Is it really a buyer's market? That's what the media keeps saying and I was a believer. I sold three homes the first week in November 2006 (a nice little rush before the holiday season) and then my phone stopped ringing. I've been feeling like a 16 year old hoping for a Saturday night date. Suddenly, in the last 24 hours, I have three new buyers! You would think that listing agents would

When it Comes to Holiday Decorating Should Sellers GRINch or BARE it?

Last fall I blogged about whether or not it was wise for a home seller to put up decorations for Halloween... and while at that time many people gave varied opinions, I stated that I thought it best not to.

SO... what about decorations for Christmas? Should a home sellers decorate their houses? My answer is a definite and resounding... YES, BUT with conditions.

Decorating a house for sale at Christmas is a bit different then decorating for Halloween. First the Christmas selling market is MUCH slower; and second, Christmas decorations are not as scary, creepy or offensive looking as Halloween decorations.

That being said, keep in mind that any decorations still can be distractions. So if a property is for sale in the market and if a seller chooses to decorate (out side and/or inside) during Christmas, my advice is to tastefully tone-it-down... way down in some cases. Remember in December home sellers are still "selling" a house first... not Christmas.

So my advice is that for one selling season leave the elaborately beautiful displays of Christmas for the neighbors to create and in the windows of department stores.

Stage it forward...
Craig (Me)

Did OPRAH'S SHOW Send a Mixed Message to Home Sellers?

It's no secret how much I admire and respect Oprah. So this week when I finally watched Oprah’s show on preparing a home for its sale I have to say I was let down.

I applaud the shows hope to help home sellers who currently find themselves financially and emotionally burdened with a house that won't sell... after watching this segment I felt the show sent a confusing and false message about what it takes to ready a house for its sale… especially in a TOUGH “buyer's market”. In this episode, the efforts of Oprah's design guru Nate Berkus were chronicled as he helped a financially strapped couple, Zigi & Yosef Edmonds, repair and visually prepare their townhouse before being put up for sale. The home located in Redondo Beach, has 3 bedrooms, 2 ½ bath and eventually listed for $609,999.

The show made it quite clear that in a buyers market the buyer can be fussy. Following Nate's Top 10 tips to ready a house for its sale, is sound "staging" advice. Implementing these tips would surly prove to be beneficial to struggling home sellers.

Unfortunately, my first let down with the show has to do with fact that the staging budget for the Edmond's property was a whopping $10,000. This $10k covered furniture, fixtures and finishes. Unfortunately this "Hollywood" budget is totally unrealistic and fear it will end up discouraging the most home sellers who would and could benefit from less costly home staging solutions. So while home looked FANTASTIC... the show NEVER made it clear just WHO was paying the $10k for all the merchandise that was bought in. I do know that in the introductory bio piece produced on the Edmonds the show said they were financially strapped. The bio went on to say the Edmonds had to sell their home because of grave financial problems.

So my first point I want to make to home sellers interested in staging is that real estate staging typically DOES NOT cost what was spent by Nate on this segment of the Oprah Show.

Now with that being said, it is also important to understand just that real estate staging is breaks down to 3 key areas...TIME, TALENT & TREASURE. And while we know the Edmond's staging budget included $10k worth of "treasure"... I believe it is unfair and misleading not to point out the fact that staging also takes TIME and TALENT to achieve an overall merchandising solution. Therefore, with regards to TIME & TALENT required for Edmund's staging, I have 2 questions:

1. Who paid for the TIME to perform the physical labor of painting, planting, installing, building, removing old carpet & flooring, installing new carpet & flooring, and removing the out dated appliances? (Note: Zigi and Yosef were part of the labor force... but NOT the entire force.)
2. Who paid for the creative TALENT (staging know-how) of both Nate (Interior Decor) and Jamie Durie (Deckscaping)?

So my second major let down with the show is the fact that it was NOT made clear that implementing effective and successful staging requires the seller to know what to do, how to do it, and have skill and physical ability to do it. If the seller does not have knowledge, skill and ability... those who do need to be hired and paid for what they provide.

I am happy to say that while the show may have ended up sending a bit of an over simplified message regarding real estate staging... it still exceeded my expectations in a way that only Oprah does so well. (So, NO I am NOT throwing an “Oprah baby” out with its bath water.)

