Can You Stage Your Home Yourself?

What if you REALLY need to sell your house fast before the bank takes it back and you are flat broke. The $2000 budget (without labor of course) as seen on HDTV with such shows as Designed To Sell is unthinkable! Having professionals tell you they want to come in and stage your home just makes you throw your hands up and yell “You’re not listening…I am flat broke!”.

I know I know I know; been there, done that, lost the t-shirt.

This ‘What if’ scenario is not only real but it is happening in every neighborhood across America… stress levels are up through the roof and hope has all but disappeared! You are in a panic and cannot think straight.

• You are behind on your mortgage
• You have to sell your house before it forecloses and what is left of your good credit will be ruined
• Homes are for sale all around you and yours is a mess.
• You don’t have enough money to go around much less enough to hire a stager
• You have no where to go

Is there anything you can do about it? YES! Grab the bull by the horns, as my father would say, and get it done…just do it yourself if you have to!

And that is exactly what I do when things get tough...and that is why I know you can do it too. I wrote Do-It-Yourself Home Staging Instructions just for this situation. It is a step by step instructional tutorial with a to do list and a checklist to stage your own home…as though I were right beside you.

Staging a property to sell is really nothing more than a watered down version of new construction model homes. Staging an occupied home (yours) takes much more effort and sacrifice but it can and must be done! You cannot take the chance of loosing everything when it is a fact that staged homes sell 50% quicker than the competition. You will increase your chances to get your asking price...this isn't just hype; these are current facts!

Who am I and how can I help?

My interior decorating career began in the model home industry…that was almost 27 years ago.
Where am I now and who am I? Currently I am on the board of the Real Estate Staging Association of North America; I am one of the top bloggers for professional home stagers in Active Rain, and help and support the staging industry as a whole through developing activities such as Stager Idol which is going on right now, I am most proud of my Internet business that offers Do It Yourself Home Staging Checklist and Instructions so you don’t have to loose your house. You too can take the necessary steps and increase your odds right now without waiting until it is too late.

I am not suggesting staging your own home in the good times, there is nothing like a professional stager or interior designer/decorator to come in and put the wow factor to work. But in these very hard times, you can do the basics your self! I invite you to visit how2homestage.com and get started…increase your odds of selling right now!

Don't Kid Yourself...Home Staging is a lot of work

I was just reading a post about home staging as a career and the title led one to believe that home staging is the perfect career for the frustrated mid life person. My first thought was "are they in for a shocker!".

Staging homes is very hard work so don't kid yourself if you think you will be able to jump right in and begin satisfying your creative mid-life self. Creativity seldom comes into play in home staging and let me tell you why...

• It is a business so the business needs to be set up and run like any other small business
• You will be confronted with clutter and grime like you have never seen before. Stripping a home down to its basic essentials can be a real challenge for you and if you choose not to do it, then getting your clients to do it is another big challenge...why? If they lived like that in the first place, it will be difficult for them to clean it up to your satisfaction.
• You will need inventory...sometimes a lot of inventory such as plants, art, accessories, bed dressings, towels, lamps, and often times large furniture pieces.
  
• You will need good credit, a place to store your inventory...some have $80,000 worth of inventory and they outgrew their garages and spare bedrooms within a few months.
• Hauling inventory is challenging as well.
• Then you will need to go pick up your inventory when the house has sold or when the contract runs out.
• You will have to keep track of your inventory and protect it with insurance.

So as you can see the fun decorating part is where???

What I am trying to point out here is home staging is not decorating, it is more like a furniture rental business than anything. Could you be looking for something else like maybe a 'one day makeover' business? I'm thinking this might be the case! One day makeovers (or two to three day makeovers) is much more like what you may be seeking because creativity plays the largest role here.

As an interior designer, my experience in preparing a home before the for sale sign goes up is more like re-design, using what the seller has, rearranging it and then making a shopping list, arranging for painting, repairs, etc., then finishing the house as beautifully as it can be. I have never provided the accessories or the furniture but I have purchased or rented pieces for the clients with their money.

I don't think the home staging business was originally intended in supplying furniture and accessories and I think it has gotten way out of hand. How can a creative person entering what is supposed to be a creative field, handle what is in store for them?

Be warned because the home staging career it is not what you think or what the home staging trainers want you to think.

However, I don't want to discourage you as long as you know what you are getting into. I just don't think providing the staging inventory is necessary. These home sellers most likely will love what you have done and want to keep your selections for their new home anyway. Don't even get me started with new home construction...that is a different post for sure.

