COMPASSIONATE CONSULTATIONS for Staging Your Short Sale

Once upon a time we bought a home in a family friendly neighborhood, raised our family and watched our investment appreciate in value. We looked forward to the day when we would list our house, entertain offers and hand over the keys. We dreamed of the day we would sail into the sunset with our nest egg and live happily ever after.

That was the goal until a new reality altered our plan.

When our reality is less than the fairy tale ending, we come to a fork in the road and we may get confused on where to turn.

· We recognize that we can no longer afford the mortgage and the reasons are as varied as the listing.

· We don’t want a parade of people streaming through our lives in order to sell the property.

You have weighed your options, discussed with your advisory team and come to the conclusion that your best decision is to sell.  As uncomfortable as that decision may be, you do have options...you always have options.

Short sales may not be the easiest way to sell your house and the process may take some time.

Regardless of how you reach the decision to sell your home, the steps from LIST to SOLD are consistent:

· Making the decision to sell your home is personal.

· A house on the market is a product for sale.

· A product for sale is marketed to attract a buyer.

· Selling a house is a financial transaction.

· Moving is stressful.

BLUE RIBBON STAGING PARTNERS WITH YOU

· The decision to sell your home is personal.
In times like these, you may feel vulnerable.

The “why” of the sale does not define you.

· A house on the market is a product for sale.
Strangers, neighbors and friends will have the opportunity to visit your home online or arrive at your door by appointment.

Be prepared to show it off with excellence.

· A product is marketed to attract buyers.
Though the timing of the sale may not have been in your plans, a short sale has personal and financial benefits to you that other alternatives do not offer.

The inventory of houses is high, so you will benefit when your house stands out as exceptional.

· Selling a house is a financial transaction.
Buyers are looking for a great deal, banks are looking for the best return on their investment...and you are looking to move through the transaction with dignity.

Building Inspectors view staged homes as well-maintained properties. Appraisers are more likely to appraise staged homes at their full value.

· Moving is stressful.
Blue Ribbon Staging respects your circumstances. We provide detailed recommendations that will prepare you to move from home...to house...to SALE.

You are not alone...We have a plan!

We are better together :)

Once again Barb strikes a cord for the benefits of ASP Home Staging....and the "Win-win-win" of working together :).. 

There’s been a drastic change within the real estate world just in the last few years. Competition in the market continues, and sellers and agents alike are working to find solutions that will make a home stand out in the crowd.

Understanding Staging Services for Seller, Agent and Stager

April 7, 2011 by barbschwarz ·
Filed under: Staging Tips

By Barb Schwarz, Stagedhomes.com
There’s been a drastic change within the real estate world just in the last few years. Competition in the market continues, and sellers and agents alike are working to find solutions that will make a home stand out in the crowd.
The down economy has driven the need for Accredited Staging Professionals® (ASPs®) more than ever before. In fact, we are seeing more ASP® home stagers as part of real estate teams. With an ever-growing number of short sales and bank-owned properties in markets all over the country, sellers of homes in regular price levels are in fierce competition to get the house sold.
Just the other day I was asked to define staging services and how they relate to the seller, the agent, and the stager.
First of all, the success of staging speaks for itself. Consider that statistics gathered by Stagedhomes.com shows that 94.6 percent of homes staged by an Accredited Staging Professional® sell within 33 days, compared to an average of 196 days for homes that are not staged. Homes staged by Accredited Staging Professionals® stay on the market 83 percent less time than a home that has not been staged.

There’s no doubt staging makes a difference and that certainly speaks to the seller. When I discuss staging with sellers, I often share one of my often-quoted sayings, “The investment of staging your home is less than your first price reduction!” Two other messages I share, both created years ago, speak to the difference between staging and decorating: “Decorating is personalizing, staging is depersonalizing. Staging is not decorating,” and “Staging is not about decorating your home; it’s about selling your house.”
Sharing the impact of staging by showing statistical evidence of success is essential to effectively communicate to the seller the difference they can expect. With many sellers not fully aware of the difference between staging and decorating, and with many hesitant to invest in staging, I encourage real estate agents and home stagers to use my sayings above (and citing me as the source when doing so, of course).
As far as staging services as they relate to the real estate agent, again, consider the statistics I shared above. There is no doubt staging has a positive impact for agents as homes sell faster and for more money. In fact, because of the success evidenced all over the country, home stagers and real estate professionals are teaming up more and more to give turnkey service to the seller. The agent’s job is to get the property priced and to do the marketing to get it sold. The home stager merchandizes the property so that the marketing pays off. They are working hand-in-hand more and more.
The home stager generates money for the agent because without the house staged it sits and in the end the agents either get little commission or none. Therefore, working together, the seller wins, the agent wins, and the ASP® stager wins.

