Home Stagers... Isn't it Time You Became a B.A.S.T.R.D. ARSE Like Me?

To my fellow home stagers... I did not want to make too big of a stink about this, but I am delighted to announce yet another staging training & certification course than is now becoming available to you.
While I know many of you all already are well trained staging professionals and have worked hard at applying the foundational basics in the art and business of home staging, I also know many of you still feel a bit inadequate and under-trained.

You’ve shared with me your tales of how your competition, at times, rubs your nose in the fact that they believe they are better educated then you... ESPECIALLY when it comes to the skillful use and application of Raffia.

Well, guess what? Your worries are over...

I am happy to announce I have been recently sought out by the British Academy of Staging Training & Raffia Design (B.A.S.T.R.D.) to be educated, certified and then bring back to you their renowned ARSE approach to staging.

Last weekend, I am happy to reveal, the B.A.S.T.R.D.s flew me over to cheery old England for an exhaustive training program to learn ZILLIONS of ways the professional home stager can use Raffia cheaply, yet beautifully, transform their client's properties. GOLLY! There was so much I had to learn in this grueling three day wonder workshop. WOW! I would never have thought one could create so much out of a shriveled stinky dead weed?

But even now, though I am so pooped out, I am just too excited and want to share with you that I am now a Master B.A.S.T.R.D ARSE. That's right I got my MBA! I'm a real live educated ARSE too. I can no longer say I “stage naked” as the renowned stager Kate Hart says. Oh, and more importantly… I am trained and authorized to now teach you the B.A.S.T.R.D. methodology so that you too can generate beautiful Raffia staging transformations. Just LOOK at all the stunning, yet clever, ways Raffia was used in the room pictured above. LOVELY, simply lovely.

You see one thing I learned was… NOTHING SELLS a home faster than a home staged with RAFFIA! And while I know many of you might think you know why it works so well, I know you believe it is because it looks cute and adorable. But it is not the way it LOOKS that helps it make a house sell. Actually it is the way that it SMELLS that SELLS! But I have to admit while it does look pretty too. WOW, there is so much to teach you. Did you know the ARSE tag line is, "Don’t be a stinker... swell smells sell!"

Well I just know the home staging industry will soon be revolutionized as more and more stagers use this misunderstood and underutilized tool. So I invite all home stagers to come learn the secrets of Raffia! I am now taking reservations for next month's inaugural class. Space is limited... so sign up now. And know, I look forward to teaching you how to be a total ARSE… just like me.

Smile It Forward...
Me

Post Script: I believe it is important that we can laugh at ourselves and not take ourselves too serious. A smile before the holiday is a good thing. Anyway, hope you enjoyed it... Happy 4th.

New Bern regional airport

Last Saturday I had to go to the airport to pick my wife up. She was coming in from Philadelphia. I was suprised when I walked in the the airport to see so many people, some getting their luggage, 2 lines, one Delta, one US Air, both of which weemed to be full. New Bern, and all of Eastern NC, are fortunate to have an airport with such outstanding service. We have 8 US Air flights daily to Charlotte, 3 Delta direct jet flights to Atlanta, and several weekly flights to Philadelphia. Thats hard to beat for a small county like craven, Pamlico, and Cateret.

Since Home Stagers Aren't Popeye, Home Sellers Don't You Be Wimpy!

When I was a little kid I used to watch the animated cartoon Popeye on Television. One of the cartoon's secondary characters was a sweet harmless lovable oaf named Wimpy. But Wimpy had a major "issue"... he was addicted to hamburgers.

Hamburgers! Hamburgers! Hamburgers!

Wimpy craved them and could not get enough of them. He would do ANYTHING for one. Even if he didn't have the money to buy one he would try to mooch money from the other characters in the cartoon so he could buy one. Wimpy is now known for his famous line, "I'd gladly pay you Tuesday for a hamburger today."

So what does Wimpy have to do with Home Staging? Well, in the 3-plus years Real Estaging has been merchandising properties in Chicago and its burbs we have brought a LOT of spinach into many homes' saleability. However, being that home staging is still relatively new and misunderstood, we sometimes get asked if we would accept payment for our staging services at closing. I gotta admit EVERY time we are asked that I can't help but think of poor old Wimpy.