In typical Oprah fashion she found a wonderful family that NEEDED a home staging jumpstart (a prime "Stage it Forward..." cause for sure). Life for the Edmonds has been a very sad course of events. Yosef, who quit his job in hopes to pursue dreams of freedom and success through self employment, has not triumphed. So to help keep his family of 4 financially alive they MUST sell their home and since January 2006 they have been trying. On top of all the financial problems plaguing the Edmonds, Zigi is a also suffering from a brain tumor. So all in all, they see selling their home as a much needed opportunity to escape some their problems.

The good news is as of last Saturday... a sale is pending for the Zigi and Yosef’s home. I pray this is a sign that the Edmonds are finally turning a corner.

Stage it forward...

Craig (Me)

Canned Cranberry Sauce… a Jiggly Symbol of the Home Staging Industry?

This Thanksgiving every real rstate agent and home seller should be thankful and contemplate Canned Cranberry Sauce. As it sit on your plates, know that it symbolizes all that real estate staging has to offer.

Here is my scholarly list or reasons why...

7 ways Canned Cranberry Sauce embodies all that Home Staging has to offer!

1. Canned Cranberry Sauce like home staging does not cost much, but can have tasty results.

2. Canned Cranberry Sauce like home staging is visually appealing to everyone.

3. Canned Cranberry Sauce like home staging takes the right tools and skill to to prepare it properly.

4. Canned Cranberry Sauce like home staging is memorable without overpowering the rest that is around it.

5. Canned Cranberry Sauce like home staging isn't cluttered with complexity.

6. Canned Cranberry Sauce like home staging is best served at the beginning.

7. Canned Cranberry Sauce like home staging is not appreciated until it is tried.

Happy Thanksgiving and Stage it forward...
Craig (Me)

PS: But seriously, this Thanksgiving I am MOST thankful for those of our land, not on our soil, defending our country.

Flexibility is Required.... when Working with Seniors

Well it finally happened… I had my opportunity to talk about home staging to the group of seniors selling their homes. Everyone was surprised to see that the auditorium PACKED with an overflow audience... in fact there were those that had to be turned away. To be honest was surprised as I honestly did NOT expect so many people to attend.

Anyway, anxiety and upset was thick in the room. You could feel that the folks attending were searching for any answers that would help them sell their properties. I glad I prepared my story and "staging" case. The practice of staging a house to help ready it for a faster sale is still for new concept for most. And... It has been my experience that the SENIOR market is a little less accepting of new ideas. THAT, coupled with the facts that they have strong emotional ties to the homes they are selling, make seniors a tough "sell" for a stager.

So to get those attending to appreciate the benefits of staging, I knew I had to FIRST get them to understand that their homes can no longer be THEIR "homes". I had to get them to understand the basic HOUSE vs. HOME theory. To do this I started my talk from a place THEY understood and moved them to a place they may never have thought about. You might say I flexed their minds. I began the workshop talking about common everyday phrases like:

* House sweet House.
* Be it ever so humble, there's no place like house.
* House is were the heart is.
* Welcome house.

A few hearty chuckles later, I followed this up with a discussion about how “love” created the emotional bond they had with THEIR house… ultimately making it THIER home. The audience began to see what I was saying.

So then to make a statement "YEARS AGO, you bought a HOUSE and turned it into your HOME" and then flip it and say "TODAY, to sell your HOME you must return it to being a HOUSE" was a concept they could get AND be open to.

With new distinction of House and Home… I then went on to share with them into my 7 Basic Principles of Staging and 7 Tips I associate with each principal. The 7 Tips are:

1. Buyers infer a clean house has been kept in good repair.
2. Buyers are looking to buy a house that fits THEIR needs, lifestyle and personality... don't distract them with yours.
3. Store it, Sell it, or Trash it.
4. Bring a home inspector in PRIOR to listing, and fix problems before a buyer's inspector finds them.
5. Neutralize it... think beige thoughts.
6. Remove beautiful distractions.
7. The front doorway MUST be clean and welcoming.

Now it was easy for the crowd to accept my closing statement: "Staging creates a blanker canvas for a buyer to start painting the picture of their own lives and make your HOUSE their HOME."

