Speaking Up about Home Staging

 

"If Your Pictures Aren't Good Enough, You're Not Close Enough" - Robert Capa

Robert Capa was a legendary wartime photojournalist born Andre Friedmann, in Hungary in 1913. His assignments took him all over the war torn world in the years between the 1930's and the 1950's. He lost his life, ironically, in Vietnam in 1954 after stepping on a land mine. There is such a thing as "too close", I guess...

While these words are said by some to have been attributed to his girlfriend, rather than himself, they are known and repeated by photographers everywhere.

Whether you are shooting a war ravaged refugee, or a flower, the premise is the same. Getting in close can make all the difference between a nice photograph, and a terrific one. Don't depend entirely on a zoom lens, either. Move your feet. Inspect your subject from varying angles, above or below, from side to side.

Take your time composing the shot. A centered focal point is not always the most interesting.

 

 

 

 

Have you ever laid down on your belly in a public place to get a shot? We're talking REALLY public, here. I took this shot of the daisies at Sea World on my belly. My mother was mortified.

And it's a little bit harder to get back up than it used to be...hope no one was watching.

 

When you are shooting macros and close ups, it's a good idea to use manual focus to get the sharpest, clearest images possible, then use your photo editing program to sharpen it more for web or print.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DBoucher Photography

Nature and Wildlife Photography Notecards

Real Estate Showcase Slideshows

 

Position yourself above your competition - Utilize a "Real Estate Showcase" Slideshow as a listing tool.  Post it on your own website - Realtor Showcase Members can upload it to Realtor.com - Post it on your blog to showcase your listings.

 

"Real Estate Showcase" Slideshow and Web Presentations, more captivating than a virtual tour!

Photos and content by Debi Boucher, DBoucher Photography, all rights reserved, may not be reproduced without express written permission. 

 

There's no questioning that home staging is a visual industry. Savvy stagers realize that appealing portfolio photos are fundamental in generating and increasing business. Potential clients want to see exactly what lifestyle image a home stager is capable of creating for their property.

As more people enter the field of home staging it is crucial that your portfolio photos are professional in appearance and stand out from the competition.

Learn how to improve the quality of images on your website and in your portfolio with simple and effective photo editing techniques. There is no need to spend the time or money on costly image editing software. Attend a photo editing webinar created and hosted by Jackson West specifically for home stagers.

During this live and interactive webinar you will learn ...

  - Tips for taking better interior photos.

  - Why you should avoid using a flash indoors.

  - Cropping and resizing photos.  

  - How to straighten and sharpen images.

  - Photo temperature and exposure.

  - Watermarking and framing your photos.

  - How to create vignette shots and collages.

Stagers that have already taken part in this webinar are saying ...

" I enjoyed the photo class very much. Jackson is a great instructor. I look forward to the next webinar he puts on."  - Candace C.

" It was FANTASTIC. I learned a lot. I am just finishing my first vacant that I am filling with rental furniture so I am anxious to have some fabulous after pictures." - Karen B.

" Great webinar!  I know you'd touched on some of this is our August CSP class, but I didn't grasp all of it, so this was very helpful." - Sally W.

" I thoroughly enjoyed the session and learned invaluable information. Thank you Jackson for an excellent presentation. I hope there are more such webinars in the future." - Sandra R.

" Thank you very much for teaching these useful techniques. You did great! " - Valerie W.

" I attended your webinar this evening and want to thank you for the excellent content of your seminar.  Your demonstrations and tips were very, very helpful " - Nancy M.

" Excellent webinar, I will be reworking my portfolio. Thanks for the tips and tricks, talk to you soon! " - Yvonne L.

" Hi Jackson...that was fabulous. That was the first time I did a webinar and I enjoyed it. Can't wait to start editing my pics! " -  Linda S.

The investment for this webinar is only $25.00 CDN.

To register please email our student advisor Liz McSorley.

Upcoming Photo Editing Webinars:

Saturday, March 6, 2010 @ 4:00 pm EST
Wednesday, March 17, 2010 @ 4:00 pm EST
Tuesday. April 13, 2010 @ 4:00 pm EST

Jackson West is the owner of Reveal Estate Home Staging and is an instructor for
Certified Staging Professionals™

 He is also featured on a television series for the W Network. His interior redesign work can be seen in the book "Home Staging For Dummies" as
well as multiple editions of the "Staging Standard" magazine.

Today, I found 228 homes in Washington D.C. and Northern Virginia that have been listed on the MLS and on the market for more than 365 days.  An entire year or more on the market!  29 of those homes have been actively on the market for over 2 years!  Can you imagine?  Two years of keeping your home clean, having a lockbox on the door, and leaving the house on Sundays so a REALTOR can hold an open house!

 

That is a very long time even in today's slower market.

 

While 86 of these homes are over $1 million (which you might expect to be on the market a bit longer anyway), over 60% of these long-time listings are under that price.

 

How do this compare to the average time for sale?  Well, of the 1,847 homes that have sold so far this year in D.C. and Northern Virginia, the average days on market was 53.

WARNING: You Don't Want Your Home on the Market Forever!

One of the first questions buyers ask is "How Long Has That Home Been on the Market?" More often than not, buyers will use this information to determine how much they wish to offer for the home.  That is, if the buyer even makes an offer at all.  The longer a home has been on the market, the less chance it will get an offer from buyers because they will often think something is wrong with the house that's been on the market for so long.  In reality, the only thing wrong with the home may be the price!

If when checking out these homes, I notice that there have been no price reductions or very small price reductions, it becomes obvious to me that the sellers are not very motivated and unlikely to negotiate.  Chances are there were some offers for the property early on, but that the sellers refused to lower their price to get the deal done and the house sold.

When working as a listing agent representing the seller of a home, I do not want my seller's home on the market for more than a year with no price reductions.  We'll often agree upfront to scheduled price reductions after set periods of time without an offer to get the home sold.  The better strategy is to just price it right at the beginning.

 

Thank you for reading my blog post.  If you like what you’ve read, then please:

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If you plan to purchase or sell a home in the Northern Virginia or D.C. area,
you can visit my main Northern Virginia & D.C. real estate website at www.brianblock.com.