This kind of thing happens too often…
Story #1
A home seller whose agent paid for a detailed staging consultation a year ago, finally decided to take the recommended advice and paint the interior a neutral color. Dated wallpaper was also removed along with garish lighting fixtures. The paint was barely dry when an acceptable offer came in.
Story #2
The agent paid for a 4-hour staging job on a multi-million dollar waterfront property. The most critical problem in this otherwise lovely home was the carpet; both the style and condition suggested that the homeowner was not properly maintaining the house. The advice from the stager was to replace it immediately. A year and six months (and two agents) later the homeowner finally agreed to replace the carpeting. The house finally sold. I’m sure there were other issues but they lost both time and money.
The moral of the story…
Either the agent or the staging professional are not communicating the importance of following through with updating and maintenance issues. (I have found that when the homeowner pays for the staging, they are more likely to comply with the recommendations.)
A homeowner should expect to spend an average of 1% of the home’s value each year to update, etc. You may not have any issues for several years, then you may need to spend 5% for a new roof, for instance. If someone has been in a house 10 years and never improved anything, they should not be surprised if the agent suggests recarpeting and repainting to sell the house.
Next month’s newsletter will offer tips on how to convince the seller that staging will make a difference.
To be continued…
SEMINAR NEWS—
The September 1-day Staging Seminar is scheduled for Wednesday the 5th at 9:15 till 3:45 at Queens Harbour. It includes a continental breakfast and lunch with dessert. People are driving in from Orlando and Amelia Island to attend. We still have a few openings.
$250. per person
$125. for agents
Reserve your spot ASAP
ASID Industry Reports
It’s not all bad news—
If you are selling a home you will want to read this:
The sale of existing homes will be helped by a drop in new construction. An industry analysis by McGraw-Hill Construction forecasts total new construction to drop 6 percent to $641.4 billion. This ultimately means less competition in the home selling marketplace. The midyear update was released Monday 9/27/07.
The NAHB weekly newsletter reported that new home sales were up some in July after a weak June. David Seiders, chief economist for the NAHB, said that the inventory of new homes edged down slightly in July. This should positively impact existing home sales.
From the Heart—
Here is an excerpt from Robert Allen’s book, Multiple Streams of Income.
“—Suppose a person only has $1000. to invest. She can buy either investment A or investment B. She has to make a choice. By choosing A, she has to forfeit the opportunity to invest in B. And vice versa. Each decision requires a sacrifice.
“It’s the same with time. You don’t spend time. You invest it. You can invest your time in actions that bring you closer to your life’s objectives or that take you further away. Each investment of your time carries an opportunity cost. Choosing one activity means you forfeit the opportunity to do something else. An hour spent in front of the TV takes away from time you could have spent in front of a computer writing your book or in front of your son or daughter building a better relationship.” Robert Allen
www.multiplestreamsofincome.com
This book was a major contributing factor to the birth of Transformations. Maybe there is a dream floating around in your head of a business or a book. Take a few minutes right now and answer this question—What small thing can I do today to move closer to my dream?
“A dream is a wish your heart makes.”—Jiminy Cricket