Discover Top Posts Tagged with #westsideolympia

What’s in the box?!?!?! #vicspizza #vicspizzeria #vicspizzeriawildwood @vicspizzeria #Olympia #westsideolympia #OLY @zegee42 (at West Oly) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQ-HpXwrjtr/?utm_medium=tumblr

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Westside Rollin’... @runoly360 @zegee42 #WestsideOlympia #WestOLY #RunOLY #Olympia #TheLO #PNW #Hoodie #GV2 (at Federal Way, Washington) https://www.instagram.com/p/CPY7xHEn0mz/?utm_medium=tumblr

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I DO STAGING: Why it works!

I recently had a listing that was vacant. There had only been one occupant, a newer home, move in ready, favorable interior paint colors and a very conducive floor plan. I listed it during a time where there were plenty of buyers, and in a convenient and desirable area. So what's the issue? Why did I have over 50 agents through the home with no offer? Priced and advertised at an unbeatable price per sq foot, I had been doing open houses, the online marketing campaign was widely successful... tons of online traffic and inquiries. There really was no reason why this property wasn't moving other than it needed to tell a story. It had a large dining room and a generous living room but they were empty. Now, some people are so visual they envision exactly how furniture would fit within the space, but for others they may disregard the property and write it off as perhaps a floor plan that didn't work or they didn't like.

Staging serves TWO different but important jobs. Firstly, staging a home or room gives buyers an eye for space. It is this tangible visual where people memorize that image of a living room e.g, and compare it to other living rooms they've viewed and then compare with their own belongings they plan to use. This is why staging is a visual measuring tool. In this sense it doesn't have to do with a buyers taste in design, but rather how the space can function. Without furniture and a few pieces in a room, some people simply will not grasp how a room "works."

Secondly, staging serves its purpose in a way I describe as "branding." What I mean by that is; the pieces and things you have in a home may give visitors an indicator of how nice the home is and perhaps how well its been maintained. Here's an example: when you walk into a home and see that classic 80's silk fern with the sea foam green love seat and mauve throw pillows, it screams: "this house is old, no updates, and I cannot live here unless I spend money to update it." So buyers have a harder time looking past the outdated furniture and are more drawn to any lack of updates because they associate the look and decor with the quality of the home. This scenario is an easy fix for me, remove the pillows and accessorize the old couch and home with things that are more forward and on point with today's trend. Let buyers grasp the visual idea that modern and up to date decor works in the home in its current condition. (Buyer talk: "Hey maybe we don't need to do much to improve this place?" Or maybe they won't even notice because they are not drawn to how outdated or flawed it might be). They will not be as likely to think about all the updates a home may need and thus perceive the value to be better.

I recently saw a bottle of "Sunflowers" perfume from the 90's (and I'm pretty sure they stopped making it in the 90's) still displayed in a bathroom (Buyer might think if the perfume is that old "when is the last time they deep cleaned the shower... how clean is this place? Has the home had any updates?") Who knows where a buyers mind could go from there. But let's not let them get there, let's stop any negative thinking from even beginning if we can help it. Don't leave 20+ year old bottles of perfume sitting out. This example might be overly observant on my behalf, but why not have a critical eye when you are trying to sell your home?

It's marketing 101. Retail stores trick us everyday into thinking things are worth more than they are. Imagine the store front windows at Nordstrom where they dress up a manikin in some new trend they are trying to sell and they pair the clothing with well known expensive brand accessories, like a Burberry scarf or a Chanel handbag. It's natural to assume that anyone wearing those nice of brands must be wearing equally expensive clothing. For those who can afford it, they buy into that "story" and probably overpay for those clothing items. Without those expensive accessories we might otherwise assume the clothes to be worth much less. The moral here is, your clothes ("House" wink wink... you get the analogy) don't have to be expensive; but let's accessorize them so people think they are. So put away your Glade air fresheners, don't leave the "two buck chuck" wine bottles out on your wine rack, go buy a new trendy shower curtain, put out your nice hand soap and hand towels, put your fruit in that Waterford Crystal bowl you never unpack except for special occasions... because selling your home is a special occasion. It may be the greatest occasion of all time if you can sell your home for TOP DOLLAR!!!

Let me wrap up and bring this post back to where I started... what happened to that home I was mentioning? You guessed correctly... I staged it. Once I staged it and took new pictures, changed out all the old online pictures, "re-branded" the home and gave the rooms a story, along with that visual measuring tool... I SOLD IT. The house went pending 5 days after I staged it. Here is a before and after: