YOU'VE GOT 10 SECONDS TO CREATE THE FIRST IMPRESSION |
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The way you live in your home
& the way you market and sell your house ARE TWO VERY DIFFERENT THINGS! |
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Putting your home up for sale can be VERY EXCITING since it suggests a new future. But at a time when first impressions are so important, deciding where to start can be a daunting task. Few homes are ready to go on the real estate market without some degree of preparation and, along with the normal activities of day-to-day living, it can all seem a bit overwhelming! When you bought your house, it didn't become a "home" until you put your own personal touches (decorating) in it. When you sell that home, it has to once again become a "house", removing your personal touches so potential buyers can envision their own things in it and not feel like they're invading your personal spaces. That's what Home Staging is all about—preparing and marketing your "house" so it appeals to the broadest number of potential buyers for the best price in the shortest time. |
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Realtors tell us that these potential homebuyers are already forming an opinion when they pull up to the curb. Everything after that first ten seconds in the front door is their attempt to validate that first impression. Homebuyers start house hunting with a logical list of criteria, but the home they actually buy is typically chosen based largely on emotion. Once a buyer falls in love, forget logic! Suddenly the "must haves" on their list don't seem so necessary. Dr. Design© Home Staging & Redesign can give your property that feeling of "this is home."
MAKE THEM FEEL LIKE THEY'RE
ALREADY HOME AND
THEY'LL WANT TO STAY!
Homeowners naturally become attached to their home and furnishings and the way they have decorated. It's much harder for them to detach themselves emotionally from the home and see it the way a buyer would see it. In short, it's hard for them to be objective.
Professional home staging is the "art" of affordably preparing a home for resale. It involves creating "flow," eliminating clutter, editing and arranging furniture and accessories, maximizing color and space as well as crafting that all-important curb appeal.
A home stager will objectively see past the decorating and furnishings with "buyers' eyes" to highlight the beauty and architectural details of the home that should be featured. It's simplifying the furnishings and clutter so it is easier for prospective homebuyers to see the home's best features. If there's too much of "you" in the home, potential buyers will be distracted from seeing the best features of the property. They can't envision themselves in that house if there's too much of "you" there. Homes sell on the basis of location, price and presentation. The only thing you can truly control is presentation. That's what Home Staging is all about!
In many cases, your house is competing with new homes in the area, many of which have furnished models that are staged to appeal to the greatest number of buyers. In today's world, buyers are also shopping online for the homes they wish to preview.
In either case, you're in competition with a lot more homes in today's real estate market than in years past. Since only 6% of home sellers currently utilize the services of a home stager, their properties can compete well with model homes or Internet searches of homes in the same price range.
As more and more people become acquainted with "home staging" services and more realtors expect homes to be prepared for sale in this way, it will become more necessary to stage a property before putting it on the market than ever before.
10 REASONS TO PROFESSIONALLY STAGE YOUR PROPERTY
Professionally Staged Properties:
 | Sell faster (13.9 days as opposed to 30.9 days for unstaged homes-New York Village Voice) |
| The longer your house stays on the market, the lower your selling price will be |
| Typically sell for more money (on average, 17% higher-US Dept of Housing & Urban Development) |
| Sellers get almost a 200% return on the money they invest in home staging |
| Look better than others on the market |
| Look better in print and Internet ads |
| Leaving your house in "as is" condition will help sell the competition |
| Are viewed by buyers as "well maintained" and move-in ready |
| Most home sellers can not view their house objectively |
| Only 10% of homebuyers can visualize the potential of a home |
(Compiled by the Real Estate Staging Association©2007 & Home Staging Resource.com)
How Does Home Staging Work?
Our job as home staging professionals is to quickly determine your home's best assets as well as its flaws. From that, we develop a plan to take full advantage of the property's potential appeal for homebuyers. We can also help create that "staged home" to maximize your selling price and minimize the time your home is on the market. We offer several "layers" of service—you decide how much help you want! (Items below with an asterisk* are fee-based)
Level 1: Consultation*
Our consultations are generally 1-1½ hours long and start with a complete and thorough walkthrough of your home using "buyer's eyes" to give you a detailed analysis of its best attractions and features as well as the trouble spots. This includes curb appeal, room-by-room assessments, and what modifications or repairs will bring in the most benefit for your time and money. This walkthrough will include recommendations for dealing with clutter, new furniture placements including artwork and accessories, possible changes in wall colors or window treatments and additional items that might enhance the space. Frequently we suggest "repurposing" something from one room to another to do this. During this walkthrough, you are welcome to take notes and ask questions. Your real estate agent is also welcome to join us.