So while it took some flexing and bending... in 25 minutes I got this group of seniors to wrap their minds around the new concept of staging and how it CAN help them sell their HOUSES.

I share this with other stagers so that you can, "stage it forward..."
Craig (Me)

PS: This seminar went so well, I've been invited back in January 2007 for another mind bender.

House vs. Home

Years ago, you bought a HOUSE and turned it into a your home.

Today, to sell your HOME you must return it to being a HOUSE.

JUMBO sized CHALLENGES are the CRAPPY Part of a Staging Business

So you are or want to be a home stager? Well, it is a rewarding and fun business... but I would not be telling the truth if I said it was not without its JUMBO challenges.

Since I have been writing about staging I have "connected" with stagers from all over North America! I have communicated with amazing, talented, fun, and creative people who are committed to and love to their professions.

Oddly, these talks have been both INSIPIRING and SAD. So I bet you are wondering “Why sad?” Basically it is because, while these folks are good at providing staging services... now, after being out in the real world and applying what the learned, they find they are deeper into their profession in ways they NEVER thought about.

Unfortunately, while they have gained a new appreciation and respect for staging, they feel a bit lost when it comes to the day-to-day reality of BUSINESS OWNERSHIP... especially the staging business. I understand their dilemma... 2 years ago, when I presented the initial draft of our company's contract for staging services to our attorneys for legal review, they were surprised and dumb-founded! Their replay was... "Craig, you have a VERY complex business model."

I see stagers attracted to the "glamour" and fun creativity necessary to staging. But then reality sets in... in order to maintain and grow a successful staging business many do not think of ALL THE WORK in the other areas that MUST be given attention to and MASTERED.

These "jumbo challenge' areas include: Services Delivery, Sales, Marketing / Advertising, Inventory: Growth & management, Human Resources, Systems & Software, Strategic Partners, Office Space & Storage, Accounts Receivable/Payable and Outreach.

If one is serious about owning and growing their real estate staging business.... each of the areas listed above must be examined, defined and developed. WHY? Because if you don't actively value and TEND TO each of these areas within your own staging company... your competition will in theirs and you will ultimately loose out to them.

I hope to share with you all I can to help you with jumbo-sized challenges facing you in your own staging business... and know that I continue to work in my own real estate staging business to find solutions to make those challenges less crappy.

Stage it Forward...
Craig (Me)

CHICAGO REALTORS... tune into this opportunity NOW!

So I've been talking to Kim Segal a researcher working for HGTV.

Kim has shared with me a BIG OPPROTUNITY for realtors in Chicago-land... it is the fact that HGTV's #1 Real Estate Show wants to feature realtors in Chicago! (Kim is also looking for realtors in Denver, Raleigh, Vancouver, and Montreal!)

"BUY ME" is HGTV's reality-based TV series that chronicles the real-life drama of selling a home. From "For Sale" to "SOLD", each episode features a new story with a different entertaining twist.

"BUY ME" will tell your story by taking their viewers behind-the-scenes to meet your sellers, buyers, contractors, stagers and home inspectors. Televised across Canada and the United States, "Buy Me" gives participating agents TV exposure on a massive scale. As an added incentive, Homeowners receive a cash bonus.

Debbie Travis - famous for her decorating flair and hit series' The Painted House and Facelift, is the show's executive producer.

GOOD NEWS for Real Estate Agents in DENVER, RALEIGH, VANCOUVER, CALGARY and MONTREAL they are looking agents there too!

Kim's Criteria: Extroverted homeowners and agents, single family homes, more then 1 person occupying the home, new listings preferred.

INTERESTED in being on the show? Well you can contact Kim Segal (a major sweetheart!) via phone at: (514) 846-1940 ext. 242 or email Kim directly at kim@buymetv.com.

This is an AWESOME OPPORTUNITY and is just what "stage it forward..." is all about... professionals helping each other succeed.

PS: THANK YOU Kim!

stage it forward...

This Clown gets to host a Carnival by being Active in the Rain

I gotta admit one of the GREAT things I can say about being a member and starting my blogging on ActiveRain is when I joined I DIDN'T know what the heck a blog was, but I soon would... in a very short time.

