Heather Cook

My last post was about home staging from the point of view of the seller. I tried to illustrate the fact that sellers while they might have a glamorized idea of what home staging is, they don't really understand how it works. In addition, it's vital that home stagers understand a seller's anxiety and trepidation on having professionals come through and critique their home. Putting sellers at ease is key to getting their trust and to ensure that they understand the stager's vision and be open to suggestions.

Now its all about realtors. Currently, this is the toughest part of the equation although the why that is, baffles me. We partner with many realtors however their feedback when we first start working with them that even when they offer staging consultations as part of their services, they don't know how to "offer" the consult or how to explain to their clients about why they are bringing in a home stager. Right away, they find that their clients are on the defensive, wondering what is wrong with their home that they would need to have a professional come in. The realtors either don't know how to explain why it is they offer home staging or they don't explain it and give the client the option of opting out altogether.

So, I am now offering a script to the realtors we partner with. I have blogged before about why realtors should partner with a home stager however it seems we need to take that one step further.

I understand, to a certain degree, why a realtor might not be confident in their approach to home staging. However, its a powerful tool and when you're doing a job if there is a tool available to make your job easier and less stressful, why wouldn't you use it?

So here's what I suggest to realtors who use home staging as part of their listing services:

Bring it up right away and be candid that you use home staging for all your listings - be sure to mention why you use it and this is going to be your *staging pitch* so it needs to be personal and it needs to be genuine! Your client needs to understand that you're not attacking their personal design style, but that all the characteristics which make the home so distinctly theirs, are the ones which should be addressed. A neutral, clean and appealing home sells fast as buyers are looking for turnkey homes without the personal decor touches. By doing this, you cement the partnership you have with your stager in the eyes of the seller - and its essential for setting the right tone for the stager to walk into. Not only will your clients be more receptive to suggestions but they will be more willing to do more to ensure the house shows well.

Insist that your home stager communicate with you after the consultation. Make sure you are sent a copy of the consultation report so that you a part of the preparation process. If your clients want to stage themselves then you should be prepared to keep track of what's being done - and what's not being done. Unfortunately, it does happen that when a realtor brings in a home stager as opposed to the seller bringing in the stager, that the seller isn't as open to suggestions and is less inclined to follow them. Don't be swayed by this! You made a decision to offer home staging as part of your services and although you cannot force your clients to do any or all of the recommendations, you do want to make sure that you don't just "give up". If your sellers are not interested in doing any changes, list the home and gather feedback - all the while being consistent in mentioning key suggestions for changes. If the home is not selling, revisit the staging report and suggest that the sellers either do the changes themselves or call the professionals back in to do it for them. Sellers need to understand that there is a direct correlation between the appearance of a home and how fast it sells. Choosing to work with home stagers means you want your listings to be bright and appealing - and that they bring in the buyers who are willing to pay more money for homes which are turn key.

Be persistent and have confidence that offering home staging *will* make a difference in the quality of service you offer and the fact that it will have a positive impact on your business! The realtors we partner with all rave about our services and gush about our designs to their clients. The results? Their clients are much more open about home staging and because so much of real estate business comes through referrals, odds are high that new clients will already know and expect you to offer home staging AND they will be aware of the difference it made which immediately adds credibility and a level of polish to your reputation. The results are far reaching and when you forge that strong partnership with a home stager, you create a business relationship that will be beneficial and rewarding for many years to come!

Now, if you don't currently work with a professional home stager, you should start your research. Not all stagers are created equal, in fact anyone with a yen for decorating can be a stager. Staging courses are blitzing the media and while its good for stagers to have that training - don't assume that means they are capable of handling all types of staging jobs.

Here's some great things to look for:

Portfolio - This is the KEY in looking for a stager. Many inexperienced stagers offer either stock photos (photos used by their course or photos of other stager's work) and pass them off as their own. In addition, if the stager has few pictures and they are obviously of only one property - don't dismiss them out of hand - but carefully look at the photos. If you can see distinct transformations and get a sense of their creative style then consider them. If the stager cannot explain the changes between the before and after photos, tread carefully. Ideally, you want an experienced stager with a varied portfolio which clearly shows the transition in the homes they work in.

