HomeGain 2009 Top 12 Home Improvements Survey Results

Home Gain posted it's top 12 Home Improvements Survey. Home Staging came in at number two! More proof that Staging Works!!!!!

To see the complete article please visit
http://blog.homegain.com/home-improvement/homegain-2009-top-12-home-improvements-survey-results/

This past week I had the pleasure of obtaining my ASPM (Accredited Staging Professinal Master) designation in Home Staging. The 5 day class was held in Atlanta Georgia and was taught by Barb Schwarz the creator of Home Staging and CEO of StagedHomes.com. This was such an intense 5 day course packed with so much valuable information. As a professional I strive to have the most up to date knowledge and education in the field of Home Staging. The Accredited Staging Professional Master is the highest designation in the Home Staging field. StagedHomes.com is the only staging course recognized by the National Association of Realtors and the Federal Government. StagedHomes.com is also the only course that is supported and paid for by the United States government for spouses of those in the armed forces.

While in Atlanta taking this course our class had the opportunity to attend a Realtor panel event given by the IAHSP (international Association of Home Staging Professionals) Atlanta chapter. The panel consisted of about 6 Realtors and one Real Estate Investor. The panel spoke to a packed house of other Realtors from the area. The panel addressed questions about the current housing market. I was so amazed to hear that many of the Realtors on this panel not only believe in Home Staging but they won't take a listing without the homeowner first staging. It was so great to hear these Realtors rave about the benefits of Home Staging. I was in 7 Heaven! Several of the Realtors on the panel stated that despite the tough Real Estate market this has been one of their best years. They stated that the key for their business was making sure their listings were priced right and Staged! You see buyers only have control over two things when their home is on the market and that is price and Staging! The Realtors on the Panel shared with us that pricing their listings right and having them staged were yielding multiple offers on some of their listings. Yes you heard right bidding wars even in this market! Staging really works and these Realtors were living proof.

Barb, was the guest speaker at this event. As usual she was amazing! Barb is such an inspiring and eloquent speaker. The Realtors who attended this event left with very valuable information about the benefits of Home Staging!

While in this course I met such wonderful women who I have formed a life long bond with. We came from all over the United States to earn our ASPM designation! Friday night we had our graduation ceremony in a intimate candle lit room. There were so many tears and thanksgiving. We all learned so much from each other! I am so thankful to my heavenly Father that I had the opportunity to take this course! It has been such a life changing and inspiring week!

The best is yet to come from me and my business!

Happy Staging!

SOLD!!!!!!

SOLD!!!!!!!!!

Listed at $114,900
Sold at $114,900
8051 Pebble Creek Ct.
Listing Agent: Grace Collete of Carpenter Realtors

The owners of this home contacted me for a Written Staging Consultation. Their home had been on the market for a little over 3 months. Prior to this the homeowners had been trying to sell their home off and on for three years. The homeowner's were not pleased with the feedback they were getting from buyers who had viewed their home. They were familiar with Staging and thought they would give it a try. Some of the feedback that they were receiving was that they had too many personal items out on display and that the rooms appeared too small. Once I visited the home I noticed that they had a lot of toys throughout the home. Their sitting room showed more like a daycare rather than a cozy sitting room. The homeowners had an adorable 18 month old son who was clearly leaving his mark in every room of the home. The home was also full of personal photos and clutter. Clutter eats equity and will easily make rooms feel cramped and small. It was clear to me that these homeowners needed to pack away the toys, clutter and edit some of their furniture.

I am pleased to announce that 30 days after completing the recommendations I provided to them, they received 3 offers on their home. They accepted the offer that was for their full asking price. Their investment in a Written Staging Consultation was only $250.00.

This is just one example that proves that Staging doesn't have to cost a fortune but the effects of Staging can be priceless! Now these homeowners can finally move on to their next adventure!


What The Homowners Had To Say

Hi, Tia! I hope this message finds you well! I just wanted to inform you that last week we received two more offers on our home, and accepted the one for our full purchase price. Thank you so much for all of your help. I will be sure to pass your information along to all of my friends and family.

Staging Works!!!!!!!!

Happy Birthday To Me!!!!!!

Happy Birthday To Me!!!!!

Yesterday was my birthday and I am truly thankful to my Lord and Savior for giving me another year! Yesterday I spent some time reflecting on the last year and how I have been so blessed. I am so excited about what may be in store for me during this year! I am thankful for having a wonderful husband and healthy children. I am also thankful that even though we are living in a recession we have still been able to put food on the table, pay our bills and put clothes on our children's backs. God is so good, ALL THE TIME!

Speaking of my children I have some of the most creative children. My 9 year old daughter made me a birthday card from scratch. When I opened the card up a cake popped up with birthday candles on it that read "Happy Birthday Mommy." My 12 year old son made me a coupon book filled with chores that he is willing to do for me. The funny thing is he said the coupons can be used over and over for my entire life......kids are the greatest!

What a wonderful birthday!!!!

Happy Staging!!!!!!!!

Great Mirror Framing Product!

I was reading one of my Interior Design magazines and I came across this article about a wonderful product that will allow you to easily frame the mirror in a bathroom. Many homes have those builder grade mirrors in the bathroom. Having a custom frame built and installed can be very costly. The name of the company is MirrorMate Frames, I decided to visit their web site and was very pleased with the information provided. The website displays before and after installations pictures, a video that shows how easy the fame is to install, as well as much more useful and helpful information.

Installation is easy!

You just take the measurements of your mirror and send them in to the company with your frame selection. Once the frame arrives everything that you need to install the frame is included.