Once you have an ActiveRain Blog (which are totally FREE), if you got kids... you might even be able to stand proud, puff out your chest and say... "I GOTTA BLOG". (Unfortunately, your kids won't be THAT impressed... so you'll feel somewhat like Charlie Brown on his Halloween special when he says... "I gotta rock.")

But I digress...

But, after awhile you get your ActiveRain blog groove going and you will be all happy and content and you start reading other's real estate industry blogs and you love it, for you will be learning and sharing and commenting and associating. And you'll then realize that REALLY you are part of a real estate social network. So if you got kids (who most likely use My Space) you will be able to stand proud, puff out your chest and say... "I'm on a Social Network too!" (And your even more proud of the fact that THIS social network doesn't have Lechers... but we do have Lychees (inside joke) so that's gotta count for something!)

But I digress...

So, you'll continue to you read and read and read. And you'll stumble on Mary McKnight's blogs on blogging. TRUST ME... YOU'LL BE STOPPED COLD IN YOUR TRACKS. WHAT THE HELL IS SHE TALKING ABOUT? THERE'S MORE TO BLOGGING? THERE CAN'T BEEEEE MORE!!! RSS FEEDS? FEED what? So you'll do like most others and consider it best just to IGNORE her figuring she is WAAAAAY too pretty to be intelligent. (You are just happy and content in your simple conclusion that RSS FEED must be the delicious little candies E.T. ate.)

But I digress...

So you'll read on. Comment on. Blog on. And you will find that life is good in the Rain. But in your readings you'll hear that a Blog Carnival is coming. Members like Maureen Francis and Christine Forgione like to talk about these Carnivals! And you'll think... I love Carnivals! Can I go? A CARNIVAL for adults.... sounds like fun. Now you FEEL like your kid... only when they were about 5 years old.

And in your discovery about Blog Carnivals you hear that Broker Bryant, another ActiveRain Blogger, has WON a Carnival. WIN!!!!????? There are games at the Carnival? Are there rides too? And you mumble and grumble a bit because Broker Bryant you'll by then know that Broker Bryant is King of the ActiveRain bloggers. He seems to be able to win gold stars for farting in the Rain, and on top of that he has a Lovely Wife! Is there anything HE can't do well?

But I digress...

So the whole point of this blog is to announce that I am hosting a The Carnival of Real Estate on June 11, 2007 RIGHT HERE on my "pretty blog". I couldn't be more thrilled and honored. The cool part of all this is is it will be the FIRST TIME EVER that a stager has hosted a Real Estate Blog Carnival... which will surely help the staging industry get its message out.

I have to thank Mary, Maureen, Christine, Bryant, TLW, and Matt Heaton (creator of ActiveRain) these ActiveRain bloggers have tought me and coached me about blogging and all that it can be. In my mind you are some of the best drips that have ever dropped (inside joke). You have helped us and our efforts to "stage it forward..."

But I digress...

Me

PS: WHAT IS A BLOG CARNIVAL.... just click and read. It is easy to take part in and share your thoughts.

Property Pricing advice can be hard for sellers to swallow

Being a stager can put us in a "funny spot" with sellers. After working in a seller's homes and transforming them in ways they never consider... sellers REALLY starts to TRUST us.

Stagers need to be very careful. While you may be asked... a stager should NEVER suggest what a property should be listed for or sold for.

Determining pricing is the Realtors job.

So, while it is not our job to advise a client on pricing of their homes... this information is good to know and understand. Basacilly, if asked, I ALWAYS advise a seller to listen to and trust in the professional advise of a Realtor.

Here are some tips I just came across...
TIPS FOR DETERMINING PROPERTY VALUES

A Sellers Property Market Value is NOT based on:

-What is invested in the property

-What they need to get out of the property

-What it is appraised for

-What the neighbor's property sold for

-What the tax office says its worth

-What it is insured for

-Personal memories and treasures

-The prices of homes the seller is moving to

TRUE Property Market Values ARE based on:

TODAY'S PRICE which is what the buyer is willing to pay. And... TODAY'S PRICE is based on these 7 points:

1. Today's real estate market
2. Today's market competition
3. Today's financing options
4. Today's economic conditions
5. A buyer's perception of the property's condition
6. Location Location Locaction of the property
7. Normal marketing time

Sellers CAN control the following:

-The price of the property that they ask for

-The condition of the property (stage it!)

