Jon Carroll on Home Staging
The Chronicle's Jon Carroll takes on home staging in an article yesterday from SFGate.com. "...because good staging can add $50,000 to the selling price. Or so they say. I have a strong feeling this is an urban legend, because 10 years ago there was no such profession as "house stager" and now there are millionaire house stagers who make television appearances and, for tax purposes, are registered in the Cayman Islands."
"Y'all do know about house staging, yes? Maybe not everyone. For the uninitiated, just before a house goes on the market, busy people in jumpsuits come in, take away every stick of furniture and replace it with selected furniture that screams "Buy this house, buy this house." The homeowner has no say in the furniture. If the homeowner is still living in the house, the homeowner must be very careful not to interfere with the stage set. Much better if the homeowner is not living at home, or in the country, or at all."
posted by Matt Lanning @ 5:44 AM
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7 Comments:
Staging is indeed a profession, how widespread the practice is, I am not sure. My cousin told me about it, and we went to an open house for a $3million house and it was all "staged." I suspect it is largely restricted to high-end homes.
ahhh... I certainly didn't imply that I don't have an opinion on staging... was just posting Jon's article, perhaps for the uninitiated. I am a very firm believer in the smoke and mirrors aspect of staging. It really does work, even when buyers know darn well they are being sold 'polished' goods... and yes, there are many stagers out there making more money than the agents they work for...
I think Mr. Carroll should do further research...as a home stager, I dont' own a "jumpsuit", nor do I or most of my fellow stagers empty a home and fill it with high end furnishings. As a matter of FACT, we more times than not use the home owners existing furnishings and accessories, only supplementing accessories when needed. We pride ourselves in making the home more appealing to a broader audience. A home that is loved and speaks of comfort will make a better impression. We want the home, which has become a "product" when placed on the market to have an advantage. Quite frankly, we make your job as a realtor easier...a staged home statiscally sells faster and usually for more money. How is this wrong, if it puts more money in your clients pocket and ultimately YOURS, then why bash the method. Staging is not restricted to high-end homes. The majority of the homes I stage in CT, the wealthiest state in the country, are priced between $200,000 and $500,000. The savy realtor will work with a stager. Staging will shortly become a necessity in home sales. I'd suggest contacting a local stager to see if they they can redo a room for you or one of your clients, I think you may be surprised by the improvements. PS Most of us are not millionares, living or making deposits in the Caymen's!
Celeste Symmonds
www.stagingrooms.com
C'mon... 90% of my listings are staged, and I am a FIRM believer in staging, so please forego the personal attacks. As I stated in my previous comment, all I was doing was posting Mr. Carroll's article. Since you're 2000 miles away, you wouldn't know that we started the whole 'staging' craze out here and nearly all of our inventory is staged...
No personal attacks intended...just wanted to set Jon's record straight! Even though I am 2000 miles away, I DO know that "Staging" was founded in Calif. As an Accredited Home Stager, I have completed my training with the woman who is the pioneer of Home Staging in Calif.
I'm glad to know that you embrace staging into your business! It's catching on quickly out East too!
House staging might be "indeed a profession" but take it from the house stagee, house staging is hell! As a home seller I'm at my personal worst.
In Toronto, Canada, realtors are quite matter-of-fact about home staging. This says a great deal about where we are in North America as a society in my not-so-humble opinion. I know (as this is house sale no 3) that if we fail to stage our current property correctly and neglect to add a point of interest we won't have a hope in hell of any agents coming past our property. The thinking is that if we as sellers won't make the effort then they as realtors won't come by (buy) our property. So we fork out the $2k min for fresh flowers, Pottery Barn shelving, stainless steel urns, japanese-esque paper lantern thingy type lights and buff paint. Oh let's not forget the consultation fee for the home fluffer while we're at it.
I'm infuriated that as sellers we're further burned by the fact that the realtor is making at least $10-15k on our humble $200K home.
As a documentary filmmaker and sociologist I am fascinated by this phenom. We must depersonalize, dehumanize our homes in favour of glamour shots, buff walls and fresh flowers. And contrary to the articles, I won't make an extra $50k on this property... I'll just sell it and maybe get my asking price. Such is the current market in my neck of the woods.
I am truly wistful. Gone are the days of unfinished basements. Don't you remember playing ping pong in the mold-infested, concrete floored, oil furnace burning basements of our youth? In Canada many of us took 'shots on net' (aka slapshots with hard black rubber balls) and nobody seemed to mind the dented concrete when they'd come through the house on a buying mission. In fact, an unfinished basement was a selling point, cause in the days of 3.5 kids a mum and dad could safely leave the kids alone to kill each other for a few hours while they canoodled in the living room. In all probability the parentals were reading something too -- not kicking back watching a DVD on the frickin' 50" dlp. Sigh. (Which by the way needs to be put in storage while the house is 'staged'.
So with a 1.5 and a 2.5 year old kids we're off to work we go... to the home despot for paint and fixtures. But I'm not bitter.
Catch ya later. Wonder if we'll get our asking price.
I have the best job in the world! Our team has the opportunity to work in beautiful homes, infuse creative marketing on a daily basis and our projects are done in one day/two days tops! Why aren't we working together Matt? Chat soon!
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