1. Apply the supplied glue to the adjoining ends and spread

2. Insert the corner connectors and press into place.

3. Pre-fit your frame on the mirror and place the placement corners into place. Remove the frame and remove the tape backing. Place frame back on the mirror on top of the placement corners and firmly press into place. Remove placement corners and that is it!

Easy and simple!

These MirrorMates Frames will come in handy for anyone wanting to update their bathroom mirror easily for an affordable price. These MirrorMates Frames can be useful to us stager's wanting to give clients bathrooms a fresh new look!

You can find all information about ordering, installation and the different frames to choose from on the MirrorMate Frames website at http://www.mirrormate.com/

I definitely look forward to using this product!

Happy Staging !!!!!!

Money Down The Toilet!!!!!

A few months ago I provided a Written Staging Report to a client. The clients home was going on the market and her Realtor recommended Home Staging to her. The clients home was full of clutter. In addition to that she had wall to wall wallpaper. In the Written Staging Report I recommended that she remove the wallpaper and paint the walls a neutral color. I also recommended that she pack up a lot of the nick knacks and clutter she had throughout the house. Remember clutter eats equity! I recommended that she edit some of her furniture and play up the homes selling features. In the family room there were beautiful built in bookshelves which were being hid by a huge big screen television. Of course I recommended that the television be moved to showcase these built in bookcases. As a compliment to the client I agreed to return to the home once the recommendations were complete to do some fine tuning.

When I returned to the home the client had packed up a lot of the nick knacks in the home. She didn't edit any furniture or move the television as recommended. She also refused to remove the wallpaper as I suggested. She told me that she liked the wallpaper and didn't see the reason to remove it. The wallpaper was very colorful and well honestly very unattractive. I explained to her that the wallpaper was very taste specific and may not appeal to the most buyers. I also explained to her that removing wallpaper is a tedious task. When your home is on the market it becomes a product and it's important to display that product in a manner that will attract buyers. Editing furniture is important so that the rooms don't appear smaller than they really are.

This home has now experienced its first price reduction. The price of the home was reduced $33,900 from its original asking price. OUCH! This homeowner can never get this money back! Most of the feedback coming from the buyers are complaints about the wallpaper. One person said that "she liked the neighborhood but would not purchase this home because of the wallpaper." If the homeowner would have made the initial investment on the front end to have the wallpaper removed perhaps she would not have lost $33,900 on a price reduction. It would have also helped if she would have followed through with all of the recommendations provided to her in the Written Staging Report. You can either make necessary changes to a home prior to going on the market or pay in the end in the form of price reductions.

Buyers have control over two things when their home is on the market. The first is the price of the home and the second is the way the home looks. Staging will improve the homes appearance highlighting the best features of the home. The average investment for Home Staging in the Midwest is only $1,800 dollars. That is a far cry from $33,900. Remember you only get one chance to make a first impression!

The investment made in Home Staging is ALWAYS less than the first price reduction!

Happy Staging!

Kitchen Cabinets and Drawers

When you decide to sell home there are many things that should be done to get your home show ready! In addition to all the cleaning and de-cluttering don't forget the kitchen cabinets and drawers. When buyers tour homes they look EVERYWHERE! Never underestimate the eye of the buyer! Follow the tips below for organizing kitchen cupboards and drawers prior to listing your home. These tips are also helpful for anyone looking for ways to organize the cabinets and drawers in their kitchen.

Lets Get Started!

* The first thing that you should do is empty out all cabinets and drawers top and bottom.

* Next wipe all cabinets and drawers out with a damp cloth. This gets rid of dust, dirt, syrup, spices, crumbs or anything else that may be hiding inside.

* Take a long look at all of your dinnerware, silverware, food storage and cookware. Dispose of any that are stained, chipped, broken or just not that great in appearance. If you are going to be moving you don't want to pack this up and take it with you to your new home. If you have a lot of dinnerware and cookware it may be a good idea to pack some of these items up. Edit items down to the essentials that you use on a daily basis. You don't want your cabinets and drawers to appear cluttered. Clutter eats equity!

* Group like items together. For example group all food storage containers together. Group all cookware, flatware and dinnerware together you see where I am going with this.

* Place items back into the cleaned cabinets and drawers taking into consideration how they are used in the kitchen. Cookware should be stored in cabinets that are close to the stove. Plates, glasses, bowls, spoons and forks should be placed in cabinets/drawers close to the dishwasher. This makes it simple to return items to their rightful place after unloading the dishwasher.





*Stack little pots in side bigger ones. Purchase a lid holder for all of the lids that go with your cookware.

* Little plates can be stacked on top of bigger ones as well as little bowls can be stacked inside bigger ones.

* Line drinking glasses up in neat rolls inside the cabinet.

* Purchase drawer organizers such as the one below for all cooking utensils and flatware.






* Dispose of all cleaning supplies that you no longer use or are empty, place in a container or basket under the sink.

JUST SAY NO to the infamous junk drawer. Everything should have a specific home. Junk is clutter and clutter eats what? That's right equity! You want buyers to see how roomy cabinets and drawers are so they can visualize their own items there. When your home is clutter free buyers feel as though you have taken care of your property. Buyers are more likely to buy well maintained homes.

There are many items on market that you can purchase to help you organize your kitchen. Check out stores such as Bed Bath and Beyond. Wal-Mart and Target are also good sources for kitchen organization merchandise. The possibilities are endless. Remember when you put your home on the market it becomes a product and it should show in the best way possible! Stay tuned for future tips on organizing drawers and cabinets in the bathroom, cleaning appliances and much more!

Happy staging and remember clutter eats equity!