Have you considered Home Staging for the Holidays? 

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I have noticed a number of stagers talking about business slowing down around this time of year. Have you considered offering "Staging For The Holidays" services? I'm not talking about putting up Christmas decorations (or decorations for your religious holiday of choice) although that can be part of the services offered. I'm talking about helping homeowners primp and prepare their homes for holdiay visitors.

Business hasn't slowed down for us at Moving Mountains Design Home Staging. In fact I am looking to hire another assistant to help get through the holidays. Besides home staging, we are also working on several other non-staging projects:

• Accessorizing a home that has lovely furniture, but no art and limited accessories. In addition we are providing new lamps and custom window treatments in the master suite and office. The homeowner wants to create a retreat from the holiday hustle and bustle. And she wants her home to look fabulous for the holidays.
• Helping a client get settled into a new home in time for Thanksgiving. Besides arranging the furniture (and providing a few new pieces) we are shopping for new accessories, bedding , artwork and towels. This does not have to be expensive. We are doing most of our shopping at Target, IKEA and Marshalls.
• Consulting with a client to rearrange her furnishing and provide some new accessories for a fresh look before her Thanksgiving guests arrive.
• Arranging to put up a 15' tall Christmas tree in the front entry of a home, so when the family, who's had a difficult year,  comes back from spending Thanksgiving with Grandma and Grandpa, they will be greeted with a fabulous Christmas display.  A lot of the decorations will come from Home Goods or Tuesday Morning.  Again, not expensive.
• Helping a client select and purchase new carpet for their livingroom and dining room in time for the holidays.
• Working with two separate clients to create an inviting entry for thier homes. Curb appeal and first impressions are not just for homes on the market. Basically this entails having the front door painted, adding shiny new door hardware, and adding some colorful ceramic pots planted with beautiful and complimentary flowers.

We have marketed our "Stage Your Home For The Holidays" with an email blast to the Real Estate Agents and consumers on our mailing list. It has brought us lots of work and interest from new clients. If you want to try to market this service, be sure to emphasize that most Holiday Staging can be accomplished quickly and in a very cost effective manner. People may be spending less money this year, but there will be people spending money. What better gift to give themselves than a spruced up room or whole home that will give them enjoyment all year long, not just at the holidays.

You may get a lot of work, or maybe not so much, but you will probably get some new clients from offering these services. And you will get your name out to a lot more potential clients and Real Estate Agents who will see you as a business person who can help them with more than just staging.

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For more information about  Los Angeles home staging or our Stage Your Home For The Holidays program, please call Michelle Minch at (626)441-8975 or email Michelle@MovingMountainsDesign.com .
 

 

Home staging for Seniors

This past Thursday, I was invited along with Annie Pinsker-Brown and Karen Ann Thornton to do a presentation on home staging for Los Angeles seniors. There were 90 audience members. I didn't know Karen prior to the event, but I do know Annie from a few Round Tables and Active Rain. It was an incredible event, and I enjoyed every minute of it. Karen and I sent Annie examples of what we would each be speaking about, and Annie kindly compiled the whole into a PowerPoint presentation. Karen spoke about painting, repairs and landscape issues as they apply to home staging. Annie did the introduction and spoke about staging kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms. I spoke about staging living rooms, dining rooms, family rooms and staging vacant homes, an aspect of home staging with which my company Moving Mountains Design Home Staging has a lot of experience.

Apparently, the Marketing Director of the consulting company did a Google search to find home stagers in Los Angeles. She found my staging web site and several weeks ago I received the following email:

 My firm does consulting for the retirement industry.  We are currently working with the Los Angeles(XXXX) on construction of a full-scale senior living community in the San Fernando Valley.  We have our monthly Charter Member luncheon (where we host all seniors who have placed a deposit on an apartment) on Thursday, October 23 and our topic is "Staging Your Home for Sale."  I'm wondering if you would be willing to speak to prospective residents about the best ways to stage their homes for sale in the current economic market.  We will have three speakers, and would really like for you to be one of them.  Please call me at your earliest convenience if you are interested in participating.