Why shouldn't a home stager expect to wait for payment for the services they provided until the closing? Well, it might help you to understand when to pay a stager if you look at what we do from these perspectives.

FIRST, staging services are like any other services provided by an independent contractor hired to help ready a home for its eventual sale. Would you ask or expect a painter who had painted a house, in order to get it ready for sale, to accept payment once the house is sold? Or would you ask a landscaper who trims the bushes, edges the lawn, and plants flowers to accept payment for their services once the house is sold? No! So why should a home stager expected to be paid at closing?

SECOND (and MORE importantly) is the fact that while the whole purpose of staging is to prepare a home that is for sale and IMPROVE its attraction for potential buyers... home staging does NOT guarantee the sale.

Remember, a home stager's responsibility is to prepare a house for its sale in the market... NOT SELL IT. It is the Realtor's job is to sell the property. When a stager has completed their work... the Realtor takes over to make the sale happen. As a property merchandiser, once we set a home and leave the premises, the home stager has NO control over multiple dynamics that can and WILL impact the home's sale. Dynamics such as:

• PRICE - A property that is priced too high will never sell, no matter how much staging you do.
• MARKETING PLAN - A property can be staged all nice and pretty, but if a realtor is not getting the word out on it, then staging will not help.
• INSPECTION FINDINGS - A home might look great on the surface... but lurking below a pretty surface may be an issue that ONLY an inspector will find.
• SELLER MOTIVATION - If a seller has underlying "issues" that thwarts a sale... then a sale just might not happen.
• SELLING SKILLS - Some deals are just harder to close than others and require more sales acumen. Again while the home might look great, if the Realtor is can not close deals, staging will not help.
• BUYER'S FINANCING - Stagers have not control on a buyer's eligibility or ability to secure financing for a staged home they want to buy. (So did we NOT do the job?)
• MAINTENANCE - If a home seller reverts to their pre-staged untidy cluttered ways the stagers work will be compromised. Also if a home is not kept clean... that also will undermine the positive impact a staged home can have.

So if you compelled to ask that Wimpy question... know that this Real Estaging Bluto and others will most likely reply "NO...but we do take Master Card, Visa and American Express."

And remember there is plenty of staging spinach here… to help you learn more to sell your home.

Me

Lake New Bern

Last night my wife and my son spent the afternoon at Lake New Bern. Lake New Bern is a 60 acre, 40' deep absolutely beautiful lake located in the center of New Bern. We set up a tent, started the charcoal, and proceeded to enjoy the afternoon reading, walking-me, and fishing. After I walked around the perimeter of the lake, around 2 miles, I checked to see how many fish my wife and son had caught. The sum of their catch was 0. So I asked if they would mind if I gave it a whirl. First cast and bang, I hooked a nice large mouth bass.

Humbly I unhooked the fish and walked away.

Judging for Real Estate Blogging Award Ain't Just Easy as Black & White

Real Estate gives bloggers a variety of colorful subjects to write on. In fact, as a guest judge for this week's Carnival Of Real Estate, I had so many GOOD posts (about 30) to choose from, I have to admit, it was tough to narrow it down to just one overall winner. Since working with color is a basic tool that a stager relies on, I choose it to be the award's theme... so, that allowed me to narrow the field down to six R-O-Y-G-B-V Finalists, from which one would reign as the Most Colorful and winner for the 46th Carnival of Real Estate.

The six R-O-Y-G-B-V Color Finalists for this week's Carnival of Real Estate (in no particular order) are:

The RED FINALIST AWARD goes to Michael Simonsen. Red is the color for danger, power, passion and desire. It also it the color of energy. The fascinating pricing "heat maps" Michael presents in Bay Area Price Reductions Heat Map posted at Altos Research Real Estate Insights are FULL of red energy.