Visit how2homestage.com for information on how to stage your own house or stage for others for a lot less than you imagined.

Home Staging used for Home Staying?

Fact: The majority of the public, 95% of Americans, cannot afford a real Interior Designer. But what people don't realize is the Professional Home Stager actually uses many techniques employed by high end designers.

What is a Home Stager?

A home Stager is an individual that pears down and rearranges the furnishings and accessories of a homeowner who is getting ready to sell their house. They make sure that every space of a home has been prepared for viewing by potential home buyers. They often use their own "props" to achieve a decorated look and even have their own inventory. But what I want to talk about is the techniques used that are also used by an Interior Designer.

What are these high end decorating techniques?

1. Clearing a space - moving or emptying a room. Seldom does a designer just select one occasional chair and set it in a room full of old and tired furnishings.
   
2. Introduces a new color scheme - of course! Get your color off your walls and onto interchangeable objects like pillows, wall hangings, window coverings, accessories, flowers.
3. Let the room breathe and tell a story - arrange the furniture for ease of flow. If a decorator ever comes into your home and lines the furniture up around the room against the walls, they are an impostor! Group the seating for conversation and stop blocking the windows.
4. Introduce one or two unique objects that say WOW and then leave. Your work is done.

How do I know?

I am one of those high end Interior Designers that has written what I have done to stage homes and it is now available to the public. So if you want to stay put, get a new look that works in your everyday life but says WOW to you, your family and friends then click here.

More On Feng Shui...

In a recent newsletter, we discussed the mystique behind feng shui and the relationship it has with western ways of decorating...


To Feng Shui Or Not Feng Shui?
That seems to be the burning question!
Should we use Feng Shui? Dare we not? I am no expert by any stretch of the imagination, but what little exposure I have had to it, it appears to be rather superstitious at first glance so I thought I should take a closer look.
I have seen homes redecorated introducing the Feng Shui principles that, quite frankly, leave much to be desired, like taking a small bedroom mirror and moving it over the living room's large fireplace, and buying a little fountain and placing it on a lamp table because they needed the water element represented in that room. That just drove me crazy!
Feng Shui says: Hang crystals in your entry if your stairs face your front door because it will reroute your chi and keep it from rushing outside along with your prosperity. Ok, I can see my chi rolling down the stairs and out the front door. If that is true then why not hang a beautiful crystal chandelier instead.
How about the idea that your chi will run down your long hallway too quickly, taking your health and career along with it, without something to break up the space? Ok, instead of hanging a crystal from the ceiling or placing a plant in the hallway (as they suggest), there is a wide variety of wall sconces that have a reflective element to them like metals or glass. Ah, that looks better!
And I understand that in order for your chi to run freely in your living room you need to have your furniture pulled away from the wall a little bit. Well, nothing new there...decorators have been doing that for years. It does feel better! Could it be happy chi?
What do you do if your kitchen has bad chi? Go out for all you meals? No. Fortunately for us westerners, it looks like we naturally follow chi flow. Apparently, you should never have fire and water on the same walls. You are to separate fire (stove) and water (sink) on different walls (but not directly facing each other) because they're oppositional elements. Unless you live in a motor home, were good to go here.
In Feng Shui, the object is to keep chi moving along in a free gentle way. It is recommended, especially in small spaces, to use mirrors. Ok, I have always placed mirrors across from windows, openings, and in corners to expand space and let more light in...is that the same thing?
What is chi exactly? It is defined as the circulating life energy that in Chinese philosophy is thought to be inherent in all things; in traditional Chinese medicine the balance of negative and positive forms in the body is believed to be essential for good health
Oh, and one more thing! Did you know that food is a fire element? If you want to discourage overeating you should use dishes or place mats in the water colors of black or dark blue, as water diminishes fire. Is that why Chinese food is usually served on black plates? What if you live in Florida...is aqua OK?
After writing this article, it becomes evident that the East really does meet West...at least at some design level. I find I want to learn more about it and I will keep you informed with my discoveries. So with that said, I wish for you a very happy and content Chi!

I now subscribe to the Feng Shui Google alerts and found the
funniest article written by a woman from Gilroy, Ca and I am going to link you to it right here. It is hysterical and I love a humorous approach to any mystery...it helps us deal with it as well and learn from it.

Here is where you can post whatever you want to say about feng shui, for or against it, tips for the rest of us, and so on.

Help yourself!