Infographic: Why Some Homes Sell Faster

 by homezada on April 17, 2012

Fast Sale on 4 Homes Redesign Etc. Staged in Houston & Galveston

   

Fast sale on 4 of the homes Redesign Etc. staged in Houston & Galveston in March & April 2012.  Wow, that's the fantastic news we received last week about four different properties in and around the Houston area.  Who says buyer's aren't out there?  The home sellers were worried they were going to be sitting on their properties for a while, maybe all summer.

  

1) Not so, one of the Galveston houses that we conducted a DIY consultation for sold the day after they put it on the market.

  

"Cindy, the seller took your advice, and the house had a contract within one day. Great job!"

2) The second Houston home needed a DIY consultation, and a little rearranging assistance from us, it sold in just a few days after the "For Sale" sign went up in the front yard.

"The first week! Thanks to you... You are awesome!"

3) The third house, was semi-vacant, so we added some furniture and accessories, and staged what was left in the remainder of the house by the owner.  He had already moved from Houston to his new location.  The house sold in just a few days to the second buyer that looked at it.

  

"Thanks again for the great job. Buyer was 2^nd viewer."

4) This was a Bellaire home that we consulted on and recommended cosmetic updates, mostly in the kitchen.  Some curb appeal and other areas that needed freshening were addressed.  The owner did everthing we suggested.  We then staged the vacant property with our staging inventory of furniture and accessories.  The seller had a contract in a week!

"Cindy, Just a heads up - we have signed a sale contract!"

All of the homes that Redesign Etc. Home Staging consulted on or staged had competitive homes for sale in their areas that had been on the market for months, if not longer.  Staging made a huge difference.  The sellers are thrilled that their homes sold so fast, especially in this buyer's market. 

If you have a Houston area home for sale, or are thinking about selling, contact us to book a home staging consultation...it will be the smallest home investment with the biggest return you will make.

How Much Does it Cost to Stage a $13.995 Million Mansion?

Selling LA, Episode 9: Little Costs

Friday, December 16, 2011, by jwilliams

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It's Episode 9 of Selling LA. Technically, it's actually Episode 10, since there was a preview episode run over the summer. For those who are interested, that preview episode runs again today at 4:30 PM on HGTV. It even features a cameo by infamous Downtown LA developer Barry Shy! This week we're reunited with Valerie Fitzgerald and we meet broker Lee Ziff for the first time. Let's make him feel welcome by excoriating him in the comment section.

We begin with Valerie Fitzgerald of the Valerie Fitzgerald Group. Good news for those of you who were worried about never seeing Valerie Fitzgerald on TV ever again. Like Nicole Contreras last week, Valerie has issued a press releasesaying she will be in Season 2 of Selling LA . Set your DVRs now.

This episode, Valerie is listing a home in the Mulholland Estates (the Real Estalker gives an excellent rundown of the current tenants in that hood). The 14,000 square foot house located at 13964 Aubrey Rd is listed at $13.995 million and is ready to jump on the market, except for one tiny detail. The massive house (feat. seven bedrooms and eight and one-half baths) is empty and needs to be staged. So Valerie joins professional stager Meredith Baer for a tour of the house. After quick introductions to William Lim and his brother, the pair responsible for constructing the house, Valerie takes Meredith through an ooh- and ahh-filled tour of the empty mansion.

Valerie and Meredith sit down to discuss the costs of staging the house. Meredith offers a price of $65k just to stage the public rooms and the master bedroom. That's easy enough. Good times. Let's get going. Oh, but wait. If, per Meredith's suggestion, we do the house right--with all custom furnishings--thecost is actually $600,000. Somebody please slap a baby. That is crazy talk!

After hitting Valerie with the outlandish total, Meredith is able to give her an equally absurd total of $300k for staging using a combination of custom pieces and set pieces. See how that worked? Hit em high early, so that when you give the real number it doesn't seem so bad in comparison. Valerie tells Meredith she'll need to talk to William to see what he wants to do.

Later, Valerie takes William to Meredith's warehouse of wonderful furniture pieces. She tells Meredith that William has decided to spend $300k on the home staging. Poor William. It looks like all the blood drained from his face as he realized how much money he's laying out. However, Meredith literally jumps for joy after hearing he's agreed to spend the money.

During the tour of the warehouse, which includes lovely art pieces, mirrors, chairs, and a mounted bear head (that has either its tongue or a price tag hanging out of its mouth), Valerie tells Meredith that she has decided to throw a fashion party at the house for ladies in the area. Hopefully, having the housewife and clotheshorse contingent of the Westside into the house will lead to a potential buyer. Poor William is dubious about this idea, but he continues to be steamrolled by Valerie.

