What Agents Really Want

3 Tips on What Agents Want from Home Stagers and a Staging Story

What a lot of home stagers don’t realize is that agents want different things in different real estate markets.  For instance, in a “buyers market” which was 2007-2011 agents just want the property to sell and not sit on the market like their competitions.  In today’s seller’s market, the savvy agent wants to get the best price (and sell quickly) but price is king.  Why?  Because the smart agent knows that if they can be the “high price” leader in their market, then people will give them their listing (instead of their competition).

I love this story told by Lori Murphy who was recently awarded a 2013 Best of Houzz award and nominated for the RESA Rising Star of the Year even though she essentially just completed her HSR training and started her business last year!  At the end of the story, I give my three tips on what agents want right now…

Hi Audra,

He continued to tell me how he wants someone who will give the seller the “bad news” so that he doesn’t have to, because he wants to keep his relationship with the seller.

The stagers they’ve been using seemed to just want the seller to like them.  He said, “I need someone who will explain to sellers “why” and help them understand it is important in preparing the house to sell.  I’d rather postpone putting it on the market by 4 weeks, if when it is listed it’s ready . . . every thing’s done.”

As I sat there listening to him, (he went on for an hour . . . I’ll try not to), I realized something.

At first I shook my head agreeing with him and thinking to myself, “well, of course, that’s what we do” . . . and then it hit me . . . I was trained that way.  But it became suddenly clear that because not every stager in Columbus, Ohio received their certification from the Home Staging Resource . . . . well, let’s just say the advantage I have became crystal clear.

Eventually it did make a little sense, and then a little more, and then came the first staging job . . . .and then it really came together!  lol

Audra, I’m so glad I made the choice to sign up with HSR!  And YOU . . . over the last year and a half, I have never felt that I was in this alone.

Thanks Lori for the story and photos.  Here are three tips for what I think real estate agents want and need right now:

1. Agents want to be listened to and understood – This may seem obvious but too many times the stager is trying to fit the agents needs into their business model rather than coordinating their pricing/services around what the agent needs.
2. Agents need “staging honesty” for them and their clients, so that the house will get “top dollar” – I see a lot of stagers do a “half staging” job  which looks worse than vacant sometimes because the scale is completely wrong.  As stagers, we need to be clear and honest about what the home needs to get the best price.  The agent does not want to be the “low priced” agent, so we need to be ruthless with the seller on what kind of return they can see in a seller’s market if they stage it well.
3. Agents need tools and resources that look great in order to resell our services to their clients – This is where so many home stagers go unnecessarily wrong!  Agents need beautiful looking sales materials to convince their clients that staging is the right thing to do.

Image is everything and that is why I just added a a 6-video and two-hour series about “Blinging Your Brand” in our HSR Member’s area because we have to make agents look good for their clients!

Cheers to all the talented home stager’s out there!  Any more tips you would like to add to this post?

XOXO – Happy Staging!

Audra Slinkey

Hope to hear from you!

1-888-563-9271

audra@homestagingresource.com

Seriously Flawed Study

This is not true staging by any means…

There was a study published by the Wall Street Journal* claiming that “staging” has no effect on the home’s sale price based on the photo above…seriously?!  The study had a group of people view virtually staged before-and-after photos and asked them whether they would pay more for the beige room (above) over the purple room (below).  Each of the respondents said they would not pay more money for the beige virtually staged room over the purple room.

How can anyone take this study even remotely serious is a minor miracle.  Here are the huge problems with this study:

• The rooms were “virtually staged” (not real, in person staging which is what “staging” is truly is)
• They were “virtually staged” by a someone who doesn’t appear to know much about staging from the looks of the “after” photos
• The “before” photos of a purple room (see below) and colorful furniture look so cartoon like, it’s almost laughable!
• Ironically, the respondents believed that “other” buyers would pay 3.7% to 4.0% less than value of the home if it’s not painted and fixed up.
• Virtual stagers are insulted by these photos since they don’t come close to the quality work that a true, virtual stager can do.

This isn’t even good virtual work…is this Mickey Mouse’s home?

I wasn’t going to even respond to this study since I didn’t want to bring attention to something so absurd but since there has been some chatter about it, let’s put this matter to rest once and for all.

Anyone with half a brain would look at that “after” photo and never in a million years call this a “staged” room!

In case you were one of those silly people who actually wanted to give this study credence and thought that room was “staged”…here is what “staged” really looks like of a home that sold for $100,000 over asking price in October, 2013 within 8 days of staging:

(This home was staged by Donna Dazzo of  Designed to Appeal in New York City)

Living Room Before

 

Living Room After

Living Room Before

Living Room After 

 

       Master Bedroom Before

 

Master Bedroom After

Boy’s Room Before

 

Boy’s Room After

 

 

Girl’s Room Before

    Girl’s Room After

  

Terrace Before

Terrace After

I guess it’s a good thing this home seller didn’t listen to “other” agents who think staging doesn’t work and cite this study…

By the way, I could have produced tons of other similar success stories and photos by the many amazingly talented home stagers across the country who have been maligned by this study.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that when you improve upon a product, you get a better price.

XOXO – Happy Staging!

