All The Home's A Stage

Here is a great article from the Raleigh News & Observer. There are many good points in this article that I wanted to share it. I now make this article REQUIRED reading for all my new listing clients.

If you get NOTHING else from the article - just remember - "Potential homebuyers typically will take just 15 seconds to decide if they want to buy your home... so lose the distractions!"

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By Samantha Thompson Smith, Staff Writer

Potential homebuyers typically will take just 15 seconds to decide if they want to buy your home.
So if they're looking at your wedding pictures on the wall instead of the cherry built-in bookcases, you might have already lost them.

Worse still, perhaps they're distracted -- even turned off -- by the ultramodern décor, the lingering scent of smoke or the antlers hanging in the den. In 15 seconds, they're too busy judging you, the homeowner, to notice the stone fireplace, the screened porch or the gourmet kitchen.

In today's highly competitive real estate market, homeowners can't afford to make those kinds of mistakes. That's why more real estate agents and some homeowners lately are turning to professional home stagers to set a home apart.

"When it's a buyer's market, your house must be perfect," said Karen Reynolds, owner of the home staging company Champagne Staging in Wake Forest.

"Buyers have so many choices. You want your house to stand out. And a staged home will stand out."

According to a study by Stagedhomes.com, a group that promotes and teaches home staging techniques, 93 percent of homes staged last year by an accredited home stager sold in less than one month. And nonstaged homes stay on the market five times as long as staged homes, the group's Web site says.

Reynolds, who started staging several years ago for her own investment properties, said that for the 25 homes she staged and sold last year, the average time the homes were on the market was 18 days. And that includes a few that were listed for 120 days or more without a nibble before she staged them.

"What staging does is highlight the positives of the house and help detract from the negatives," Reynolds said. "It gives an implied lifestyle so the buyer can see how they can live in the house."
Julie Keelan, a real estate agent in the Wake Forest-Rolesville office of Allen Tate Realtors, recently sold three homes staged by Reynolds. Keelan is so sold on the concept that she offers a two-hour staging consultation to homeowners who list with her as part of the listing package.
"After I saw what she did, I became a believer," Keelan said. "A lot of sellers have a personal attachment to their property. When they're in selling mode, they have to detach."

C. Reneé Hill, owner of the Raleigh interior designer firm Interiors by Reneé, said her business is now about 30 percent home staging, with demand from real estate agents driving the surge.
"The sad part is that some people don't want to pay the money for the staging," Hill said. "They need to invest now and get the price they want as opposed to having your house sit on the market."

The biggest mistake people make is that they wait until the last minute or until their home has been on the market for more than six months before they look into home staging, she said. Hill said it is best to at least talk to a stager before putting a home on the market to get a list of what needs to be done on the inside and outside of the home.

In the long run, it is a low-cost investment, especially considering the alternative might be letting the home sit on the market for months or reducing the asking price to get the home sold.
Home staging prices vary, of course, depending on the size of the house.

Consultations start about $125. Reynolds said that in two hours, for about $250, she can get a lot done in a 4,000-square-foot house, especially if the homeowner is willing to help out and bring a few friends to get the job done more quickly.

But often, the price isn't what is painful for the homeowner. It is hearing what among their beloved possessions needs to stay and what needs to go.

Reynolds admitted that when she walks through a house, she is ruthless.

"I look at it like a buyer," she said. "I find everything that a buyer would pick apart. Every flaw the house has gives the buyer one more reason not to buy the house or [to] give a low-ball offer."
In the end, most homeowners end up seeing the value of the staging. Some even enjoy seeing the transformation.

Lose the distractions ...
Amy and Danny Houston, who own a 3,200-square-foot-home in Heritage in Wake Forest, were open to hearing Reynolds' advice after their home fronting the golf course was on the market a few months.

After taking about an hour to walk through each room, all the way up to the attic, Reynolds pointed out a long list of what needed to go. Most things were decorative pieces and family mementos, but in some cases, a bed or a table had to be pulled out.

The Houstons took about week to move out family photos, rugs, a treadmill, paintings, a computer and printer -- all per Reynolds' instructions. Then Reynolds added a few decorative touches, just enough to give the house some warmth.

The result was staggering.

Instead of seeing the furniture in the living room, you could see the baby blue walls, the expensive plantation shutters and the tall built-in bookshelves. The room looked bigger and brighter, and you were no longer so distracted by what was inside that you couldn't see the 16th hole of Heritage Golf Course outside.

... But keep the warmth

Reynolds said her job is to make the home as neutral but as warm as possible, highlighting its positive elements. The goal is to keep the buyer focused on the house instead the family living there.

Often that starts with taking the owners' personality out of the home. Family photos? Gone. Diplomas on the wall? Gone. Kindergarten artwork on the fridge? Gone.

Next comes decluttering, a step that trips up plenty of homeowners who don't see their decorations as distractions. The key is knowing what needs to go and what can stay, Reynolds said.

Her rule of thumb: If it's smaller than a bowling ball, it has to go.

Reynolds leaves just enough décor so that it won't distract.

Stagers said sellers should pack up the rest of the stuff and store it. Just leave plenty of space for people to walk around.

Show off walls and floors

Furniture is also critical in home staging -- not just the quantity, but the size and placement as well.

Reynolds suggested taking out enough furniture so you can see 70 percent to 80 percent of the floor space (the same rule applies to wall space).

Take out most of the area rugs as well, so potential buyers can see the beauty of your hardwood floors.

"Less is definitely more, but not to the point where it doesn't have any personality whatsoever," Reynolds said. "It's important to be able to create that feeling of warmth."

Most stagers say sellers should only keep enough furniture so homebuyers will be able to envision their own furniture in the space.

The furniture you do keep in the house can't be oversize or overstuffed, said Karen Jensen and Ann Jagger, owners of Homes in Motion, a Raleigh company that specializes in updating and enhancing homes and work spaces.

"Big furniture can make a room look small," Jensen said. "It can even make the house look smaller."

Another rule: Don't try to sell an empty house. If you've already moved out, rent furniture. Some staging companies have furniture, greenery and decorative items that homeowners can use until the house sells.