No "naked" models, WHY??

I sell new homes and have the same problem.  They need to be staged for me to see them properly.

Patti, this is an ongoing dilemma.  I remember way back when - I started my career in New Home Marketing and convincing builders to properly model has always been tough.  That and landscaping...the same goes for getting home buyers to stage homes.  If they only understood how much faster things move when they are all dressed up!!

Marketing dollars are often the first budgets that get cut and are often cut the deepest.  It really is a shame that marketing is treated as an unimportant afterthought.  Staging makes all the difference.  We went to work for a home builder who had dozens of vacant homes, many had been on their books for over a year.  We went into their three mini-storage rooms that they had marked for clearance and cleaned out things that were decent (and some that weren't) and staged the homes, oldest first.  Several sold within one day, 1/3 within a week, and the rest within a month.  Can you imagine that we put the furniture in and the houses sold the next day?  We didn't complain about having to move it again so quickly.  They were even able to sell off some of the furniture with the homes.  I firmly believe in staging.

Good luck with your efforts.   Many marketing pros believe in you and know the value of your work!  You are a small price to pay to get inventory off the books.  

Patti,

Great post and so true!  As a professional home stager, I have seen this time and time again!  Today, a lot of builders who are cutting back on their budgets and are turning to home stagers as opposed to interior design firms to decorate their models.  It certainly is more cost effective, allows the potential buyers to place themselves living in the home, and builders will lose a lot less than having to take a price reduction on multiple homes! Professional Home Staging definitely SELLS more homes than Vacant ones!

 A vacant, empty room is hard to visualize living in!

                                                                                                                        A staged room transforms the space so that potential buyers can visualize themselves living in the space!

They do show better "staged".

Jim Fischetti

www.jimfischetti.com

Hey Patti,

I just joined this group - glad to be here!!  Michelle could not have said or shown better what the proper ASP Home Staging can do for Model Homes.

Home Staging Professionals can do a multitude of things at many different price points.  We suggest always Staging the Living Areas and the Master Bed & Bath.  The latter is most important as that will be the place any potential Buyers will lay their heads at night!

In this trying economic time ASP Home Stagers use more of their Creativity and less of your dollars to create emotion in Buyers which will promote the greatest interest in your property!

Patti,

I worked recently for a builder that had adopted the notion that "His homes would sell themselves". Oh how wrong he was. Proper decorating can enhance a great floor plan and greatly enhance an average floor plan. People buy the sizzle, not the steak.

I absolutely agree.  I am one of those 90% that cannot visualize what an empty space would look like furnished.  On the other hand, advertising "Naked Models" would almost surely generate some traffic. :)

Builders do drink the kool aid that our homes are so great they should sell themselves.  In reality, it takes staging, good signage, good collateral marketing pieces, etc.

Patti, I agree. Staging and decorating the model is a really good way to create lifestyle and start some casual conversation about the decor. I am going to take some of your advice and integrate some pictures of the golf course that surrounds my community into my model decor.