Audra Slinkey

Hope to hear from you!
1-888-563-9271

audra@homestagingresource.com

*By the way, the study was called: “The Impact of Staging Conditions on Residential Real Estate Demand” and the Wall Street Journal article was called: “Home Staging Effect? Not Much.“

5 Reasons to Start a Staging Business in 2014

What is it that you love to do and are passionate about?  Chances are if you love it, you are truly gifted at it.   Do you get goosebumps when you walk into a book store and head to the interior design section?  Do you anxiously wait for your design magazines to come in the mail or get “geeked up” over organizing your closet?  Do you notice every design detail when you walk into a friends house and then subconsciously rearrange the space in your mind? If you answered “yes” to any of these seemingly absurd questions then you definitely have what I call the “design sickness” and the good news is there’s never been a better time to explore the possibility of creating a business doing it.  There is nothing more exciting then doing what you love and getting paid for it!

Here are five reasons (with statistics) why starting a staging and redesign business is a practical and perfect idea for 2014:

• Home Values Are On The Rise – What a roller coaster it has been but now in almost every area of the country, home values are going up.  What does this mean for stagers?  It means there is value in the sale of the home, so staging becomes a “windfall” of sorts for sellers who really want to get all they can out of selling their most prized possession.  (The median price of a house in the United States is $197,100 which is up over 10% from last year’s median price of $176,800 according to the National Association of Realtors NAR) (According to the National Association of Realtors, almost 20% more home sold over 2012 numbers:  5,160,000 homes in 2013 vs. 4,660,000 in 2012)
• Remodeling Is On The Rise – What happens when people start to take an interest in their homes?  They look for critical expertise from a home stylist, color expert and designer! (In an HGTV Magazine reader poll over 25% of readers underwent a big renovation, like a new kitchen or bath in 2013)  (In a 2013 Houzz survey of over 100,000 people over 53% plan a renovation in the next couple years, think it’s a good time and plan to hire professional help)
• Home Staging Was Specifically Listed As A “Best Career for 2013 and Beyond” – In an article by career guru, Marty Nemko, staging was listed as a best job and fastest growing career for the future. (Link to Article)
• Sellers Are Now Staging Savvy – With the rise of HGTV, Pinterest and Houzz the average seller understands the value of professional, design advice for both living and selling!
• Agents Are Now Staging Savvy – It’s taken home stagers years to educate the real estate industry of the benefits of staging and now home stagers have become a de rigueur part of preparing a home for sale.

The most famous real estate agent of all time, Barbara Corcoran is speaking at our Staging Convention in a couple weeks, so it’s incredibly encouraging to see how our work over the years in educating the public on staging has Barbara as a huge supporter and advocate!

 

Timing is everything and building a business is a luxury but the biggest regret I hear our member stagers say is that they wish they started earlier.

Here are just a few quotes from our members I thought was worth posting to encourage others that a new year, can mean so much to you…or it can pass you by.

Canadian Home Stager’s Interesting Advice

Whenever anyone enrolls for our staging and redesign course, I interview them to find out “where” they are coming from, “why” they are doing this and “what” is their ultimate goal.  I get a kick out of all the varied backgrounds people have before they “reinvent” themselves into the home staging and design world which in fact is probably where they should have always been!

After someone has taken our course about nine months in, I interview them again and share their insights with others so that we can all benefit.  Chelsea Waldner of Aspen Interior Designs had some interesting things to say, so I thought I’d share…

1.  What was your background before starting a home staging business and how did it serve you well in this new endeavor?

I am involved in construction and real-estate through my husbands company and my in-laws.  I was also a certified interior decorator before becoming a certified staging professional.  For me, this staging course was more useful and more comprehensive than the interior decorating course I took a few years prior.  It has given me the credibility that I needed to enter the staging industry as a professional while adding (very valuably) to the decorating background I already had.

2.  How long did it take you to go through the training/business set-up?  How long before you had your first consultation/appointment?

I went through the training in about 3 months and I had my first staging job within weeks.  That house sold in 6 days!  It had been on the market for 60 days already, unstaged.  Then I was hired to do a partial stage in just the kitchen and bathrooms and wow!  it made all the difference.  The house was on the market for another 2 days when it got a full list offer and it was officially sold 4 days later.

3.  Any words of wisdom for those just entering into the field?

Don’t be afraid to buy good condition, used furniture.  You will save a lot of money and build a bigger inventory in a shorter time than buying all new things.  Also, purchase as many neutral pieces as you can to increase your flexibility in staging a wide variety of home styles.

Accent with uniqueness and build your foundation on neutrality.

4.  What (if anything) would you have done differently looking back?

I would never have paid the money for the interior decorating course I took had I known the vast amount of knowledge I would gain through the HSR course.  In my opinion, the HSR course is more complex, more in-depth and covers more, useful, applicable design information than interior decorating courses alone.  This course teaches you about the psychology of design and that is very, very useful knowledge to have.

Are you glad you decided to go into the home staging field?  Why or why not?

I’m glad I took the course.  Staging is hard work.  For me, I find that moving a whole house in and out in the short amount of time it is on the market after it is staged is a real pain in the butt.  However, it does say something about the effectiveness of staging as a tool for real estate sales.  The longest any one of my stages has been on the market is 6 weeks.  That’s a lot of moving furniture!

Thanks Chelsea for sharing!

Click Here to see what your story can be…

Home Staging Career Outlook

Career Outlook for Home Stagers in 2013

Did you know that home staging was listed in January of 2013 as “one of the best jobs for 2013 and beyond” by AOL career guru, Marty Nemko?  How Marty had even heard of our little industry is a wonder but I have to give him kudos…because he totally gets it!

See Home Staging Listed as Best Job for 2013 and Beyond Article by Clicking Here!