Obviously, I was very interested. I love public speaking and getting the word out about home staging. I am also interested in working with Seniors as I feel this is an under served market for both Seniors and home stagers. As Baby Boomers age (of which I am one:o)), many of them are considering options for retirement living, which may entail the sale of their long time home. The group who invited us to do the presentation, acts as a consultant to builders of retirement living communities, helping with development, marketing, management and staff training among other aspects. They work to ensure these not-for-profit groups create vibrant communities that help to improve the lives of seniors who live there - a very important cause in my book.

Each stager spoke for about 20 minutes about home staging and how it can help these seniors prepare for moving, and to prepare their home for sale. I felt like our audience hung on our every word - they were hungry to hear the information we had to share. Most of the Seniors in our audience have seen the equity in their homes drop in recent  months and they sought assurance that there were things they could do to pro-actively help sell their homes and get the most money out of them. After our presentations, we fielded questions from the audience for about 15 minutes. We then reconvened in the lobby and answered questions one-on-one. Everyone of the guests left with our brochures, business cards and hand-outs. I prepared two handouts based upon my blog posts How To Choose The Right Home Stager and Getting Your Home Sold In This Market - 10 Steps to Success . I'm sure each stager will get many consultations and staging jobs from having participated in this event.

Our audience were not the only ones to learn something. I learned a lot too and will be writing about it soon.

*Home Staging For Seniors* Copyright 2008 Michelle Minch and Moving Mountains Design. All rights reserved.
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To learn more about home staging in general and home staging for Seniors, please contact Michelle Minch at (626)441-8975 or by email at Michelle@MovingMountainsDesign.com .

Moving Mountains Design Home Staging has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune, Sunset Magazine and numerous other national and international publications. Don't settle for second best. 80% of the homes we stage sell in 60 days or less, half of those in 30 days or less, and many after the first open house. Contact Michelle Minch today to learn how home staging can help you sell your Los Angeles home quickly and for the best price.

As a home stager and interior designer in Los Angeles, I am often asked about the value of upgrading a home for sale. The Wall Street Journal recently did a story on this subject: You May Not Recoup The Entire Cost Of These Upgrades When You Sell Your Home. While I agree with the article that you may not recoup the costs of upgrades, some upgrades will help your home sell faster.

The value and wisdom of the upgrades will be reflected in the faster selling time. This results in a net savings of carrying costs (mortgage, property tax, insurance, utilities) and less stress and turmoil. The most frequently asked questions is:

Which home upgrades help make my home more attractive and therefore help it sell?

Answer: Before you put a house on the market you should consider doing the following -

• Interior Painting - unless your home was painted in the past year, you should probably repaint the interior. Avoid pure white unless your rooms are very small and very dark. Choose colors that you might see in a Pottery Barn or Restoration Hardware Catalog (many paint stores will color match from a photograph or both those brands sell their own <expensive> paint). The art directors who design these catalogs are on top of color trends and know what shoppers find most appealing. Don't go too dark. A moderate to lighter color can be very charming.
• Wallpaper Removal - Very rare is the wallpaper that will appeal to a broad spectrum of buyers. Since your goal is to make your home as attractive as possible to the greatest number of buyers, the wallpaper has to go. Walls painted a single, solid color are always in style.
• Exterior Painting - Depending upon where your home is located, if the exterior hasn't been painted in 4 or 5 years, you should paint the exterior of your home. At the very least, you should paint the trim and the front door, and pressure wash the rest of the house. To select colors, drive around the neighborhood until you spot a home similar to yours that has colors that are appealing.
• Replace your carpet - If your carpet is newer (less than 5 years old) try having it professionally steam cleaned. If it still appears soiled or stained, or it is more than 5 years old, replace the carpet. You don't have to buy an expensive carpet - oftentimes just being new is good enough. Select a light neutral color - cream, tan or cafe au lait are popular colors that work with a lot of different architectural styles. Lighter colors will 'lift' the room and make it feel larger. Berber is OUT. Select a medium cut pile, preferably with no pattern.
• Replace your appliances - Even if your home is in a lower price range, home buyers today are looking for homes that look like homes they see on HGTV. Try and purchase a 'suite' of appliances (all from the same manufacturer) so all the knobs and handles match. If some of your appliances are newer, then replace the ones that are not. Stainless steel finish appliances are the most desirable finish among home buyers. Most appliance manufacturers have a lower priced line that comes in a stainless steel finish. To save some money, look for discontinued, floor models or 'scratch and dent' appliances that might have one or 2 small cosmetic flaws.
• Replace the knobs and handles on your kitchen and bathroom cabinets - This is the least expensive way to upgrade your kitchen and bathroom. Its like adding tasteful jewelry to a little black dress. Choose simple metal knobs in a finish that matches your appliances or sink faucet.
• Landscaping and Curb Appeal- Stand across the street from your home and snap a photo. What do you see? Do you see overgrown shrubs that block the front of the house or the windows? Do you see a weedy lawn that hasn't seem fertilizer and a mower for a while? Do you see a bunch of junk laying around the yard or the dreaded 'dead' car in the driveway with weeds growing up underneath? Mow your lawn. Fertilize it an water it regularly. Plant some colorful flowers along the front wall and near the front door. The drive up to your home is the first time potential buyers will see it. Make sure what they see leaves a positive impression that makes them want to go inside.
• Get a Home Staging Consultation - An experienced professional home stager will be able to provide you with a road map for preparing your home for sale. Professional home stagers can look at a home through 'buyers' eyes' and tell you exactly how to prepare your home for the market. With that home staging consultation in hand you can choose to do the work yourself, do part of the work and hire out the rest, or hire the home stager to complete everything. Most home stagers have a Rolodex full of painters, handymen, carpet installers, etc. to help you get your home in tip-top shape.

