What's Wednesday's Word? Stager

When I started selling real estate more than half my life ago, the word staging was never used.  As the seller's agent, I  would simply give the seller some suggestions on how to prepare the house for showing and that would be that.  Some of my suggestions would fall on deaf ears.  People seemed to have imagination back then and they could see potential without having to be shown potential.  They seemed to realize that once that flock wallpaper came down and the blood red carpet was removed, their belongings would look perfect in that house on King Street with the lovely front porch.

Not so today.  Today's buyer wants to see a clean, pottery barn displayed home with very little personal touches.  It seems that in order to see themselves there, they need a clean slate with muted "today's" colors.  To compete in the market today, it's not good enough to just listen to your trusted real estate agent, you must also follow the rules of your trusted real estate agent's stager.

We provide a staging consultation for all of our seller clients.  We encourage them to do as many things on the list that our stager Debbie gives them as they can humanly do.  Debbie knows her stuff and when our clients listen to her and do most of what she says, their homes sell and usually sell quickly.  Debbie's website points out that a prospective buyer often decides within 20 seconds if your home is right for them.  She also says that whenever a buyer thinks a home needs a physical change, they deduct $10,000 from the asking price and that a buyer is more attracted to a home when the furniture is properly placed.  

The condo in the photograph was listed by two different agents before I listed it in the winter of 2016.  Neither of the previous agents used a stager or a professional photographer.  I enlisted my stager and the seller did everything she suggested.  The home sold very quickly after that.

 Staging is just one of the important parts of getting a home ready for sale.  Both the interior and the exterior.  The exterior gets them in the door.  The interior invites them to stick around.  Proper pricing and professional photography also come into play.

If you've been thinking of selling your home, call us!  As part of our marketing plan, you will receive a staging consultation and once you have completed the list of items, our professional photographer will take dazzling photos so that your home will shine against the competition.

 Cover Photo by Jolene Hardy on Unsplash