A Throwback Thursday Staging Story…Don’t Wait
One of my favorite staging consultations was one I never gave. Years ago I received an inquiry from a seller whose home had been on the market for a year. (This was in a good market!)
When I asked him why he thought his home had been sitting for so long, he mentioned he thought it might be that he needed new carpet which had been stained by his dogs, as well as other maintenance issues he had not addressed.
He had not painted the house in more years than he could remember.
I told him that there were 3 important components that added to the “sale-ability” of a home…Price, Location, and Condition.
Price…he was $100,000 below the other homes in his market.
Location…He was in a very desirable area Palm Beach County.
Condition…the seller recognized this was the issue and admitted that when he’d first met his agent, he was reluctant to invest any more money into his home.
The agent said not to worry “We’ll knock several thousand off the list price. Don’t worry about fixing anything.”
Mr. Seller asked if I could come out and “do my magic” with his furniture or take everything out and bring in rental pieces.
Of course I could…however, I would be wasting his money and my time! I suggested that he would be better off addressing the maintenance items as well as painting and updating where he could.
When he’d done all of this, if he wanted, I’d be happy to come out.
When I touched base with him, he’d replaced the carpet, painted, addressed some maintenance issues, and had done some updates.
He also fired his agent and hired the agent he should have hired in the first place.
Houses need to be ready to show BEFORE the For Sale sign goes up.
Not investing in the condition of your property costs you money every day it’s on the market.
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