Meredith finally presents the staged home to Valerie and William. They both love what she's done, and for $300k they should. The home now has some life to it. Valerie quickly hosts her fashion party/open house, with local ladies looking at clothes while also touring the house and eating tiny sandwiches. The general feedback is positive and Valerie is able to tell William that things are looking up. One of these rich ladies may be a potential buyer!

At episode's end, we rejoin Valerie at another listing where she is showing a fellow broker, Tania Ferris, a comparable house located at 904 Hartford Way in Beverly Hills. She wants Tania to compare the house on Hartford with the Mulholland Estates house. Tania agrees that the Mulholland Estates house is far superior and her celebrity clients would probably like that house better. She also compliments Valerie on the staging job that was done. Valerie nods her head in agreement. However, (stop us if you've heard this one before), the postscript says that although the home has received some looks, they have not received an offer yet.

In the second storyline, Keller Williams agent Lee Ziff explains to us that he is going to visit his clients, Scott and Rachelle, in Brentwood. They live in a multi-million dollar home located at 1305 Allenford Ave. overlooking the Riviera Golf Course, and they are ready to sell. The house features five bedrooms, seven and one-half baths, a screening room with a stage, and wood beam ceilings and is being listed at $8.495 million. Lee explains that, although the home is great, it holds a deep, dark secret. Apprently, the house next door slightly overlooks the backyard. Therefore, the house is a disaster and only poor people will want to live there. Or something like that.

During a tour of the house, Lee explains to Scott and Rachelle that investing in some landscaping to block the neighbor's view could result in a half-million to million dollar difference in the sale price. At Lee's urging, they agree to look into the screening idea, but only if it doesn't cost too much.

Lee meets with Eyal Zuker, who is described as one of LA's finest landscapers. In order to create the privacy barrier Lee believes is needed to sell the house, they're going to need to find some plant material that is thick and tall. Eyal suggests bamboo. But in order to get the 30 to 40 foot tall bamboo plants into place on the property, they will need to use a crane to lift them in. Eyal estimates a price of $35k to get the crane and plant materials. Seriously? That's all? You can't even furnish the dining room in that other house for that amount. Scott and Rachelle need to suck it up and spend the dollars to keep their neighboring Gladys Kravitz at bay.

Lee brings Eyal to meet with Scott to discuss the plan to put in the big bamboo privacy wall along the property line. Scott isn't pleased with the $35k price tag, but admits that he has to trust Lee's expertise on what will get top dollar for the house.

The crane and the workers arrive tout de suite and all goes according to plan. The bamboo is lifted into place with only a few wobbles and what we're left with is an impenetrable bamboo wall. Now Scott and Rachelle can do what they want to do without their neighbors peeking in.

At episode's end, Lee brings other brokers through house, where he proudly points out the big bamboo screening, which everyone seems to like. Based on the reaction, he anticipates that a seller is just around the corner. Sadly, the postscript at the end says that the house did not sell, and in fact has been pulled off the market by Scott and Rachelle. And so ends another episode.
(Courtesy of LA.Curbed.com)

Houston Home Sellers, don't panic, I can guarantee you home staging will not cost anywhere near that amount in the Houston market.  Not even in the most prestigious of neighborhoods.  If that were true, we'd all drive a Lamborghini, own a private jet and have luxury homes in the most prestigious areas of the world! 

; )

Home Staging Works, See What this Houston Seller had to Say

I received this email from a client on 7/27/11.  He had a property that was vacant and had been lingering on the market for the previous 6 months.  Even in this economy, and during mid to late summer, staging does and is working in and around the Houston area.  We provided our key room staging package and comments were that "It looked like a model."


Here is what he had to say:

"Excellent Service"

Cindy,

"Thanks for the great service. Honestly I never gave much thought to having my home staged. In fact I initially thought it wasn’t worth the expense. But now that I’ve watched my house sit on the market for six months with little action and then explode with activity after your staging, I’m a believer. I would not consider selling a house without your service. You literally turned my house into a home for the buyer and sold it the next day". 

Thanks again for your help.

Willie Rose

Houston West University Vacant Home Staged & Sold in 2 Weeks!

Houston Home Sellers...Vacant Home Not Selling?

