Lately I have been finding that the smart Realtors are calling for a professional Home Staging consultation on every listing.
Why the change?
A few reasons.
With so much competition on the market right now, they realize that to make their listing stand out from the crowd online they need to get their clients motivated to prepare their properties for sale.
Realtors know that if they list properties not ready to show they will see their marketing expense balloon out of control.Properties that have not been prepared do not show well online. Bright paint colours and vibrant patterns do not allow buyers online to see the features of a home.
Plus clients are letting their Realtors know that they do not want to languish on the market like they see so many other listings in their neighbourhood.
With over 80% of buyers looking online for their next house, clients that decide to follow the suggestions that I make end up with a property that shows well online resulting in traffic to their listings.
6 White Elm in Barrie listed with Dianne Beauchesne with RE/MAX is an example of the suggestions that I made to market a home being carried out by the homeowner.
The main floor is very inviting and a family could see easily how this could be their new dream home.
In the perfect scenario, the vibrant colours in the children's rooms should have been neutralized to show better online. Overall the house shows very well and you can now see the features in each room of the house.
This property sold in 30 days for 98% of the list price. Another Staging success story.
Investment, minimal.
Impact, priceles.
Good post/info. I am using a stager for the first time next month for a listing. I really do see the value in it, especially in this market!
HI Kristen, a professional home stager will help make or break or bottom line this year. Congratulations on finding a stager you can work with. Let us know how it works for you.
You found a savvy realtor and were then able to provide cost effective assistance that works well for the homeowner and the realtor.
That's what our profession is all about. Good work! Kristin smart move on your part.
HI Sharon, teamwork between Realtors and Home Stagers is going to be one of the most cost effective ways to move real estate this year. I would love to Stage every house I consult on, however, the reality is that some homeowners do not have a budget to invest in home staging or they are a "can do" kind of person that you just need to provide a focused plan for them to follow.
Anyway you slice it, home staging is here to stay and is one of the most effective ways of marketing properties for sale.
Well said! Staging is just a "norm", now, and not some maybe "add-on", as may have been the case six or seven years ago.
Great post Michelle :)
Michelle, we do suggest, but our suggestions aren't always welcome.
We also sometimes can't even suggest decluttering or removing some things from countertops, etc.
Some people just aren't receptive to change, no matter what.
Sometimes it's not that the Realtor isn't smart, or that they don't suggest it, until they're blue in the face, and sometimes even offer to pay part of the costs..... sometimes no matter what, we just can't get them to agree.
The ones who are receptive and agree to let us work with a stager, do usually get a faster sale, and sometimes for a better price.
Hi Li, as you say, it is the norm now to get noticed online. I ask my clients that I stage for.. how are you looking for your new home? They all say the same thing. Online. I ask them.... and how long to do you look at each listing? I can see them counting in their head, and then they usually reply about 10 seconds. And then they click through to the next listing.
What makes them click through? Loud vibrant colours, rooms so cluttered with furniture you can't see the room, loud patterns on bedding and draperies, features can't been seen in the room. To get your buyers to take action, give them what they want to see. Market your home for sale!
Hi Wendy, thank you for the support. We need to sing a little louder for more Realtors and homeowners to hear the message.
Hi Sylvie, I hear what you are saying. I know you are one smart Realtor and if you have tried your best to get the client to listen to your suggestions, at some point you have to say to yourself that you can't help all the people all the time. Best to have your stats handy, or the stats of your home stager in writing as part of your listing proposal.
I had a Realtor that tried to get his client to remove the 12" x 12" hunter green tiles from the ensuite. They were on the floor, up the walls about 4 feet. The extra long tub was hunter green, the two double sinks and the counter top too.
I was called in after 5 months on the market. I finished my consult at 11 that night. The Realtor called me at 8 the next morning and said "I don't know what you said to the homeowner and I don't want to know, but he started to remove all the tiles at midnight last night and he was at the Home Depot at 7 this morning and has bought neutral tile, tub, sinks and counter top to neutralize the ensuite and bring it up to date.
The home sold 2 weeks later.
You can't always get your client to agree to have a home staging consultation. Once there, I ask them what is their motivation for selling and get them to buy back into the plan that they had to move. That motivates them to make the changes. Once you get the okay for the consultation ( by being enthusiastic about the capabilities of your stager and providing current staging stats, then I do my magic and get the client motivated to change.
Call me on your next tough case to crack and let me see what I can do for you!
Realtors that we have worked with comment frequently about how much more their sellers are willing to do to prepare their homes for sale after a staging consultation. We've found the synergy between the team of a professional stager and realtor is a powerful combination!
Hi Margaret,
Synergy- what a great word to describe the teamwork between Realtors and Home Stagers. :)
Of course they can do it themselves with good directions from a stager.
The bedrooms scared me a little bit and I'm sure that they didn't want to paint them now while the kids are living in them
Home staging consultations are definitely on the rise, especially since people are trying to conserve their pennies. It is important to offer many levels of service to try and meet everyone's needs (within reason, of course).
HI Virginia, I know what you mean. The colours just don't show well on line at all. Homeowners are reluctant to change their children's rooms as the fear upsetting them even more than they are already in regards to moving away from their school and friends.
I usually find that once you involve them in the process they are okay with it. I suggest we try some new colours here to see if they will love them in the new house. In this case, I was not able to meet the children and had no opportunity to make suggestions and get them on board with the staging.
Hi Lisa, That is the way to make home staging work this year. Offer a plan to suit the budget of your client, expand your opportunities to market more homes. Get the buzz going!