What do you do with a wide hallway that is wasted space? Leave it empty and hope the buyer can envision a use for it? Or do you create a yoga/pilates area for mum! I try to do this in each house I Stage. If they do not have an exercise room I look for opportunities to create a retreat in the house. You have to sell lifestyle at every opportunity. People buy into the idea of good health and want to believe if they have a room to practice a healthier lifestyle they will use it.
This house sold in 5 weeks and set the benchmark price in the neighbourhood in Scarborough.
Advantage Staging will market the features of your property to stand out from the competition every time.
Investment, minimal.
Impact, priceless.
Michelle - I have spent the morning reading your posts! I was pulled in by the WalMart Floral one. I think you have a great blog and your ideas and concepts are very simple to understand. You certainly have a new subscriber in me!
Hi Leesa, Thank you for joinging me on my adventures in Staging!
That is me, simple and easy to understand. I have been called blunt on many occasions. I tend to call a spade a spade and not a pitchfork! My logo is a daisy for a reason. Simple and clear.
I explain to my clients that this is all being done for one reason only. And that is to make them more money on their largest investment. They have worked hard for what they have, why give it away?
If they reduce their price by $ 10,000 that is really $ 20,000 in after tax dollars. (Here in Canada we have very high personal tax rates, usually 45% for most people) so Staging is one of the most important ways to make money on their properties.
Once you start talking about them keeping their money, they start listening real close. No one else ever explains it to them this way but to me it is all black and white.
Michelle ~ I am also enjoying reading about and seeing your wonderful creative expressions in our world of staging. You are also encouraging as well, as you invite others to join in the fun and share their ideas!
Thanks for your inspration!
Hi Susan, Glad you are enjoying my adventures in Staging. I have found the most useful information here on Active Rain. I encourge Realtors, Mortgage Brokers and Stagers to log on and see for themselves. Some people know about it but don't participate, others have no awareness of it.
I am always looking for ideas for these "dead" spots in a home. I hesitated to add a desk here as it was really a land locked space with no window to the outside. So I thought to myself, well I don't like to exercise in public. I like to have a quiet space to gather my thoughts and prepare myself for the day. So this is what I came up with. As soon as I passed through this space I knew I was going to hang this piece of artwork here. It is from Ikea. I always place a teapot and cup in the space as I start my day with green tea. I even found a little yoga picture for $5. The whole look was probably $50 and I have actually been told that people sit down in the space to try it out. How amazing is that! A marketers dream come true.
Love what you did here in the hallway. It adds to the Zen . Looks wonderfuly peaceful
Hi Fernando, Thank you for appreciating the Zen quality I was trying to achieve. This house sold in 4 weeks and has set the benchmark price for the neighbourhood. The Realtor was ecstatic with the results as it was the first time he had used a Staging service. We met at a Realtor Trade Show and went from there.
It was the one "room" everyone commented on and it was actually a image used for the Feature brochure of the listing. It really made the property stand out from the pack.
Michelle, I've been ready your posts and LOVE THEM!!! I practice Yoga and Pilates regularly and you nailed this one with me. I can't believe how I overlooked an idea like this when I enjoy it SO MUCH. Definitely it's all about lifestyle, GREAT POST!!!
Hi Carolina, It really does appeal to a lot of people. I submitted it to HGTV and they actually filmed this house for one of their shows. It airs in January so I will post when I know exactly when it will be on.
What a great idea! Much more interesting than an empty space. Exercise areas are something that a lot of people wish they had, whether they use it or not :-)
Hi Lisa, so true, how many houses that we go to Stage have a one or more pieces of exercise equipment right in the master bedroom. They never use it for anything other than a clothes hanger! I think the idea behind having it in the master bedroom is that you will be reminded to use it if it is in front of you. But really all it does is remind you of how much a failure you are at getting in shape and can't keep commitments even when they are for your own good. It is much better to have a dedicated space for exercise equipment in a space that invites you to come in and use it in good frame of mind.