Offering a 'carpet allowance' or a 'painting allowance' won't get your home sold. Buyers have a hard time imagining a house with worn or soiled carpet and peeling paint can be the kind of home they would pay good money for. They'll reject your home and move on to the next home. There are plenty to choose from on the market right now. Make your home move in ready, and home buyers will be able to imagine themselves living there, making it their dream home.

Homes in better condition will sell faster. It is very simple. When you put your home on the market, you are entering it in a beauty contest. The best looking homes sell faster and for a better price.

*Will Upgrading a Home Help Sell It?* Copyright 2008 Michelle Minch and Moving Mountains Design. All rights reserved.

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Call Michelle Minch at Moving Mountains Design Home Staging to arrange for your Comprehensive Home Staging Consultation (626)441-8975. Or visit our Los Angeles home staging portfolio to see pictures of our recently completed projects.

Want to get your home sold in this difficult market? Here's 10 steps for moving your home from "for sale" to "SOLD!". I'm here to tell you that homes are selling, some very quickly, even in this market. Most of the Los Angeles homes we stage are selling in less than 30 days, some with multiple offers. Want to know what those home sellers are doing to help their homes get sold?

This Valencia home sold in 14 days with multiple offers after being staged by Moving Mountains Design (September 2008) Click here to read this very happy client's testimonial.

Here are 10 steps you can take to help get your home sold, too:

1. Hire the best full service REALTOR or real estate agent you can find. This is no time to be fooling around with less than full service. Do your research on the internet and by asking friends who they've worked with and if they had a good experience. Interview at least 3 REALTORS or real estate agents. Don't hire your best friend, their cousin, your hairstylist who moonlights as a real estate agent, unless you are certain that they know what they are doing and can back up their claims. You are selling what for many is their most valuable asset. Don't be embarrassed into letting your home sit unsold because you didn't want to hurt someone's feelings.
2. Don't negotiate the sales commission. A really good, experienced REALTOR or real estate agent will tell probably tell you "no" anyway. Marketing and selling real estate properly is an expensive proposition. All the brochures, flyers, virtual tours, professional photographers, etc. cost money. If you negotiate a lower commission, you are preventing your listing agent from pulling out the "big guns" to get your home sold as quickly as possible. Don't hamstring the sale of your home by limiting the amount of money your listing agent has available for marketing. Also, with the abundant inventory on the market right now, buyer's agents are going to show the homes that pay full commissions first.
3. Listen to your Listing Agent regarding pricing.They know what they are doing (assuming your followed step 1). They are on the MLS every day and know what homes are selling for and how quickly they sold. They talk to other REALTORS and real estate agents daily. It doesn't matter how much your dry cleaner thinks you should list your home for. It doesn't matter how much profit (or how little loss) you would like to walk away with. All that matters is how much someone will be willing to pay for your house. A good REALTOR or real estate agent will be able to tell you how much you should list your home for to get it sold quickly.
4. Hire a professional building inspector for a pre-sale inspection. You can address any issues that might sink a sale during escrow, or prevent someone from making an offer in the first place. Use the information to get your home into tip-top shape.
5. Make any needed repairs. Home buyers want a home that is truly move-in ready. They don't want an allowance for new carpet or a new roof. They want a house that already has new carpet and a new roof so they can move in right away.
6. Clean your house from top to bottom. Clean it until it is cleaner than it has ever been before. If you don't have the time or energy, hire a cleaning service. Make sure your house sparkles and smells clean every day it is on the market. If there is an issue you can't address by cleaning, then replace it. For instance, if the linoleum in your kitchen has a big burn mark from the hot skillet you dropped, replace the linoleum.
7. Hire a professional home stager. Again, do your research on the Internet and with your listing agent. Make sure you hire an experienced professional and not a hobbyist or (again) your sister-in-law, unless she is a pro with experience and knowledge of your market. Ask to see the stager's portfolio (or view it on-line) and make sure all the photos are of their recent work. If you are a do-it-yourself type, at the very least, hire a professional home stager to do a comprehensive consultation so you know exactly what needs to be done. Most home stagers will also help you choose paint colors and carpet as well.
8. Listen to the home stager regarding the condition of your home and what needs to be done tp make it appealing to the greatest number of buyers. If they tell you your favorite floral pattern wallpaper has to go, do it. A home stager's expertise is preparing homes to look their best so it is appealing to the greatest number of buyers and they have done it successfully for numerous home sellers (assuming you followed Step 7). Remember, they are looking at your home through "buyer's eyes".
9. Have your home photographed by a professional photographer. Many REALTORs and real estate agents include this as part of their marketing package. Photos taken by a point and shoot camera are not going to show your home at its best. 80% of home buyers are looking at homes on the Internet before going out to see homes they are interested in. If your home doesn't look great in the photos, then most buyers will pass you by.
10. Follow all of the above steps before you put your home on the market.Clean it up, fix it up, have it professionally staged and then photographed. Once you have great photos that really showcase you home, give your REALTOR the go-ahead to post them on the MLS. Make sure they post the maximum number of photos allowed. The more photos you have showcasing your home on the MLS, the greater your chances of selling it. If you rush the process, then you will not be putting your home's best face forward from day one. Staging or adding better pictures after you home has been on the market, even for a few days, won't get back potetial buyers who dismissed your home when they saw few pictures, bad pictures, vacant rooms or an unstaged mess.

Read The Benefits of Staging a Home

Read Home Sellers: Are You Getting a Lot of Lookers, But No Takers? Maybe Its Time For A Staging Makeover!

Read How to Choose the Right Home Stager

Remember: When you put your home on the market, you are entering it in a beauty contest. The best looking homes in the best condition sell first. It's a no brainer.

*Getting Your Home Sold In This Market - 10 Steps To Success* copyright 2008 Michelle Minch and Moving Mountains Design. All rights reserved.

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Please visit our Los Angeles home staging web site for more information about how we can help you get you home sold quickly and for the best price. You can reach Michelle Minch, owner of Moving Mountains Design, directly at (626)441-8975 or via email, Michelle@MovingMountainsDesign.com . Don't settle for second best when selling your Los Angeles area home. Choose Moving Mountains Design Home Staging, the Los Angeles staging company with the track record of rapid sales and the referrals from many happy clients to back up our claims. Featured in the Los Angeles Times, the Chicago Tribune, Sunset Magazine and numerous other national and international publications, we don't sell homes, but we know what makes homes sell!

There is nothing more valuable to a business person (home stager) than a happy client who volunteers to tell the world how highly he thinks of the service you provided. They are truly worth their weight in gold.