                                                                    

• Has your vacant home been on the market for over 3 months?
• Are you getting traffic through your vacant home?
• Have you had an offer on your vacant home?
• Do the empty rooms need defining?
• Are the empty rooms cold and uninviting?
• Is your vacant home another plain vanilla box?

 

Vacant homes are on the rise, and in some neighborhoods all look alike inside. So what makes a buyer pick one house over another?

 

The buyers are out there, but they're looking for a house in perfect condition, a great price, great location, with a beautiful interior. With the excess of housing inventory, buyers can now be choosey. But, not all want a foreclosure that needs work, most home buyers want a move-in ready home.

 

Staging enhances the homes best assets, defines rooms, gives it an updated look, and makes it show beautifully. If the houses are similar in your neighborhood, and yours is strategically staged with furniture and accessories, guess who's will be remembered? The staged one! If you have looked at homes, you know how true this is.

A vacant home needs to be staged. Hiring a professional stager to bring in furniture, accessories, wall art, greenery, bedding, linens, rugs, lamps and more will set your home apart from all of the other plain, vanilla boxes.

 

Real estate agents will want to show a staged home...why? Because, they know that a staged home not only shows well, but is usually move-in ready, and will sell more quickly than a vanilla box.

 

 

 

© Redesign Etc.,Inc. 2007-2010. All Rights Reserved.

 

Redesign Etc. Offers Complete Home Staging Packages for Houston Area

At Redesign Etc., we work with every home and every budget. We help find solutions for each home that we stage.


We are introducing a new line of furniture and accessory package deals to be installed in a week once paperwork has been processed. These packages are for vacant or *occupied homes. (*some restrictions apply for occupied homes).

This collection will work for traditional homes in master planned communities, contemporary homes, lofts, and townhomes.

 

All furniture collections include: 3 key rooms including kitchen and master bath.

1. Living Room or Family Room
2. Dining Room or Breakfast Area
3. Master Bedroom

We will also accessorize the Master bathroom, and kitchen.

 

This is a basic package, optional rooms can be staged for an additional fee.

 

~For higher-end homes we offer our "Platinum" Collection, which is more appropriate in style and design for that price point.

 

6 Reasons To Bring In A Home Stager

I get asked this question alot. The answer is before you do anything. All to often a home seller will call after they've painted, laid new carpet, replaced tile and have finished most of the cosmetic work. We, at Redesign Etc. can help make all of those decisions for you. We know what buyers are looking for and can keep our personal tastes out of the decision.

1) If you are wanting to put your house on the market and don't know where to begin.

2) You have too much, or too little furniture, and you're not sure what to keep and what to store.

3) Have rooms that you're not sure what to do with.

4) Need some furniture or accessories to give it that finished look.

5) If your house has been on the market and you're not really sure why, maybe it's time to call in a home stager for a professional opinion, we will be honest, unbiased, and have no vested interest in commissions, but we do want your house to sell, that's our top priority!

6) You're not sure what should be replaced, and what will bring your best ROI (Return on Investment). We will help you target any problem areas a buyer would and give you cost effective tips, and recommendations on what area should be addressed. Sometimes buyers replace items that don't necessarily need replacing, we can help guide you on what that should be, saving you money on necessary purchases.

Call us when you have decided to put your house on the market and we will give you a thorough walk through with a detailed, comprehensive, custom consultation to start, with options of furniture and accessories if necessary.

Serious About Selling Your House? Read what the 2008 NAR Survey Says

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) Sellers Survey for 2008 showed that:

• Buyers used a variety of resources in searching for a home: 87 percent used the Internet.
• Fewer buyers rely on a home book or magazine, home builders, television, billboards and relocation companies. Buyers most commonly start their search process online.
• When asked where they first learned about the home they purchased 32 percent said the Internet; 15 percent from yard signs; 7 percent from a friend, neighbor or relative; 7 percent home builders; 3 percent a print or newspaper ad; 2 percent directly from the seller; and 1 percent a home book or magazine.
• Local metropolitan multiple listing service Web sites were the most popular Internet resource, used by 60 percent of buyers.
• Buyers searched a median of 10 weeks and viewed 10 homes.

What do these statistics say? They say that the majority of home buyers, (87%) are starting their search on the internet, as their main source for buying a home. A picture is worth a thousand words, and if your photo's don't reflect a warm and inviting, picture perfect home on the internet, buyers won't even make it to your front door.