References and/or Testimonials - Ensure that the stagers have at least three solid references or client testimonials. This is a great way to ensure that the home stager has had some experience and has pleased his/her clients.

What do they offer realtors? - We have an extensive realtor package which we offer as part of our overall services. Our realtor partners recieve preferred pricing on consultation and staging time as well as taking priority when they call us. We are always searching for ways that we can improve the services we offer our realtor partners and make a point to touch base with them often to ensure they are happy with the partnership.

Once you do find a home stager which fits your needs, foster that relationship and grow together. There is no end to the benefits for you, the stager .. and all your clients.

Okay, so I thought I would write a few blog posts from the different perspectives of the people directly involved in the home selling process. This first one is going to be written from the perspective of the sellers - and trust me after talking to many of them and hearing their reactions (good and bad) and knowing how I would feel as a seller, I think I can make this believable. Why am I writing this? Because after listening to both sellers and realtors I realize there is a lot of miscommunication, misunderstandings, and trepidation which shouldn't be there when it comes to home staging! So here we go.

Alright, so you've picked a great realtor, you've discussing pricing and the listing date and you've signed on the dotted line .. and he casually tells you to expect a call from a home stager within the next day or two as home staging is part of his listing services. Blink, blink. Home staging? What's that? Your mind is frantically trying to figure out what he's talking about and when you remember because you just saw "the Stagers" on HGTV the other night, you clue in and look around the room a little wildly. Your gaze hits the small piles of papers your husband left out last night, a few of the kids toys on the floor and think .. I need home staging? You glance over at your husband and see the blank expression on his face and feel panic start to well ..

Your realtor has noticed you glancing around and he clears his throat, not quite meeting your gaze while you try to figure out if you're supposed to be offended or not. So, you decide to ask anyway.

"So you think my house needs home staging?"

Your realtor shifts in his chair, a little flustered at your question and then proceeds to tell you that he offers home staging with every listing and that it has nothing to do with me personally. Great. Doesn't really inspire you about home staging but at least he's not thinking your home is a complete dive. If you're lucky, you'll get to see a brochure about home staging and some background on why he thinks home staging is so important. If you're not lucky then at this point he'll simply point out a few things which should go away and leave the rest for the stagers. You've already noted those things but what you didn't see was that the bookshelves are crammed with books and pictures, that as you look in the kitchen the counters are covered with small appliances, dishes, lots of "rooster" themed figurines which match the rooster clock and plate set hanging on the wall. You don't see it, because to you, your house is perfect - and it is - but you can't see what a home stager could possibly do that you can't do yourself.

The next day, the home stager calls and you talk to her for a few minutes, listening as she introduces herself and chats about the benefits of home staging. She sounds nice, and its part of what your realtor offers, so you book an appointment with her for the following evening at 7pm. You get off the phone and wander around the house, trying to envision what changes you will have to make - and then you start feeling anxious because after seeing "the stagers" and looking up home staging online and seeing all those pictures of those "perfect" homes and you know you simply can't maintain a house which looks like that.

Throughout the course of the next day, prior to the stager arriving, you work tirelessly to clean the house and get it ready for the consultation. Laundry is done, rugs are vacuumed, counters are cleaned and obvious piles of clutter are put away. All great things. Then you start to get even more anxious and wonder if the stager is expecting more from your house so you pull out the candles you have stocked away and create little tableaus on your coffee tables. Still looking for ways to make sure your home impresses, you set the dining room table and kitchen table with plates, stemware, cutlery, napkins with either pretty napkin holders or napkins arranged fussily in wine glasses. Glancing at the time, you realize the home stager will be there at any point and you run around, looking in every room and wishing the consult was over because you think your house looks great and that buyers will love it .. and the doorbell rings.

You rush back downstairs and open the door to greet the home stager who is smiling and offering her hand to you. You shake it and ask her to come in, thinking she doesn't look like any of the stagers on HGTV and wondering if she is going to be getting her own show .. and she pulls you back by telling you what a lovely home you have.