Barb Schwarz

Barb Schwarz, ASP®, ASPM®, AB, IAHSP®
The Creator of Home Staging®
CEO www.Stagedhomes.com
IAHSP® Founder and Chairwoman of The Board of The International Association of
Home Staging Professionals® and Foundation www.iahsp.com
Stage®, ASP®, ASPM®, IAHSP® and Stagedhomes.com® are Federally Registered Trademarks of StagedHomes.com®

 

Anatomy of a Sales Presentation

INTRODUCTION:
YOU ONLY GET ONE CHANCE TO MAKE A FIRST IMPRESSION, make it a good one!

Initial email of introduction.
Phone call follow up to set appointment.
Confirm appointment.

PREPARATION FOR THE INITIAL BROKER MEETING:
WORK IN STEPS

Be on time.
Have paperwork readily available.
Introduce yourself.
Be professional.
Ask permission to meet with additonal realtors.

PREPARATION FOR THE OFFICE PRESENTATION:
CLUTTER EATS EQUITY

Brief | Extensive...Know your time allotment.
Casual | Formal...Know your office style.
Fill it with Personality…YOURS!  Be true to who you are.

KNOW YOUR OBJECTIVES:
STAGING IS NOT ABOUT DECORATING YOUR HOME, IT’S ABOUT SELLING YOUR HOME

Why STAGE?
   What is it?
   What are the benefits to REALTOR to SELLER?

Why YOU?
   What’s unique about you?
   What sets you apart?

PRESENT YOUR PRESENTATION:
AGENTS ONLY KNOW WHAT THEY SEE, NOT THE WAY IT'S GOING TO BE

Keep it Simple.
Keep it Brief.
Keep it Relevant.


PROVIDE A CLEAR CONCLUSION:
"WHAT'S IN IT FOR ME?"...ANSWER THE UNASKED QUESTION.

Be flexible.
Be alert.
Be prepared.

THE CLOSE:
Ask for the invitation to check back...keep the door open.

My Lesson on Building My Brand

My husband is a career salesman...for the past 20 years he has been making presentations to national companies around the country and internationally. 

He has introduced products into previously untapped markets and he has built brands.

I knew I was a Home Stager, I hadn't thought of myself as a sales person.  Now I realize that is exactly what I am in the process of being.  Before I can step in to give a consultation, present a bid, or stage a home, I must first make a great impression on you to purchase my product.

•I am my Brand
•My product is Home Staging
•I am currently not on the shelf of any market.
•My target market is Real Estate.
•I am a free agent.
•My only boundary is the boundary I set for myself.

My husband's approach to promoting his brand will not be the same as my approach to promoting my brand. My approach will not be the same as yours, nor yours the same as the Home Stager sitting next to you. However, there are some basic priciples that we can adapt.

I was waiting until my presentation was "perfect"...I was wrong
...It will never be perfect.

I thought I would need to be flashy! ...I was wrong
...There was no time to bring out bells and whistles.

I thought I would be presenting in a lecture hall....I was wrong
...We sat around in a conference room around a conference table.

I thought I would would be given an hour to share my presentation...I was wrong
...I was scheduled to fill fifteen minutes.

I thought everyone knew what Staging was....I was wrong
...I was given the opportunity to educate on my product (Staging) and my brand (Blue Ribbon Staging - ME) in particular.

I thought every agent was a listing agent...I was wrong.
...I learned the value of building relationships - today’s buyer’s agent, may be tomorrow’s listing agent!


Use every opportunity.
Knock on doors until they open.
Walk through all the open doors.
Be the best YOU you can be.

YOU are your best advertisment!

Veteran's Day 2010

Julian S. Cottrell

Sarge...Daddy...Papa

Veteran of WWII Career Army

Today is Veteran's Day, 2010, and my thoughts turn to my father.