Last month we staged a house in Valencia, CAfor our client. Happily we destaged it a little more than a month later (last week) because it sold and escrow was about to close. Please keep in mind that approximately 50% of the homes on the market in Valencia are foreclosures and short sales.

Here, in its entirety, is the email testimonial I received from my client today (bold, italics and underlines and links are mine):

Hi Michelle.

Here is my testimonial. Please feel free to use it in your web site or Active Rain and edit as desired. All I ask is that you show my name as simply Michael (no last name) of Valencia and not mention the street address or price. You could show some before and after shots if you'd like. (Photos appear below)

Thanks so much for all you've done!

Michael

I cannot overstate the importance of Michelle Minch's staging in the fast sale of our small Valencia home.

Our house had largely contained sparse, tired, undersized furnishings - most notably in the living room. When one has lived in a house for so long with basically the same decor, you become comfortable with its familiarity but oblivious to its dreariness. We didn't want to invest in new furniture that might be inappropriate for our next house, yet we didn't want to rent just anything. The help of an expert was needed.

A few months before we planned to put our house up for sale, I read an L.A. Times article about home staging that mentioned Michelle Minch and her company, Moving Mountains Design. The timing was excellent. Although we had attended some open houses where staging had taken place, we had never thought of using such services ourselves. The quotes from Michelle in the article not only convinced me to have our home staged, they also won me over as a client of hers.

Results? When Michelle was done with our house, it had never looked better. It looked its best at a time when it simply had to look its best. Beautiful, well-placed and sensibly-coordinated furniture and accessories (incorporating a portion of our better existing furniture) made every room look inviting. Michelle drew out the home's potential for all to see. Even the iffy carpet and dated kitchen were overshadowed by the attention drawn to the true qualities of the residence. I could tell that prospective buyers had sat down and lingered in the living and dining rooms based on the slightly displaced throw pillows and chairs.

Michelle had great exterior ideas as well. For example, replacing a fortress-like solid wood gate with an attractive wrought-iron gate in the front yard made a noticeable difference in curb appeal.

I must also add that Michelle's photography was better than that of our real estate agent's "professional", and consequently we insisted on using several of her shots in the on-line gallery.

The bottom line? There were three purchase offers within 72 hours of the MLS listing. Two of the offers came from people who had seen the house during a "preview period" before it was staged but were not compelled to make an offer until after it was staged. Five days after the MLS listing, we were in escrow, and escrow just closed last week. The final sales price was only 1% below our asking price that had purposely been set high to come down further than it actually did.

I believe that the cost of the staging was a bargain compared to the return we received.

In a buyer's housing market of foreclosures, short sales and high inventories - not to mention rising unemployment, financial turmoil and Government bailouts - Michelle Minch's staging skills made our home stand out from the other sellers' by giving it a competitive edge that resulted in a rapid sale at a better-than-expected price. I unequivocally and enthusiastically recommend that you take advantage of this woman's talents.

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A few disclaimers:

1. I promise I did not pay my client to write this testimonial

2. I promise I, in no way, coerced or blackmailed my client to write this testimonial

3. I am not related to this client in any way

4. He is just one very satisfied client who volunteered to tell the world how happy he is with our home staging services

Living Room before staging

Living room after staging. The new furniture really helps to update the living room and makes it feel more welcoming

Master bedroom before staging

Master bedroom after staging.

We purchased new bedding for the client, as he planned to continue occupying the home while it was on the market. The bedding is his to keep. The bedding purchase price was incorporated into the original staging estimate.

Thank you, Michael, for your very generous endorsement of my work and for being such a wonderful client to work with. Nothing makes me happier than to see nice things (like a fast home sale at a great price) happen to good people (you and your lovely wife).

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*Los Angeles Home Staging - A Happy Client Is Worth Their Weight In Gold*copyright 2008 Michelle Minch and Moving Mountains Design. All rights reserved.

"From condos to cottages to castles, we don't sell real estate, but we know what makes real estate sell" For truly exceptional service and expert assistance in preparing your home to sell please visit our Los Angeles home staging web site or call Michelle Minch at (626)441-8975. We'll be happy to answer any questions you have about the benefits of home staging to help you sell your home faster and for a better price, even in the current market.