The ORANGE FINALIST AWARD goes to Brian Brady. Orange is the color that represents creativity, determination and success. Brian is writes a post with "character" as he offers his fresh and "memorable" advice in Realtors Should Stop Selling Houses... posted at BloodhoundBlog.

The YELLOW FINALIST AWARD goes to Oliver Muoto. Yellow is associated with joy and happiness but also can be a cautionary color. Oliver warns Realtors of the primary importance of using good quality pictures when advertising listing in A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words posted at vFlyer Blog.

The GREEN FINALIST AWARD goes to Michael Price. Green symbolizes growth, harmony and, as we all know, money. Michael reminds us that growth can come from looking at new business models. People that think differently will enjoy his Book Report: Be Unreasonable posted at Mike's Corner - Web 2.0 For Real Estate Pros.

The BLUE FINALIST AWARD goes to Dr. John Yacenda. Blue embodies trust, loyalty, wisdom and intelligence. While John definitely demonstrates all those traits in his tale, the same can not be said for his clients. ?Pro Pro Per Pla? ? A Cautious Buyer?s Motto, and It?s not Latin! is a fun read posted at RenoRealEstateVoice.

The VIOLET FINALIST AWARD goes to Karen Rhodes. Violet (purple) is often associated with wealth, extravagance, dignity and independence. However, sadly these noble traits were mischievously played with and convoluted by so many parties involved with the loans. Karen writes of the Subprime troubles in The Party is Over posted at Chattanooga Real Estate Blog.

But when it comes down to it, the #1 post for this week that should be read, is all about RED. The heat maps posted on Michael Simonson's blog entitled Bay Area Price Reductions Heat Map captivated my interest... it was new, fresh, interesting and different. Because I am a home stager, I have seen time and again how it helps to sell people by helping them see. Micheal shares a tool Realtors could use in any market to help visually explain and then create effective pricing strategies with their client home sellers. CONGRATULATIONS MICHAEL this was the Most Colorful post and this week's winning post!

So... those are the colorful award winners for the 46th Carnival of Real Estate here on Home, Staging Rants & Ravings... I hope you enjoy reading them and learning from them as much as I did. I have to say I am truly honored to be the FIRST HOME STAGER ever in the nation to be selected to host and judge this forum that represents the best voices within the Real Estate Industry. Zillow recognizing stagers helps the home staging industry Stage It Forward. The next carnival will be held on Monday, June 18 at RE Agent in CT. Please submit your best post by Sunday, June 17, to be considered.

Color It Forward...

Me

PS: In the future, if you are interested in offering your thoughts and ideas you write of in your own blog (YES HOME STAGERS... YOU TOO should be submitting posts!) to the Carnival, all you need to do is submit your blog article to a weekly edition of the Carnival of Real Estate using their carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Fun at the Palace

The photo on the left shows New Bern's Tryon Palace during a concert held Tuesday June 4. What a wonderful evening. Over 1000 people showed up to hear the North Carolina symphony. Afterwards there was a spectacular fireworks display courtesy of one of our local corporations. All this for free. Great evening and I hope they will do it again soon.

DING DONG, Stage It Forward Calling... with a FREE Member Button for YOU!

As a member of both Active Rain and Stage It Forward, I LOVE the fact that it is open to all… And because it is so, many home stagers have joined over the past year to shared tales of their experiences and their wisdom. But, I am most proud of the fact that since joining Active Rain its group Stage It Forward... has become one of the most active and THRIVING sub-communities on this HUGLY popular real estate industry networking site.

WOW do Home Stagers have a lot to say and WOW do they ever say it.

Home Stagers and the Home Staging Industry are lucky that Active Rain came along when it did.

Since November 2006 over 600 members have joined and have posted over 2,400 articles about home staging in the group. Because of this fact the group has rapidly become a nation-wide noted resource for home staging information. What makes it so special the fact that collectively the group created itself… which is something each member should take pride in. The collective home staging voice is being spoken hear AND is being heard.

A few months back a special "staged" doorway into the group was created. And while it was GREAT to have the doorway... getting to the "door" became an issue. You see, you still need a "door bell button" that “rings” into this amazing industry resource and community.

