Seriously, this is a quote from the lovely neighbors who stopped by our staging job as we (David Moon, my assistant Sue, and I) worked away late into the night.... This makes me so sad to hear, and believe me, even sadder for the agent and the seller. In this case, the seller is the bank - the builder, who never had the home staged, unfortunately had the home forclosed on. This is despite the fact that while this home was being built, we had sucessfully staged and sold 3 other units on this very street, in a small, new subdivision!
This agent, very savvy, and part of a team of dedicated professionals has been advocating staging to the bank since she took the listing. She knows that we routinely stage and quickly sell listings for her team. These are the actual MLS photos....
I'm sure you can already see the problem buyers were having. The house is small and cottage like. There are no walls to put furniture up against & if you use the area deemed to be the dining room (last photo) then that leaves a gaping useless space between the family room and the bar area. Too much for most people to worry about, so they just move on....
As the neighbors so aptly pointed out to us upon seeing our finished product, "I guess you figured it out." Here was our solution to the furniture layout problem....
If you are a seller or an agent, please take this example to heart - this doesn't have to continue happening. Quality professional home stagers are in a town near you...
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First Impressions Home Staging & Interior ReDesign is a nationally award winning company owned and operated in Summerville, SC a suburb of Charleston, SC. We provide high quality staging for both occupied and vacant homes in the greater surrounding areas and beyond! For more information please visit, www.WeStageSC.com. If you are interested in learning about making Home Staging your profession, please visit, www.StagingAndRedesign.com for more information.
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Melissa Marro, a published artist, now turned staging advocate and national speaker speaks her mind about real estate and the home staging industry. In her 'no holds barred' approach, audience members find real answers to the industries pitfalls and learn how to overcome them with tried and true information and guidance. With marketing as her passion, she turned a small home based business into one of the nation's largest home staging and training facilities. Selling her successful home staging company in January 2012, Marro is now a full time speaker and instructor for Staging And Resign and Real Estate Staging Association (RESA)'s trade events.
For more information on having Marro speak at one of your real estate functions, please contact her at 843.619.1593 or email at marro.melissa@gmail.com
There you got it right from the potential buyer's mouth...when furniture placement is an issue, they move on. In this case, they didn't have to move on very far. It looks beautiful, Melissa!
HI MELISSA! Nice post! Many people just don't have the knack to decorate and "place" items. Even those that do - still need to see it to make it real and work for them! -- Gabrielle
I like the way you solved the dining room problem. It was much better suited to a sitting area than a dining area. And it let the dining table fill the awkward spot between the sofa and the bar. Great job!
I just found out that it has its first showing tomorrow (though there was an agent caravan today!) Keep your fingers crossed....
I also just got an email from the LA with the seller's comments after viewing the RES (remember this is a bank owned property)...
"That looks wonderful, thank you. I see what you mean about the fireplace - hopefully when you walk in the door because of the way everything is placed it feels spacious. You can't face it with the sofa... that's the deal... I think the house looks gorgeous. She's good."
Melissa, beautiful job. It always amazes me that people just don't know what to do other than shove all their furniture against the walls. That's a great quote from the neighbor. Was the next door house staged?
Pangaea - I'm not sure if the home they purchased was staged or not... I will say this, my partner Bevin staged 2120 Military Way, 2125 Military Way & 2129 Military Way, all of which sold quickly (2 sold in about 30 days, the 3rd in 90)... this home is 2148 Military Way..... since there are so few homes in the neighborhood, it is entirely possible!
Lovely job! Staging a home enhances the work of the imagination. When a home is vacant, the sterility tends to put a damper on the process for many and that impediment may cost a sale. Your pictures tell the tale brilliantly on this one.
Nice house and good pictures. Looks lovely. I think I'd call in a home stager after buying the house to show me what to do with it>
Thank you for the time to post today.
Patricia Aulson/Portsmouth NH Real Estate
Melissa,
Great job - I love what you did!! You definitely figured it out. No guessing and figuring from the buyers - very important.
Bravo! Melissa, What a great solution for the dining area. I'm sure you'll have a quick sale!
I wonder....do you think that IF the builder had staged this one...that maybe he would have not lost it to the bank?
Lola - you absolutely hit the nail on the head!
Patricia - we've sold many a set of furniture because of staging our properties & have been hired for move in services as well... all around it is a win for everyone....
Kim - when I initially walked into this space it was clear what the problem was and why the home had not sold (btw, it has been listed since 08/16/2007 - no, not a typo - since August 2007!) With the first showing tomorrow, I'm hopeful it will go quickly!
Donna - Thank you! I just knew we had to work on that empty space and this seemed the most logical to me!
Virginia - you snuck in there while I was posting back! Since we successfully staged 3 homes in this neighborhood in late 2007 and early 2008 - I think there is a strong possibility that it might have. We had a proven track record.
For the record, we also prospect all neighborhoods when we stage, when the homes go under contract and when they close. All of the LAs and Builders know we have staged and sold in their areas if we've been there.... this was a matter of them not realizing the importance or being too cheap to do it.... what a shame!
Melissa - The house looks wonderful! What a great staging job! I just read your comment above. What a great idea to canvas the neighborhood!! Why haven't I thought of that?
Patsy - I actually blogged about that months and months ago - but it might have been before your time (depending on how long you've been in SIF)... you can go back to my old blogs and look for it if you want more details...
Melissa you have done it again! It looks fantastic and your business skills are awesome. Thanks you for sharing your know-how with us! I am going to check out your old blogs and have a notebook ready!
Sheila - thank you! I think I have over 300 blogs, so you might need an entire steno pad... lol.... Of course many of those are simply fluff and B&A photos....
I agree completely!! Photos from the right angles can make such a big difference and add even more character. I've been experimenting with some of my photos after reading some of your previous posts to try to capture more interesting photos.
As always...Fabulous job, Melissa!
Melissa, wishing you success with this sale as well. No doubt it will happen!
Hey Melissa, hope your doing well. In the photos I can see another example of that world famous Marro touch! I can't describe it exactly but when I look at your work it's almost like I can see your signature on it... Instead of saying oh, it's a Picasso, or a Rembrandt, we look at it and say, Ah, it's a Marro! LOL.. Great work...!
I'd say YOU hit the nail on this one Melissa - having to look outside of what was originally intended (you wonder sometimes what architects are thinkiing with some spaces - while they like what they're doing they sometimes forget about the people who'll be living there). It took the eyes and skill of a professional to see the space and use it. Great job and best of luck with the sale!
Melissa - great job as usual. You're right, most people would think they had to put the dining table in the room with the windows. Great solution and creates a nice seating area. A desk probably would work there as well. Thanks for posting!
Great solution! I am so glad that got the opportunity to show a use for the space...I am always amazed at the inability of people to think outside the box, and try something different, but thank goodness they don't all have the ability or we wouldn't have anything to do!