After the walkthrough, you have several options:
· | Receive a comprehensive written report from the Dr. Design team, complete with floor plans, suggestions and a prioritized to-do checklist (requires us to take digital pictures of your rooms)* |
· | Decide what recommendations you want to address |
· | Decide what items you think you can do yourself, given your time and expertise levels (If you choose this option, you might want to consider Level 3 below.) |
· | Decide if you want the Dr. Design team to do some of the work* |
Level 2: Staging*
If you decide that you want our help, together we will discuss which rooms the Dr. Design team will transform and then submit a bid for services, including your budget, timeframe and specifics of what will be accomplished by both you, the homeowner, and the Dr. Design team. After contracts are signed, our team will come in and
(a) | De-clutter |
(b) | Clean |
(c) | Repair or bring in other trades people to complete the task |
(d) | Neutralize and de-personalize your space to eliminate distractions to buyers, and |
(e) | "Dyno-mize" your space with accents, accessories and special touches to appeal to a broader range of potential homebuyers. |
The process typically takes a half-day per room unless painting is required. Time can also be shortened (and costs reduced) if you are able to help. We try to use your possessions to complete the "look", but we may also recommend purchase of some items or rental while your home is on the market.
At the end of the day, you'll have rooms that are artfully arranged using your existing furnishings and accessories to create warm and inviting spaces that will appeal to a wide audience of potential homebuyers. We'll give you a tour of these new spaces, pointing out the reasons for our choices and leave you with tips on how to keep it looking that way while it's on the market. Let's face it, for an investment of a few hours and typically less than $1000, your home can be a standout in today's very competitive real estate market. Research has shown that an investment in this range brings a 200% return! It's not a cost; it's the investment that will probably make your home sell faster and without painful price reductions.
Level 3: Photo Shoot or Open House Prep*
Whether we do the work or you do, you might want to invite us back to give your home those extra finishing touches to prepare for a real estate photo shoot (for brochure, flyer and/or Internet) or an Open House. Simple touches like flower arrangements, staged vignettes and luscious smells can add still more to that emotional connection you want to make with potential homebuyers. Your home will be prepared—visually, emotionally and move-in ready!
Dr Design Home Staging & Redesign offers a wide range of consulting services to fit your needs and budget, focusing on helping to ease the stresses that often accompany preparing a home for the real estate market. Selling your home is one of the most important steps in your life! For most of us, selling our home means cashing in our biggest asset and investment. Dr. Design can quickly develop a plan to get your home "show-ready". We can give you the plan so you can do the work yourself, or manage the entire process for you, or any combination of the two. The choice is yours.
Thinking of selling? Have a home that hasn't sold? Let us be the "stagehands" that help your production open to rave reviews on opening day! Call today. We are here to help you maximize your profits, maintain control and reduce the stress that comes with preparing your home for sale.
Home Staging FAQ's
How does home staging affect the price of a home?
When you and your real estate agent determine an asking price, you can usually assume that potential buyers will make offers less than that price. With a staged home, there will be more offers and they are far more likely to be at or close to the original asking price.
My house isn't worth being "professionally staged."
While you may be annoyed at the prospect of spending money to fix up the house you are selling, think of it as a small investment to get top dollar rather than a low-ball offer. Even spending a mere $100 for an initial consultation should net you thousands in return and speed the sale of your home. Unless your home is worth less than $50,000, this has been statistically true over time consistently across the nation.
The housing market is good and my house doesn't need to be staged to sell!
It is indeed true that every property will sell—eventually and at what price. Remember, statistics show that professionally staged homes sell for at least 6% more than unstaged homes (based on HomeGain statistics). If you sold your home for $400,000, you probably could have sold it for almost $425,000 if it were staged.
The housing market is really slow and nothing is selling. Why should I spend money to stage it?
A sluggish real estate market is the IDEAL time to stage your home! With so many houses on the market, you want yours to stand out from all the rest. If you don't believe it, spend a weekend going to open houses for homes in your asking price range (your competition). Which ones stand out in your mind and which ones are totally unremarkable? Even in a slow market, houses are selling. You want yours to be one of them.
