I received an email this morning from a client that I just had to share. This little story shows the seller's advantage by hiring a professional home stager for a pre-listing consultation. Here is a brief recap:
In January, 2009, Looking Fine by Redesign was contacted by a homeowner in Avon, OH for a pre-listing consultation. On January 29th, my assistant/husband and I met the sellers, and did a two-hour walk-through consultation. The homeowners were "all ears" and were very anxious to hear what we had to say about their home. This was a six year old, detached cluster home in a popular Avon, Ohio neighborhood where there are at least a half dozen other homes for sale within a couple of blocks. The home didn't need a lot of cosmetic work, but did need better furniture placement, depersonalized, and a "punch" of interest.
The sellers had done a lot of traveling and LOVED to collect unique art, including wood carved African Safari animals. One of our suggestions was to use their wood carved GIRAFFE as an "eye-catcher" on the plant shelf in the VERY high ceiling foyer...something "memorable" and "unique" that a buyer would remember after touring the home.
We followed up with a comprehensive assessment and action plan for them to complete the staging on their own. Fortunately, they were VERY motivated and both had a decent eye for design so they got to work on the changes immediately upon receiving the plan. As a standard practice, I checked in with the sellers periodically via email to see if they had hit any road blocks or needed additional help. They were progressing nicely.. great!
Fast forward two weeks..the home is put on the market. I sent another email this morning to "check in." This is the reply we received back from the seller:
"You won't believe it but we sold our house in 2 weeks! We got lucky and found the perfect buyer. Inspection was last weekend and everything looks like it will fall in place. All the feedback we got from the showings was great, so thanks so much for your help. And you'll get a kick out of this, we moved that giraffe to the foyer plant shelf as you suggested and the buyer loved it so much they wanted it as part of the deal. Hilarious! Thanks again!" Cameron L., Avon, OH
WOW...SOLD IN 2 WEEKS!!! These sellers did it right from the beginning. They hired Looking Fine by Redesign BEFORE they listed the home, they rolled up their sleeves and got to work and BELIEVED that staging their home would pay off. All homeowners should understand that a consultation with a professional home stager WILL make a difference. In these tough economic times many homeowners don't have the financial resources to pay to have their home staged, but a consultation will work wonders!
Did the giraffe sell the home? No. But the staging consultation, the motivated sellers' hard work, and pricing the home right did. The giraffe obviously helped the buyer "remember" this home though! While nobody really thought the giraffe would be a part of the sale....the homeowners were happy to include it in the sale. Little changes....BIG results!
I hope you enjoyed this quirky...yet SUCCESSFUL staging success story!
Teresa Mills-Schremm, is a Certified Professional Home Stager and owner of Looking Fine by Redesign, a North Olmsted, Ohio, Home Staging and Redesign firm. Providing homeowners in Cuyahoga and Lorain Counties with Affordable and Creative Staging Solutions! Call for a consultation at 440-655-5831, or email teresa@LookingFineByRedesign.com. "Let's Get It SOLD...Together!"
I loved your story. It took me back a few years to a young couple wanting the mirror and shelf I placed in the small entry. It can be just some small thing that makes a difference. The giraffe is more memorable than a mirror and shelf: good call on your part!
Great story and great idea. As a stager I am a firm believer in using something ecclectic to add a bit of charm. I wish more people would get the idea that a pre-listing consultation is a great tool in prepping one's home in these economically challenging times. (not to say they should not have us fully stage the house if possible and not everybody is capable of executing our recommendations) 
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