have staged. Everyone in the transaction wins when foreclosed homes are staged to be as appealing as possible to potential buyers and sell faster as a result!

Bank-owned New Home on Cooper Mountain in Beaverton Oregon

Staging Foreclosure House #4

Lake Oswego Bank-Owned Home on the Market for 18 months ~ then Staged & Sold in 38 Days

Tualatin OR REO Property on the market for 2 years, then Sells in one Month

An Oregon Bank Believes in Staging their Foreclosed Properties

West Linn REO Property Sells in 15 Days

Wilsonville Property is Staged & Sold after 3 years on the Market

Kathy Burke

Danville, CA
Tori Toth

Howard Beach, NY
Anna Dovger

The Woodlands, TX

Re-Blog 1

Re-Blogged 1 time:

Re-Blogged By Re-Blogged At

Barb Hutson 01/23/2012 04:36 AM

Topic:

Location:: Oregon Multnomah County Portland

Groups:: Stage It Forward...; Home Staging; Services for Real Estate Professionals; Home Staging Business Sense - marketing, money & more; Portland Metro Real Estate

Tags:: portland banks stage foreclosed homes; portland or home staging; home stagers lake oswego or; room solutions home staging portland oregon

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Rainmaker
774,384

Joanna Cohlan

Fresh Eyes For Your Home - Chappaqua, NY

Designing, Decorating & Staging Westchester Homes

Hi Maureen, WOWIE, not the foreclosures we all expect. You did an amazing job and they deserve lots of cudos for using common sense and setting aside a staging budget to get these homes SOLD!

Jan 23, 2012 12:18 AM

Rainmaker
305,778

Karen Otto

Home Star Staging - Plano, TX

Plano Home Staging, Dallas Home Staging, www.homes

With results like these and helping to keep property values in neighborhoods higher, it makes complete sense for ANY property (including foreclosures) to be staged and marketed properly. It continues to be one of, if not the best investment that will return itself and then some when selling.

May I ask if the banks approached you or vice versa?

Great blog Maureen!

Jan 23, 2012 12:57 AM

Ambassador
1,550,635

John McCormack, CRS

Albuquerque Homes Realty - Albuquerque, NM

Honesty, Integrity, Results, Experienced. HIRE Me!

Maureen - WOW, what a difference staging makes! Wish banks would get off it and stage in the Albuquerque area. It would drastically make a difference!

Jan 23, 2012 02:39 AM

Rainer
39,798

Mona Lisa Harrison

iSellHouseUpstate.com - Greenville, SC

The Help You Need To Sell Your House

So glad to hear that banks are demonstrating some practical sense. How rare.

And of course it's the local banks, not the mega banks.

I too would like to know how you got these oportunities. The agents? the banks? Did you contact them or did they find you?

I have done one for a financial institution here. The agent involved me. Similar story to yours. On the market for over a year. sold in about 45 days after staging. We had to add lighting and paint and some flooring even though the house was less than 2 years old.

And just look at your great staging. Why should anyone be surprised that the house sells?

Jan 23, 2012 03:28 AM

Rainer
253,909

Anna Dovger

Add Value Home Staging LLC, 281-704-6607 - The Woodlands, TX

Home Staging -The Woodlands, TX

Maureen, I hope more banks will make a decision to hire a Stager for their foreclosure properties. Beautiful examples and great statistics. I have the same question as Karen plus I would like to know if banks pay you at closing. Was it the same bank or several of them are using your services.

Jan 23, 2012 03:30 AM

Rainer
255,303

Kim Gaston

RE/MAX Advantage Realty - Colorado Springs, CO

Colorado Springs REALTOR®, CNE (719)661-6987

Very glad to hear you were able to persuade them on the value of staging, Maureen. Hopefully, more local banks and possibly larger institutions will get on board to get their inventory sold. Excellent success story!

Jan 23, 2012 03:41 AM

Rainmaker
823,778

Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

Room Solutions Staging, Portland OR - Portland, OR

"Staging Consultations that Sell Portland Homes"

Thanks everyone for your comments! To answer your questions I'll reply here:

these homes were staged by a regional bank (as Mona Lisa guessed, they aren't one of the mega-banks);
the bank approached me for a staging proposal for the first one because they'd seen my staging at a model home;
the bank pays upfront for the staging, not at closing -- and always on time!
different listing agents were contracted by the bank to list and market these properties, and as a result some of those agents now recommend my staging services to their homeowner clients. Another seller contacted me to stage his home because he bought one of those foreclosures and wanted me to stage the house he was selling so it looked like that :-)

Other banks in our area have staged foreclosed properties, but we hope more of them will follow suit. It makes such good business sense, and it helps our local market when neighborhood values are kept intact with homes that sell rather than homes that just languish on the market with declining prices that drag everyone's values downward.