She sits down with you for a few minutes and she asks about your home, listening quietly and then she talks a little about home staging and why its important. She talks knowledgeably about what buyers are looking for and as you listen, you realize that your blood pressure has gone down and you're not feeling quite so anxious. She takes out her portfolio and suggests you take a look at it while she is going through your home .. and then she asks for a tour. Feeling more anxious, you take her through your home, however as you go from room to room, she offers compliments on various items and you begin to feel better because you love your home and are justifiably proud of it. After the tour, she explains that she works alone, going back through your home and making lists of recommendations which will help your home appeal to as many buyers as possible. You retreat to the living room and wait, picking up her portfolio and thumbing through it. You are impressed by her photos and its evident that she knows what she is doing because there are visible transformations with each set of pictures. You read her brochure and even look her up online, feeling more and more impressed because her website is full of great information and is very professional and appealing. You look at more pictures and glance around the room, all of a sudden excited to hear her suggestions for making your home appealing to buyers - because that's the end goal and you'd love to have multiple offers for it.

Once she is done, she comes back and sits down with you and your husband. She offers to walk you and your husband through your home and discuss some of her recommendations. She smiles a lot and compliments several pieces of furniture which makes both of you feel better and then she talks about paring down some of the items in your hutch and buffet. You're unsure, however she talks about how its going to really show off the few items she wants you to showcase and you - seeking reassurance - go and take out everything but your favourite wine glasses and crystal bowl on one side of the buffet. She helps you re-arrange them and when you step back, you see exactly what she means. Next she convinces you that the tables don't need to be set, that a great centerpiece with some bright florals or a candlescape and you start to get into the spirit. Next she takes you in the kitchen and talks about taking down all the rooster accessories, the magnets and pictures on the fridge and keeping the counters clear of almost everything .. and suddenly you see what she is getting at. In the next few rooms, you suggest things and you see her eyes light up and her smile widen as she nods encouragingly. Your husband is looking at you, nodding himself, and then when the consult is over and you're shaking her hand and thanking her, you feel so much lighter. She promises to have the step by step report to you the next day so that you have a checklist to use and you think, this is great .. now we have a plan!

You walk around after she has left, taking down things she discussed and moving furniture to new locations and you think .. wow, she's right! You think back to your original conversation with your realtor about home staging and wonder what got you so concerned. Then you realize .. its because there wasn't really an explanation about home staging, which is why you got so worked up and worried that somehow your home was lacking in some way. You get into bed and talk with your husband about all the different changes, both of you a little excited, and then you go to sleep, eagerly anticipating the report and all the things you can do tomorrow to make your home show its best so it sells fast and for as much money as possible.

I could go on here, but you get the idea. I have been on the seller's end of things and I wish that someone had talked to me about home staging. I knew that my house had to be clean but because it was my home, I never saw my decor items, personal colour choices, everyday clutter as problems. As a professional home stager, I encounter people every day with the same mindset. In the last while, I have gone to quite a few consult appointments which are the result of the realtors we partner with and meet clients who are anxious, on guard and unsure of what to expect. Through the course of conversations, I get the very strong impression that the realtors we work with, while they are offering consults with us, they aren't offering much in the way of information about home staging or about my company in particular. They aren't showing the brochures I had printed up for this very reason or the small photo portfolio we give every one of them. This stuns me. In a lot of situations, our clients are so anxious that they have spent hours staging their homes themselves .. before we get there. Having to tell them to undo what they've done is stressful for us because we can see how proud they are of it.

So, I thought I would write a candid, offbeat and hopefully humourous view of the process to showcase the clients often go through before we get there. I am hoping that by doing this, and then writing of the same process from both the realtor and home stager's points of view that everyone involved can get broader view of the situation. We don't want clients to stress and fret and spend hours staging before we get there. I hope that by writing this, I can get some feedback on things we can all do to help make this experience better for everyone involved. If you are a seller and you are reading this, and your realtor does offer home staging as part of his listing services, we encourage you to ask him about it. If he doesn't offer pictures of information or even a website then ask him to provide it. If your realtor doesn't offer home staging .. maybe you should ask him if he will!

My partner and I were called in to do a consultation at a home last week. My partner's aunt raves about us (we helped her sell her home in less than a week) and the lady we were doing a consult for is a close friend of my partner's aunt. This lady was candid with my partner and told her several things:

1) Her home had gotten the feedback that it was dated and a lot of work. To be candid, it's a lovely home however its very personally decorated. From murals in the ensuite and main bath of a beach in tuscany to stylized paint in the connecting hallways and stairway to paint/wallpaper combinations of many of the rooms. In addition, the living room is being used as a music room and the sellers have 3 huge TV's in the family room, basement and master bedroom. The artwork is predominantly chinese and the sellers have tons of things .. and they are everywhere.