-Access to the property

Sellers CAN NOT Control the following:

-Market conditions

-The motivation of their competition

-The overall value (as described above)

NOTE: This information was shared with me and I share it with you in the hopes you all could use it. I think it could make a GREAT pro-active marketing piece... I totally believe in "planting seeds".

REALTORS... I'd like to NEEDLE you to make a marketing POINT

I am a stickler for words. (Pardon the pun.) But something has been bothering me since I first started my own home staging company. It has to do with referring to ourselves as "Home Stagers."

Is that the best way to describe ourselves? Is being a "Home" Stager actually what we are? Does that term help or hurt the realtor who believes in us and wants to bring us to a client?

The problem and marketing disconnect lies with the word "HOME." If you buy a property, condo, real estate or build a house... how and when does it become a home? I believe it becomes a home when we personalize it with our belongings, life experiences and create memories within and around it.

To capture the emotional connection we have with our homes society has even coined endearing phrases like:

• - Home is where the heart is.
• - Home sweet home.
• - Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home.
• - Welcome Home!

Staging 101 teaches staging professionals to advise sellers to de-personalize.... remove those items that make your house your home. Hence bring it back to being just a house.

Even authors on the subject of staging agree. Barb Schwartz in her book entitled Home Staging starts by telling her readers... "You must begin to think of your home as your house, and your house as a product." In their book Dress Your House for Success Martha Webb & Sarah Parsons Zackheim advise sellers to "Start referring to your home as a 'house'. The word house carries much less of an emotional tie."

So I wonder about what we are communicating to realtor and sellers when we call ourselves HOME Stagers?

Recently I had a realtor call us and wanted us to talk to her seller about staging. But the realtor was afraid that she would be insulting her seller by bringing in a home stager.
In her head this is how the realtor thought the conversation with her seller would transpire...

Realtor: I think it might be beneficial if we bring in a home stager.
Seller: What are you saying my home is ugly?

Can changing the languaging of the message, communicate a better message?

For example...

Realtor: I think it might be beneficial if we bring in a Real Estate Stager. OR I think it might be beneficial if we bring in a Property Merchandiser?
Seller: ____________________________________ (Really, what can the say?) Actually a lot of things... but it is not insulting the personal taste or home decor choices the seller has made.

So is it best to refer ourselves as Home Stagers? Remember good and effective marketing is subtle and crafts the message the market will easily relate to.

When working with sellers, trying to convience them about using staging services, might that term "Home" just create another sub-conscience marketing obstacle we then must overcome? Would terms like: Stager, Real Estate Stager, Real Estate Merchandiser, Property Stager or Property Merchandiser be a better way to describe the professionals that are building this Real Estate Staging Industry?

Visting the Edge of 2 Worlds

So I have been back for a week from my trip to China...and what a trip it was. While I went there because the professional merchandising/design advice side of "me" was needed, the personal "me" was impacted.

Since returning I have been asked questions like: "How was it?" "Did you have a nice time?" "What did you think of China?' And each time I am asked, I am stumped for an answer.

Why stumped? Well the above pictures are 2 views of China I had out my hotel room windows. As I was taking them... I never realized they visually would capture the essence of my travel experience. They are "night and day images" in more ways then one.

The Picture on the Left... Shenzhen China. The Picture on the Right... Hong Kong China. Hong Kong was a glittery, fast and exciting. Shenzhen was dirty, slow and exciting. Shenzhen was about manufacturing. Hong Kong was about consuming.

It truly was a push pull experience. I left NOT knowing what to think or how to feel about my journey... but there was something that touched the core of my being.

So last Sunday I looked forward to going to church to reflect on the whole experience. That day the sermon was about childhood and adulthood... and that point in life when we crossover, loosing innocence and gaining wisdom. The edge of transition.

Shenzhen is that edge. In thousands and thousands of factories their innocent hands literally build for US the material goods we "need" in a mature consumer society. They build "stuff" they have no understanding of or need for... at least not for now.

