It is not good for Realtors to be alone...

I would love it, if home stagers would tie their fee to the closing of a transaction, just as we, real estate agents and transaction coordinators do. I would be more than happy to pay a home stager out of a successful closing.

I not sure if God was behind it..but glad you are here!

So many people find it impossible to look past the poor decor of a home or the clutter.  I think what you do is invaluable. 

Nice post Dale!  We are here to work as a team with the Realtors and the homeowners. 

Nicely said Dale. :)  Home Stagers are a very nice ingredient to add to the recipe. 

As a side thought to the payment at closing comment - some realtors pay for the home staging service, then either get fully reimbursed, or get an agreed upon portion paid back to them at closing.  Since a Stagers purpose is to enhance the marketing potential which is done prior to listing, their services don't carry out thorough the selling process, so that's why paying them at the time of service makes more sense.

Dale: Loved this creative, well-written post!

You are correct that by working hand-in-hand with a good home staging company, every Real Estate Agent gets a great marketing partner for their listings. Every Real Estate Agent who reads this post should give it a try - seeing is believing.

www.debrasdesigningdetails.com

Great post, we are just like the elves and Santa... we are the behind the scenes helpers but very necessary to the process.  My issue with the suggestion of being paid out of escrow - timing, I have to pay my helpers, buy or rent the stuff needed to stage, rent a truck, etc. at the time I do the job.  This is a lot out of pocket... and if the realtor is paying (definitely not necessary...) what happens if they lose the listing? Then how do I get paid?

Great Post! We partner with a number of Realtors who frequently thank us for taking over the parts of the real estate process which aren't their strengths - and which are ours - so everyone wins.

In regards to tying the staging costs into the closing costs, if it were just paying the staging fee, that might be negotiable. We rent a lot of furniture and accessories however and we wouldn't be running a successful business if we were constantly paying out for these rentals for our clients - and then if the house took too long to sell, or didn't sell .. or something happened .. then we don't get paid? Unfortunately that just isn't feasible.

With regard to taking the Staging fee at closing, there are a couple of Stagers in our area who have tried this. It just becomes too complicated when the home doesn't sell or goes into foreclosure. Way too much out of pocket expense and then having to deal with small claims court makes this an unattractive option. I know that realtors have a lot of marketing costs that they end up "eating" if the listing doesn't sell as well. However, the pay-at-closing model just hasn't worked well for any Stagers I know.

Hi Dale,

I love the way that you put this. Stagers are assistants to realtors in the listing process. 

I think the whole discussion of the fee takes away from the point of the post. I think I charge a very reasonalble fee for a consultation, and I don't charge a percentage of the sale price. Realtors, and property owners, should look at our fee as part of their marketing strategy. The fee is usually paid by the home sellers, just as they need to pay any other costs involved in selling a house. 

It is good to have an understanding of why more realtors don't call us. Please Doug, just give us a try, you will see how helpful we are, and worth every penny!

Dale a great post; I agree with Joanne - paying out of escrow just doesn't make sense for those of us who work in the industry.  we have expenses which have to be paid. Everyone gets paids when the job is finished - real estate agents get paid when their job is ended so stagers should too - home inspectors, cleaning services, landscapers - they all get paid when the service is performed why should stagesr be different? staging brings the highest ROI of any service and its measurable

Great article! Team work really does make a difference - We all win in team work!

Hi Dale,

so well written, I think we make a great Pair our the Perfect Pair a realtor friend says.

As stagers we need to promote and promote and show the added value to Realtors.  We all need to focus on our strenghts and I think home owners like to see a realtor with a strong team.

Louise

So true!  The list is long for Realtors. I never understand why they would want to take it on themselves.  AND how could anyone give everything their 100%?  Leave the preparation of a home for the market up to the professionals who do it 24/7. It will be a better result all the way around.