I highly recommend that other stagers contact their regional or local banks to show them how staging can help them!

Jan 23, 2012 04:28 AM

Rainmaker
823,778

Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

Room Solutions Staging, Portland OR - Portland, OR

"Staging Consultations that Sell Portland Homes"

Hi Barb ~ Thanks for the reblog! When investors who buy the foreclosed properties see the value in staging, it's surprising that more banks don't, isn't it?

Jan 23, 2012 05:36 AM

Rainer
98,546

Tori Toth

Tori Toth, International - Howard Beach, NY

888.667.6643 NYC & Beyond, HSR, SAR, RESA, LIBOR

Maureen I've always thought banks should be using us...glad to see you got some business out of it.

Jan 23, 2012 08:39 AM

#10

Rainmaker
823,778

Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

Room Solutions Staging, Portland OR - Portland, OR

"Staging Consultations that Sell Portland Homes"

Hi Tori ~ yes, banks should definitely consider home staging as an option for selling a home more quickly. It works, and everyone is happy!!

Jan 23, 2012 08:59 AM

#11

Rainer
253,684

Kathy Burke

Sensational Home Staging~~Danville, CA - Danville, CA

S.F. East Bay Home Staging

Maureen.....These regional banks are SMART to hire you to set their LISTINGS apart from the megabanks! In many areas the staging of these homes would be a BIG win for all involved! I hit the SUGGEST!!!

Jan 23, 2012 02:55 PM

#12

Rainmaker
823,778

Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

Room Solutions Staging, Portland OR - Portland, OR

"Staging Consultations that Sell Portland Homes"

Hi Kathy ~ if more banks around the country would try a little harder to get those homes marketed/staged/ and sold, the real estate market would be in better shape. Thanks for your support!

Jan 23, 2012 03:51 PM

#13

Rainer
240,300

Janet Jones

Just Your Style Interiors, LLC - Kihei, HI

Home Staging, Interior Redesign Kihei, Maui, Hawaii

Hi Maureen--I am glad to see the banks in your area have taken notice of the fact that dirty, vacant homes don't sell. A beautifully staged home by Room Solutions doesn't look like a distressed property--just a lovely home.

Jan 23, 2012 04:38 PM

#14

Rainer
440,823

Sally Weatherley

EXIT STAGE RIGHT - Vancouver, BC

Vancouver Home Staging, Home Stager Vancouver, B.C

Maureen - Banks love numbers, and your stats speak for themselves. It's just common sense to realize that staged homes will sell foreclosed properties faster. The numbers really do add up!

Jan 24, 2012 04:24 AM

#15

Rainmaker
823,778

Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

Room Solutions Staging, Portland OR - Portland, OR

"Staging Consultations that Sell Portland Homes"

Hi Janet ~ You're right, there's no reason for a foreclosed home to look anything other than appealing to buyers. Banks who want these homes off their books realize the value in the staging investment.

Hi Sally ~ Just like in any home marketing, using staging as a tool makes smart financial sense. Thanks for your comment!

Jan 24, 2012 04:33 AM

#16

Rainmaker
271,173

Cathy Lee

CL Design Services Home Staging - Danville, CA

ASP, IAHSP, RESA Danville, CA

Maureen, you do make a difference!!!! Fabulous work and great results.

Jan 24, 2012 02:56 PM

#17

Rainmaker
823,778

Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

Room Solutions Staging, Portland OR - Portland, OR

"Staging Consultations that Sell Portland Homes"

Hi Cathy ~ Thanks! We can all help our local banks with these homes and get them sold :-)

Jan 24, 2012 03:19 PM

#18

Rainmaker
823,778

Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

Room Solutions Staging, Portland OR - Portland, OR

"Staging Consultations that Sell Portland Homes"

Hi Valerie ~ With these homes, the banks were smart enough to make them look "move in ready" and that included staging them. Their formula obviously works!

Jan 25, 2012 07:04 AM

#20

Rainer
151,531

Wendy Tomm

Beyond the Walls - East St Paul, MB

CCSP, RESA-PRO, BBB - Wpg Realtors

Glad tha banks decided to stage and sell...this was the smart way to go. Fabulous photos which showcase your work beautifully.

Mar 02, 2012 08:51 PM

#21

Rainmaker
823,778

Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

Room Solutions Staging, Portland OR - Portland, OR

"Staging Consultations that Sell Portland Homes"

Hi Wendy ~ Smart banks are discovering that staging can really shorten market time. Thanks for your kind words!

Mar 03, 2012 01:11 PM

#22

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Rainmaker
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Maureen Bray Portland OR Home Stager ~ Room Solutions Staging

"Staging Consultations that Sell Portland Homes"

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