2) She called a local Haverhill stager to come in before she knew about Rooms in Bloom. The stager came in, walked around and came back the next day with a "quote" which comprised a lined piece of paper with a few notes on it and a total of $8,000 to update the home. She told the sellers they had to change out all the countertops in the kitchen and bathrooms to granite, paint every room, rent furniture and .. more. None of which was on the "quote". And the quote didn't include the staging fees .. there was no price for that as far as we could tell.

3) The realtor is anti-staging. He knows its dated and has told the sellers not to do anything. There is a conditional offer on the home which expires July 31st - for significantly less than what our sellers feel their home is worth. They are willing to do the work required however until the conditional offer expires they can't do anything beyond cosmetic touches. The sellers are frustrated. They want their home to sell and they know by doing nothing they are losing equity in their home. They "get it" and are frustrated that their agent doesn't.

My partner met with the sellers last week and they opted to work with us than Haverhill. We went through today, de-cluttered, took down the asian art and replaced it with our neutral artwork and decor accessories, moved furniture around and made the home feel more modern. We couldn't help the paint/wallpaper issues at this point however we hope by neutralizing the home that buyers walking through will get a better sense of the potential of the home.

The lady who hired us was very emotional when we left and hugged us, thanking us for our help. We know if the conditional offer does expire that on August 1st we will be back, looking at the home with fresh eyes and the ability to deal with the paint/wallpaper issues in order to create a cohesive staging design. We hope that our client gets another (better) offer after our efforts today so they don't have to go through that renovation process however we can also see how the home will look once the decor has been updated and know that once buyers get a glimpse of the home re-done, they will be fighting to buy it!

We hope we can get the agent to see just how much easier the process would be if there weren't comments about how dated the house is and how much work it would be to update it. Pricing the home right is vital however the presentation has to justify the asking price! We all know that buyers will pay more money for a home which is "turn key" so advising clients to do nothing is losing them money and decreasing his commission! Staging isn't expensive and all of our clients would emphatically state how vital it is to the real estate process. Investing some money so that presentation of a home justifies its asking price results in fewer DOM, more interested buyers, the strong possibility of multiple offers and a higher selling price.

I just want to thank everyone who responded to my blog post about hanging things on exposed brick walls - they were all really helpful! The builder however was really against "anything" being hung there so we worked around it and here is the finished product!

You can view more of the "Before & Afters" at our Facebook Fan Page @ http://www.facebook.com/ads/manage/#/pages/Kitchener-ON/Rooms-in-Bloom-Home-Staging/19265825355

This condo was just over 500 sq feet and when you have such a small space its vital to ensure that NONE of it is wasted! We were concerned because the living room space was tight and there was this huge space as you entered the condo, right around the kitchen. We didn't want buyers to wonder what to do with the space so we came up with a great solution!

Below is how we handled the focal wall in the living room space without hanging anything. We think it turned out beautifully!

We had the opportunity to work with some great sellers at a stunning home in Branchton. After doing a consultation for them, we advised them on everything from paint colours to new lighting for the dining room and powder room. We then came in and staged last week with some great rental furniture, our home decor accessories and combined them with the seller's existing furniture.

The results? Spectacular! I have created a great slideshow on Flickr for anyone who wants to view it and here is the link:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/roomsinbloom/sets/72157619783432236/

And the backyard is simply to die for ... I'm trying to convince my husband we need to buy this home! LOL! Its one of the downfalls when you work in the real estate industry and can appreciate beautiful homes that every once in awhile you tumble into love with a property. Well this one's "it" for me! We'll see ..

Here are a few pics below to give you an idea of the home:

UPDATE: This home sold in 3 days for 99.4% of the asking price! The sellers opted, against the advice of their Realtor to list it $30K above the suggested listing price - and boy did that pay off! The buyer loved the home so much she stretched her budget by 100K to buy this home! The sellers are so thrilled that they have asked us to redesign their new home!