It also means there is a short timeframe they are looking and a small amount of homes that they are viewing. Why? Because they have already looked on the internet and ruled out the homes they weren't interested in. This means you have to be the most competitive and aggressive with how your home looks. If home buyers are only looking at a total of 10, odds are if your house is not picture perfect, it won't even get the chance of a walk-through from a buyer.

Home sellers can't afford not to be ready for the selling season; you have to be show ready when buyers are out looking. When you miss that short period of time, your house becomes a stale listing, and real estate agents don't show it as much, because it has lost its appeal, they will show the newer fresher listings. It also shouldn't stay on the market a long period of time, this tells the buyer, that a price-reduction is probably imminent.

Don't think that de-cluttering, cleaning, picking up all of the toys, and straightening up will do the trick either. That is not home staging, and don't be mislead that it is. That is getting your house clean, and ready to be staged. Home Buyers are looking for their perfect dream home, they want to imagine what it would be like to live there.

If it's vacant, your chances are even worse, buyers want to see a homey place; they want to see livability, functionality, and use of space. Not poorly rearranged mis-matched furniture, that is outdated and thread bear.

This is probably your biggest investment; spend a few hundred to a few thousand dollars to not only get your home sold, but to get it sold fast. Make your home the stellar stand-out in the area that outshines all of the others you are competing with.

We highly recommend a home staging consultation for any home, no matter of age, size or condition. It will be the least amount of money for your biggest investment to merchandise your property, which is unfortunately mandatory in this economy being a buyer's market. Home buyers have a mass amount of homes to choose from.

Make yours stand out!




Cindy Bryant - Owner of Redesign Etc. a Home Staging & Interior Redesign Service.Serving Houston's Bay & Gulf Coast.Featured on ABC Channel KTRK Channel 13 Houston in two segments called "Strech Your Dollar". Segment one on Redesigning A Home. Segment two on Tips for Redesigning Your Own Home.Cindy has also been featured in the Houston Chronicle, and Chron.com in "Money Matters". Appearances on Am Talk Radio "Keeping You In The Loop".Cindy is the Regional Vice President for RESA (Real Estate Staging Association) for TX, NM, AK, OK, LA.Member of ASHSR (American Society of Home Stagers & Redesigners).Cindy is Houston's "Ask the Expert" for StagersList.com.

Link: http://www.blogger.com/www.redesignetc.com

Vacant Home Staging...Do You Really Have What It Takes?

I added on to a previous post that I feel is even more important with vacant homes sitting everywhere, and hobby stagers trying to get into the business.
With vacant homes on the rise in the real estate market more people are turning to Home Staging to give their home that competitive edge. What most people don't realize is the time and labor involved in staging a vacant home. Here is an example of what can go into the process from start to finish.
After the necessary recommendations and improvements from the Home Staging Consultation Report has been implemented the acutal Home Staging process begins.

The following usually takes place:

Visiting the property to take a look at each room, the space, feel, and style of home.
Visually figuring out what furniture and accessories will best fit the spaces to be done, also known as space planning.
Taking photos of each room.
Figuring out the cost of furniture and accessories for the house.
Ordering furniture, paperwork, contracts, and phone calls.
Delivery of furniture from Furniture Company, if you use one.
Going to warehouse to start picking out and packing accessories.
Getting a truck, or trailer to carry all of the items you'll need.
Loading all items, accessories and furniture into truck or vehicle of choice. (Hoping you don't need anything else and have to make several trips)
Driving to location.
Unloading items from truck, unpacking, and placement of items and furniture, known as hands-on staging.
Take after photos.
Taking all excess that's not used, including totes or boxes and load back into truck.
Drive back to warehouse to unload.
Drive home and Crash!
Wake up the next day sore from head to toe, with scrapes, bruises and cuts, (forget the nails).
House Sells...Then What?
Call furniture company to pick-up furniture.
Drive to get truck that you'll be using to bring items back.
Drive to warehouse to get totes and boxes to put items from home back into them.
Drive to house that has now sold.
Start packing, bubble wrapping, and placing all items in totes.
Load furniture and accessories into truck.
Drive back to warehouse.
Unload, Unpack, and put everything back into warehouse.
Take truck back.
Drive home and crash again!
The next day start all over!
This is just an example of what usually happens, every Home Stager does it a little differently.
The average time from start to finish can average between 20-25 hours.
So when someone asks what the big difference in staging a vacant house versus a home with furniture already in it put your pencil to the paper and figure out how much time you spend from start to finish.
_________________________________________________________________________________
Feel free to add to this list!
Here were some add-ons from fellow stagers.
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For those in the unglamorous world of vacant home staging with their own inventory add:
Shopping for more furniture because all of yours is out - or you just don't have the exact thing for the space.
Shopping for just the right rug, pillows, accessories to compliment the paint color because you just don't have the right thing in your warehouse. (For us perfectionists)
Wrapping/padding all of your furniture so it does not get damaged in transit and stays looking new and fresh. (Repeat process when unstaging)
Unwrapping/unpadding all your furniture before set up.
Joan Inglis (Lake Wylie Home Staging)
____________________________________________________________________________
Staffing and sceduling of assistants, instalations such as draperies and window treatments (in some properties), STEAMING & IRONING of linens the night before or day of staging, cost of food, gas & supplies, Project Managment of upgrades such as flooring, painting, lighting, etc, hmmm~ I'm sure I'll think of more....
Connie Tebyani, Platinum Home Staging Serving Los Angeles and Ventura Counties (Platinum Home Staging, Inc.)
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I know the shopping and the trips back and forth can get crazy. The one thing thats no one thinks of is hauling all the stuff that a normal occupied house would have. Like an ironing board, an iron or steamer, a vacumn cleaner, a broom and dustpan, rags, just the stupid little stuff you need for spills and dusty tables, and fuzzy rugs.
Becky Raike & Nicole Forte -Staging Sells Your Home (Staging Sells Your Home )
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Don't forget the extension cords, tape of ALL kinds, velcro, glue, stapler...and I love ZOTS...there is awas something you have to tweak.
Renee Pratta ~ Renewed Rooms ~ SC (Renewed Rooms)
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You can add making sure any new items purchased for the job are included in your inventory list. Staging - especially vacant staging - is not glamorous! It is a labor of love.
Tracy Moses~Redefining LUXE~Staging ~ Redesign (Redefining LUXE)
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What it REALLY takes to stage a vacant home, and what MUST be added to the list is.......many doses of Ibuprofen!
$8.00 for a bottle of 750 tablets at Costco........about a 6-month supply for me!! The best investment in my business I can possibly make:)
Marianne Sweet, Home Sweet Home Staging, LLC Rochester Hills, MI (Home Sweet Home Staging)
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So the next time you have someone ask you how to justify the cost of vacant staging give them this list.

_________________________________________________________________

Cindy Bryant is the owner of Redesign Etc. Home Staging & Redesign Specialist in Houston, Staging Your House To Sell By Professional Home Stagers! Our goal is to get your home sold for top dollar in the most cost effective way!
Contact Cindy today for a Home Staging Consultation. Please visit our website for more information.

Areas Served: Houston, River Oaks, Tanglewood, Bellaire, Piney Point, Mid-Town, The Heights, Montrose, Texas Medical Center, The East End, West Loop/Galleria/Memorial, Downtown, Museum District, West University, Spring Branch, Royal Oaks-Lakeside, League City, Clear Lake City, Friendswood, Kemah, Seabrook, Pearland, Sugar Land, Spring, Cypress, Tomball, The Woodlands, Kingwood. And all areas down to Galveston Island.

We also have a location for the Houston Bay Area- League City Home Staging.

Study Shows Vacant Houses Are Slower To Sell

In a recent study and article by redfin.com the #6 reason to a slow sale of a house was to show it vacant. The study suggests keeping your homeowners there. It showed 9.5% of homes that were vacant would go through a price reduction, based on what a buyers thinking process was when buying a home. When they see it empty, they automatically assume the homeowner needs to get out fast, thus bidding low.

Marketing your Home to Sell- 7 Tactics By Redfin.com


To avoid this underbidding, home staging and the use of furniture can turn your lonely house into a "Buy Me" house.

Cindy Bryant is the owner of Redesign Etc. Home Staging & Redesign Specialist in Houston, Staging Your House To Sell By Professional Home Stagers! Our goal is to get your home sold for top dollar in the most cost effective way!
Contact Cindy today for a Home Staging Consultation. Please visit our website for more information.
Areas Served: Houston, River Oaks, Tanglewood, Bellaire, Piney Point, Mid-Town, The Heights, Montrose, Texas Medical Center, The East End, West Loop/Galleria/Memorial, Downtown, Museum District, West University, Spring Branch, Royal Oaks-Lakeside, League City, Clear Lake City, Friendswood, Kemah, Seabrook, Pearland, Sugar Land, Spring, Cypress, Tomball, The Woodlands, Kingwood. And all areas down to Galveston Island.

We also have a location for the Houston Bay Area- League City Home Staging.