Marina; I am totally in your camp. Hiring a professional home stager should be as much a part of the home selling process as hiring a home inspector. I think this will become the norm, sooner rather than later. We have HGTV and the internet to thank for that.

Marina, With all due respect, I think I can stage a home very effectively.  I have been in plenty of homes and worked with enough buyers to know what keeps a home from selling.  No, I don't have any special training, but I see it as an added-value to the service I provide to my sellers.

While I do respect stagers who have chosen it as a profession, much like interior decorators, it just isn't a service I would take advantage of personally.

Here's to a GREAT '08!

Be of service! The rewards will come!

www.mattcrow.com

 

I have heard the same analogy and prediction from others in the industry. I do hope you are right--the question is how long will it take? 

Matt, now that you've put yourself out here you know that we stagers are going to be taking a look at your work...right?  So I have a couple of questions for you.  I don't mean to be disrespectful or challenging, but since you took the time to comment about staging AND you are a realtor, you are a perfect candidate to give us some insight. 

In checking your website, I noticed that several featured listings, have very limited photos.  Why?  Again I'm not trying to challenge.  Did the seller's not allow more shots? 

 Also, if you stage your listings why are several of them vacant or they have very limited items to highlight the features of the homes?

These are questions that we stagers wonder, all of the time, and your insight could help us understand and be a bit more compassionate with the issues that we see. 

Thanks again for putting yourself out here. 

 

Ginger, Some homes are more photographic than others.  Limited photos generally mean that some rooms couldn't be photographed well.  I don't stage all of my listings...I didn't say that I did.  I would never encourage a client with a vacant property to rent furniture to try and sell the home. 

My point in my original post was aimed more at occupied properties where clients simply have too much stuff, or stuff arranged for their life in the home, not arranged to sell it.  

While I am certain that their is a need for stagers, I simply wouldn't utilize the service, personally.  I am well aware of the fact that many people wouldn't hire an agent to sell their home.  They can buy a $2.99 sign and stick it in the yard, take out a classified ad in the newspaper and put it on Craig's List themsleves.  Not an efficient way to get a home sold, but sometimes can be effective.

Matt, thanks for taking the time to comment again.  We all come from different point of view and helping us to understand your point of view is one of the great things about AR. 

Good selling to you and Happy New Year. 

 

 

Ginger - I Couldn't agree more! 

Here's to a GREAT '08!

Be of service! The rewards will come!

www.mattcrow.com

Matt: Just curious why you would never encourage a client with a vacant property to rent furniture to try and sell the home? Photos of your listings are competeing with 100's of other listings on the MLS and places like Zillow and Trulia. Why would a potential buyer want to spend their time looking at a listing with photos of empty rooms, when they can go look at a house that looks appealing, inviting and ready to move in? Personally, I think you are doing your clients a disservice not to use every tool available to help sell their homes faster and for more money.

Michelle,

The majority of my business is in a very specialized market.  Most of listings have little or no competition.  For these people, renting furniture would be a horrible waste of money.  In one recent case, a client with a vacant home suggested renting furniture and I explained that I would much rather have them reduce the price of the home by the amount the furniture would have cost.  Price is overwhelmingly the winner to attract buyers in my market.

Here's to a GREAT '08!

Be of service! The rewards will come!

www.mattcrow.com

 

Marina ~ I believe you're right, at some point in the not-too-distant future, many more homes will be staged as a standard part of the marketing process.

Matt -- I looked at some of your listing photos and have to say, your clients probably have left some $$ on the table with the poor quality of photos and lack of advice to them about picking up dog bones off the floor, clearing junk off counters & tables, etc.  But if you have all the business you want though that's great!  Smart realtors really get the staging piece though, in my opinion.

Yup...you are right on this.  As a Realtor too, I did also live through the Inspector introduction into the real estate industry.  At first we didn't trust that they were trained enough to have so much power.  Hum...maybe realtors are worried about our qualifications?  Presentation is everything guys.  I really believe it, show that when you have done and they'll let you show them what you can do.  The industry does need something like RESA (member run trade association)too to become consumer conscious, reather than our training vendors running an association.  The public is smart enough to get that distinction.  We have to lead in that rather than have the public demand it first.  It gives us credibility and teeth as a new industry. 

I had forgotten all about this post.  Good infomation and comments still appropriate for the market today.  The basics don't change.