Our world consumes what their world builds… and as they build they learn of consuming. Moving closer and closer to our world. A world I understand, appreciate, work and live in. But I have to admit sometimes I look back over the edge and wish I was a kid again.

POST SCRIPT: So what does this blog have to do with staging? Well, in my opinion quite a bit. In this age of consumption, a stagers job is to "transition" a home back to simpler view. Basic to staging is having the stager de-clutter the "stuff" that has built up in a house. Odd part of it is... if staging is done well and timed right, the seller can make more money... and then go out and buy more "stuff". hmmmm.

STAGE IT FORWARD

I get a LOT of stagers asking for my advice, my help, my thoughts and I am honored and humbled... and a bit frustrated.

I am “frustrated” because I see a huge need and want to help. There is so much that can and needs to be done, but right now our "industry" has been less then united or responsive to each other.

Yes... there are stagers who have acknowledged other stager’s skills and education differing from their own. But there are many who have seemed to have "drunk the cool-aid and joined the cult" and at times are outright rude, condescending and mean spirited. (Yudda Yudda Yudda… "petty bickering bunch." I am sure you are as tired of hearing it, as I am tired of writing it.) But this drives me NUTS... because I see greater possibility.

Lori Matzke, a staging industry leader and pioneer, shared her own thoughts, despair and frustrations regarding our industry when she once commented on one of my blogs saying...

"Though I think idealizing a more structured industry is a wonderful dream to have, well...so is world peace. Talking the talk until you're blue in the face and waving your fists in the air certainly brings the issue to surface. But...then what? You've made your point and raised the questions - now how about working on some answers? ...talk turns into nothing but lip service. And God knows, we already have enough of that going on in this industry!! ...why not pose the question, put your heads together, and come up with something constructive? I would love to see some positive results spawned by this debate. Maybe you and yours can help piece it together and get the ball rolling, or at the very least, heading in the right direction." - Lori Matzke

So I went to work "working on some answers" and began creatively being “constructive” as Lori challenged me to do. I began offering help/knowledge to any stager I could, sharing what I know.

And each time after I reach out to help a fellow stager, I get the same response. "I hope sometime I can return the favor." Then this morning it hit me! Here is how you can…

STAGE IT FORWARD!

The words and the action is not just a way to thank. “STAGE IT FORWARD” embodies what I see needs to happen to finally get this industry united and growing.

• Staging-it-forward means sharing with others… COMMUNITY.


• Staging-it-forward takes our message out … MARKETING.


• Staging-it-forward encourages ongoing learning… EDUCATION.


• Staging-it-forward requires reaching out to others… UNITY.


• Staging-it-forward necessitates respect… STANDARDS.

Well, it may have taken me awhile… but I think I am on to something here. I hope my fellow stagers join me and…

STAGE IT FORWARD!

WOW does this stager have "IT" or what?

Recently I stumbled upon Jessica Hughes of Ambiance Staging a new stager that I believe has “it”... in every sense of word. I believe she has a GREAT start, a GREAT attitude, GREAT talent, GREAT acumen and most importantly… tenacity.

A little while back I shared a “secret” on how to easily evaluate a stager. In that blog I said… “USE YOUR EYES and see the good AR stagers and use them as a litmus test to which you compare the stager you are considering in your market. Go to their websites... look at their galleries/portfolios. You WILL SEE fantastic work... and just plan garbage. LOOK at the website...is it attractive? Folks, stagers are in the MERCHANDISING BUSINESS, they SHOULD be able to merchandise themselves.”

Well I did this at Jessica’s web site: Ambiance Staging …and I was BLOWN away.

Her website is NOT and needs not to be the most, slick, fancy, hip, chic etc… But, like a good staging, her website (which she designed herself) is clean, stylish, un-cluttered, easy to understand, maneuver through and best of all it was inexpensive. For a self designed beginner it is one of the best I have ever seen!

While she doesn’t have hundreds of pictures in her portfolio… she has enough to give you a sense of her abilities.

The little link tab that says (About Us) is a subtle example of “faking it till you make it”. It makes her sound bigger than an “About Me” tab would. And it is the truth… when one is starting up a new business a partner/spouse IS part of the team in one way or another.