My dad enlisted into the Navy on February 8, 1944, and four months later on June 6, 1944, the 17 year old "kid" was on Omaha Beach...D-Day.

It's not unusual that he never talked about those days with us, but I am sure they haunted him in phantom moments throughout his life, how could they not?

For every Veteran who served...in times of war, or times of peace...we honor you today.

In honor of my father, and all the brave men who were with him on the beach that day I offer an excerpt from a press confernce held by Secretary Forrestal on September 27, 1944:

..."Some day when the story is told, I think you will all agree it's a conspicuously gallant undertaking.

The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the Presidential Citation to the Navy Combat Demolition Unit of Force "O":

For outstanding performance in combat during the invasion of Normandy, June 6, 1944.

Determined and zealous in the fullfillment of an extremely hazardous mission, the Navy Combat Demolition Unit of Force "O" landed on the "Omaha Beach" with the first wave under devasting enemy artillery, machine-gun and sniper fire.

With practically all explosives lost and with their force seriously depleted by heavy casualties, the remaining officers and men carried on gallantly, salvaging explosives as they were swept ashore and in some instances comandeering bulldozers to remove obstacles.

In spite of these grave handicaps, the Demolition Crews succeeded initially in blasting five gaps through enemy obstacles for the passage of assault forces to the Normandy shore and within two days had sapped over 85 percent of the "Omaha Beach" area of German placed traps.

Valiant in the face of grave danger and persistently aggressive against fierce resistance, the Navy Combat Demolition Unit rendered daring and self-sacrificing service in the performance of a vital mission, thereby sustaining the high traditions of the United States Naval Service."

- For the President and myself as Secretary of the Navy

And there listed among the Non-Casualties is my father, my hero

COTTRELL, Julian Sterns, Seaman, First Class, USNR, Star Route 1286, Belfast, Maine....

Thank you , Dad :)

Little Surprises

"Reach for the high apples first, you can get the low ones anytime"
....
What does that mean to you? What does it mean when life doesn't turn out quite like you had scripted it?
...
For me, today, it means that life is tough enough, confusing enough, and risky enough...
...don't play it safe,
...don't muddle through with ordinary and expected,
...reach higher!























Don't get lost in the routines of life, in the "have to's" and "must do's", all the while leaving the exceptional for some future date.

Forget the ordinary for a moment, toss in a little surprise here and there...and toss them in for no other reason than they make you smile on an otherwise ordinary, dreary, rainy-with-no-puddles-to-jump-in kind of day....


















And while you're tossing in surprises, surround yourself with EXCEPTIONAL.

There is no need to attach a price tag, and no need to offer any explainations, just knowing that they touch your heart is reason enough.

Once you have finished "tossing in" and "surrounding yourself" with exceptional, take some time to enjoy the simple design of how your life really is fitting all together in ways you may not have anticipated.

You may not appreaciate it yet, but one day you will see how all these unplanned moments have played their role.

A bit from here and a bit from there can make the entire production a beautiful experience.

The dark days, the lonely days and the difficult days can become the standard that you will one day measure against the bright day, the packed day and the effortless, carefree day...


















Take some time to enjoy the still quiet voice inside of you that in the middle of all the clatter around you whispers what your heart longs to hear.

Realize that it's not the absence of clattering that allows you to hear, but rather it's the clattering that makes it possible for you to hear.

Your heart leans in to hear, all the while knowing that risk is there, and the risk of knowing is worth taking.























Whatever risk you are reaching beyond....know that we are standing and cheering you on.

When life gets beyond you, when life happens too fast and slides beyond the reach of your control...

Reach higher than you thought possible.

See beyond the pain of today and reach into your dream of tomorrow.

And by all means,

definately,

Reach for the high apples first!

This sweet deal takes the cake!

It's time for Back-to-School and Fall Fix up projects! Wouldn't it be great to save 10% on supplies from Lowe's?

Lowe's has been helping customers improve the places they call home for more than 60 years. Lowe's operates more than 1,700 stores in the United States. Lowe's is here to help you with all of your Home Improvement and ASP Staging Needs.

Call me if you would like to learn more about staging your home or saving 10% at Lowe's...Lowe's offer ends September 30, 2010..Blue Ribbon Home Staging offer good indefinitely:)...any way you slice it, that's a sweet deal!