So here you go... I have been asked for a link that a stager can use to display their involvement. Here is a button of a working "doorbell" that can be FREELY added to websites or blogsites. All you need to do is copy and paste the HTML CODE that I can email to you. (Image shown below is an actual working sample.)

Clicking on the button will take people visiting your site on to the Stage It Forward Gateway site. At the Gateway they will read a quick overview of the group you are a part of and committed to. Then they can move on into Active Rain’s Stage It Forward group.

So if you would like to show your affiliation to the group... just click on the link. The HTML code that you can insert on your website and/or your blogsite that will create this linking button can be found on the Stage It Forward Gateway.

I, like many of the home stagers that visit this blog, know that home staging works. But I also know that getting the general public and real estate community to understand and believe in what we do has been a bit of a challenge at times. However now, because of Stage It Forward, our voice speaking as one helps tell our story... that's for sure. This membership button is just another subtle "less is more" way to SHOW people we do have a collective voice as an industry.

More good Stage It Forward things are to come... I promise.
Me

Success in Home Staging Business is NOT Just "Pretty" Hocus Pocus Magic!

A few blogs back I wrote of the upcoming publication of a book by Barb Schwarz of StagedHomes.com called: "Building a Successful Home Staging Business."

Well, it has been published and I have read it and here is my promised "Book Review".

First, while I don’t agree with everything Barb and her co-author Mary Goodbody wrote of... I have to admit, overall I was pleasantly surprised. I found this book to be MUCH better than I expected!

Yes, this book is a little schmaltzy. Yes, Barb repeatedly states throughout the book that she “invented” home staging to the point that it feels annoyingly boastful at times. But Barb does masterfully "walk the line" I spoke of back in my original post. I think readers of this book will find it to be better written and NOT the "self serving big ego dump" and not a "fluffy disguised piece of advertising" for StagedHome.com seminars... which were some of the complaints she received for her last book entitled: "Home Staging: The Winning Way to Sell Your House for More Money."

However, unlike what the back cover claims… this book is still not so much a "How To" operate a home staging business as it is a "How About" the business. So, while it is a nice overview for anyone interested in getting into the business, if you have owned and operated a home staging business, you will find much of what Barb reveals is no great new news.

But, for the budding stager this book is a nice summary of the tribulations, trials and necessities involved with the start up of a home staging business. The authors make it clear this business requires NOT just having the creative talent to "redecorating a room". I totally agree with this key point, as I think many people are first attracted into this business because they hope it is a way to utilize, tap into and apply their creative skills and desire to decorate.

Unfortunately, dealing with the cold hard reality of STARTING, OPERATING, and MAINTAINING a business is often the after-thought for people who get into a home staging (or any) business. From this book, readers will surely see that a "glamorous staging career" is REALLY about being an entrepreneur that has to work hard at growing their staging business.

So while I was glad Barb writes and says it takes work to own and operate a home staging business, I have to say the book still is a little too simplistic and idealizes what it actually does take to run a staging business. Some of what Barb wrote of is incomplete advice and a little glossed over (ie Chapter 3 "Your Business Plan" - only 8 pages long) and some of what she shares would be GREAT guidance if we operated in a perfect world and a perfect marketplace where there was NO competition. But in spite of her somtimes over simplistic view, I was glad to see that Barb was clear about the fact that starting and running a home staging business is not hocus pocus magic. Ultimately she communicates to the reader that what it takes is a combination of talent, a lot of hard work, positive perseverance and a little bit of luck.

So in closing I have to say… Barb Schwarz's new book is a nice OVERVIEW for those considering opening a home staging businesses, but for those of you already in the industry just know that this book is NOT the promised “practical guide that will show you exactly how to” do “what it takes to make it in the Home Staging Industry”. There is so much more that can, needs and will be said to move your businesses and this industry to higher levels. Luckily, much of what needs to be shared and said can be found over in Active Rain’s Stage It Forward group.

Me

Happy on the river in New Bern

Happiness is being on the Trent River in New Bern with your grandson and your two best friends, Roscoe and River. Doesn`t get much better than this.