On top of being creative she is smart and witty. I encourage you to read 2 of her posts on Active Rain. The cleverly relate and feed of each other. The first one entitled 6 ½ Reasons to Stage is informative… the second one entitled 6 ½ Reasons NOT to Stage is hilarious.

Jessica is an AWESOME addition to the staging industry. In my opinion she is "IT".

PS: Jessica received her training to be a stager at HSR (Home Staging Resource). HSR is owned and operated by Audra Slinkey. Audra's voice can often be heard here Among the Rain Drops... as she is also a member of Active Rain.

DRIVE-BY comment hits one of my blog posts

Well my "other" blog on Active Rain has been “hit” with a annonymous comment which is QUITE RARE on Active Rain. The hit occured last night on a blog I posted way back on August 10th entitled Stepping on "accredited/certified” stager’s toes (Click link to view blog and scroll down to read actual comment).

And while I could let just the anonymous comment sit there quietly and go unnoticed, I think it points at and speaks to the need for respecting and understanding within the staging industry and amongst staging piers.

While for the most part the Anonymous Commment was insightful from their perspective it did take a bit of a “pot shot”… regarding "those without formal training and a resource for ongoing education” they question training, abilities, success and ethics. They went on to make sure I understood who Barb Schwartz was and what Stagedhomes.com is and offers.

It is obvious that the commenter is passionate about home staging and their affilation with Barb and Stagedhomes.com and wanted to make it clear why they were so… which I TOTALLY respect.

I agree 100% with what they say about EDUCATION it can help and is WONDERFUL! I have said this over and over and over. But there is more then one place to gain knowledge and an education.

Lessons learned in a class can be applied in our life/field. But what is often forgotten is that the lessons learned in life/field are brought back to the class and IS what IS thought.

The commenter goes on to speak of Barb Schwartz and the role she has plays in the industry. I agree, since Barb coined the term “staging” she has worked tirelessly to bring it life, perfect it and create credibility for it within the Real Estate Industry. EVERY stager (good or bad) needs to acknowledge and respect that fact.

However, while the concept may not have had a name, the idea of preparing a home so that it looked it absolute best when it went up for sale, has long been in existence. To deny this fact is an insult to realtors who have done so for years.

My own training in “staging” started years ago… with every move my family made. Prior to each move, my father, a sales executive, exhaustively prepared lists of projects we had to accomplish and maintain each time we were about to sell our house. (He took the same approach to selling our used cars… we “detailed” our cars long before it was the term used to describe the process.)

So while Barb definitely “graduated” way ahead of me, I and MANY others could say we went to the same school… that school being the School of Hard Knocks for Stagers. We have learned by doing.

Again I think it bears repeating… Lessons learned in a class can be applied in our life/field. But what is often forgotten is that the lessons learned in life/field are brought back to the class and IS what IS thought.

Under the name Barb first gave it… an entire industry is rising. Now there ARE many entities offering training. One of the concerns I have is that people WILL be duped and taken by less then credible stagers and training “schools”.

Also and unfortunately, as the industry rises, there seems to be a network of feudal staging war lords who have developed their own staging kingdoms… and are right now battling it out. At times the “industry” is more focused on discrediting each other and has reduced itself into being petty bickering bunch.

I could easily take any number of course on staging… but I choose to stay non-aligned with any staging “kingdom”. I have become a LOUD voice for unity within the staging community and have found an audience among stagers who share my thoughts and hopes for an industry built out of competitive kindness. I know a healthy industry will not only benefit and protect the consumer but also those people who chose to make staging a career.

I believe that if there is to be accreditation /certification the INDUSTRY and it’s members should govern the process. It is easy for a company to say they do, it is easy for a school to say it does… but I believe an INDUSTRY (NOT JUST ONE PERSON, ONE COMPANY OR ONE SCHOOL) should dictate what ultimately constitutes accredited professionalism amongst those who call themselves “Stager”.

Some final thoughts... after reading what "Anonymous" wrote, I do not understand their need to hide. What they said was a genuinely fair assessment from their perspective.

As for my persepective, I stand with my name behind my words… even if at times that means I stand corrected.

PS: A benifit of a "drive by comment"... it sure can inspire dialogue!