Can't potential homebuyers use their imagination and just look past the décor (or clutter) in my home?
Actually, only about 10% of homebuyers can actually visualize the "potential" of a home! Clutter eats up equity! If they see lots of things taking up space, they assume the house is too small or there's not enough storage space. If it doesn't look clean, they assume it's not well maintained and will reduce their offer to offset the presumed costs of painting, landscaping and general repairs—money out of your pocket! This is also true of vacant homes—potential homebuyers can't envision the size and scale of furnishings to fill the space.
My house is already on the market. Is it too late for home staging?
It's never too late! If your home has been on the market for more than two months and there's no action, home staging can be the "facelift" you need to attract new buyers and give previous ones a reason to reconsider.
I know I have too much stuff. What can I do with all of it if I stage my house?
Think positively! Start packing! When your home sells, you'll need to do it anyway—just start early. Many people in this situation rent a space at a storage facility for a short period of time to keep these items safe and damage-free.
How much will home staging cost me?
A simple initial walkthrough and verbal consultation can cost as little as $100 for an hour of your time. Using "buyer's eyes", we may recommend repairs in addition to staging advice and those costs can't be generalized, but you can be sure your potential buyer will (a) drop their offer to account for the repairs, or (b) expect you to fix it before they move in. As far as staging is concerned, you can do the work yourself or have the Dr Design team complete some or all of it. The cost for this service is dependent on the number of rooms and the extent of the work needed. You can eliminate some of these costs by doing such things as packing up smaller items that won't be needed, changing wall color or removing wallpaper if recommended, and doing general cleaning and repairs, since we bring in additional trades people for many of these services. All this will be discussed with you in detail as we prepare our service agreement outlining the scope of work and estimated cost. Typically, our services are around $500 a day. How much we can accomplish in that time is different for each house and room, but you'll know ahead of time so you can decide. If it's necessary to rent furnishings or you choose to make some purchases, those costs can add significantly to the bottom line, but it's still less than that first price reduction if your house sits on the market for too long or doesn't look its best. Lastly, if you decide to do most or all of the work yourself, we strongly recommend that you invite us back in before Open House to make any last minute adjustments and provide that final sparkle! This service typically takes 1-2 hours and costs $100.
I know my house needs a few repairs. Should I fix them or sell the house "as is?"
You're leaving money on the table if you don't fix those items before you put your house on the market. The Dr. Design team (or your real estate agent) can tell you which ones will give you the most return for your time and monetary investment. Most people want to move into a house that requires little work except for their own decorating. If you present a home that is going to require lots of fixing or renovating, you can be sure potential buyers will take that (and they always estimate high) off their offer in anticipation of the work and expense.
Can't my real estate agent just tell me what to do to increase the "sale-ability" of my home?
While agents are experts in the field of selling homes and closing deals, many are not "design savvy." They usually know exactly what factors can help sell a home, but it's not the same thing as getting the home into selling condition. Professional home stagers can provide this service to you and your agent that will oftentimes promote a quicker sale for more money.
How do I decide which Home Stager to hire?
You should find and select a professional home stager much like you would hire any other professional service for your home. By all means, interview potential home stagers you are considering, either by phone, email or in person. Are you comfortable speaking with this person? Does he/she seem to understand your needs? Do they sound confident and interested in your project? Review their portfolio and check out some of their references, as you would any other professional service provider. Although there is no nationally recognized certification for home staging, many professionals have earned designations that represent the training they have completed. In addition, you should expect to receive a written contract if the stager is doing more than a simple consultation. This contract should outline fees, timelines, expectations, cancellation policies, liability coverage, satisfaction guarantees and other elements unique to your project. Lastly, can they meet your deadlines? After you've decided what services you want or need, be sure to work closely with your stager to get the best possible result.
Home staging is about highlighting the best features of your house and making potential homebuyers fall in love with it! It's skilled marketing to get maximum profit for your home with minimum cost using simple tips and inexpensive fixes. The Dr. Design team can help you accomplish this goal. Click here for a detailed list of our services and rates.
We're so confident that you'll love our work that we offer a 100% SATISFACTION GUARANTEE! If you (and your real estate agent) don't think our efforts have improved the potential sale of your home, we'll refund your money. It's that simple! Click here to see what some of our clients have said about our work. We're here to help you!