MY ADVICE: Don't drink the Kool-Aid, but keep your Staging Training Pride!

Last July, when I was invited to join Active Rain, the real estate social network, I knew it was going to be a very special site. Right from the start I was amazed to see how Realtors from "competing" companies reached out to their colleagues to freely share information that helps and betters their "rivals". So it is no surprise then that because of all of the shared generosity, Active Rain has been a successful and rewarding venture for ALL who participate.

When I started on Active Rain, there were only a small number of Home Stagers on the site. Slowly, at first, Stagers found and began contributing. Amazingly, Stagers from across North America (YEAH CANADA!) started sharing ideas, challenges, frustrations, tips, successes and techniques to staging homes and running home staging businesses.

When Active Rain created the "group" feature, Stage It Forward was born. Stage It Forward now provides Home Stagers with ONE easy forum and resource where, regardless of where one’s foundation training was received, all can gather and learn MORE and become BETTER Home Stagers. Any Home Stager who has spent any time on Active Rain in Stage It Forward knows the benefit from diverse and free flow of ideas and dialogue that takes place each and EVERY DAY.

So as more and more home Stagers find Stage It Forward… just know that when you come gushing in with "foundation training pride” know at times it looks like you "drank too much of the Kool-Aid" from the company that provided your base training in home staging.

Just know that Active Rain and Stage It Forward are places where Stagers and the Home Staging Industry has and will continue to grow to greater heights through the simple acts of kindness and sharing.

Stage It Forward...
Me

Raise Your Standards by Setting Your Sites Lower

As a professional home stager I know what home buyers look at (regardless of where, when or how they see it) matters greatly. In fact, I believe in "SEEING" so much that I am ongoingly investing in and building an entire company devoted exclusively to improving what home buyers see and visually experience when they shop for real estate.

So to keep my eye on what is happening with technology and in the marketplace I often go out to realtor sites to research and SEE just what has been featured by realtors for buyers to look at and evaluate on the web. And I have to admit it surprises me to see so much sloppy photography that realtors use to market their client's properties.

One of the MOST common problem I repeatedly see is with photo composition. So often I see the interior room photos featuring far to much of the ceiling in the photo... and I don't know why. Seriously... when was the last time you had a client ask you to show you a house with the biggest ceiling? If you ask me, with digital photography being easy, quick and cheap, there is NO EXCUSE for this to occur in room shots. To me... in the not too distant future, bad photography this is going to be the sign of a lazy agent.

Now, there are times when ceiling beams, light fixtures, skylights, or some other feature or element on a ceiling should be featured in the photograph... but let's face it, this is typically NOT the case for the majority of the homes that are being photographed. Below are 12 of nearly 50 images I found last week when for about 1¼ hours I sat down to do some on-line industry research. I’ve posted these examples because I know SEEING what I saw will help SEE what buyers are SEEING.

TIP: Showing more of the floor is typically better then more ceiling. So the good news is it does not take expensive photo editing software or classes in photo composition to correct this common error. All it requires is that the realtor take an extra moment and look at what is in their camera's view finder and lower it if too much ceiling is being included in the shot.

I write about this VERY basic point about real estate photography because as more and more consumers rely on internet sites to prescreen and preview properties, the knowledge and application of BASIC photographic skills is going to be a simple yet critical competence that WILL distinguish the amateur from the professional realtor.

So remember, simply lower your sites and you will quickly raise your own standards and gain the marketing advantage shooting and posting good room photos will make in creating that favorable first impression of you are looking to gain for both you and the properties you are selling.

Stage it forward...
Craig (Me)
NOTE: While some of these photographs have other quality issues... for the purpose of this posting they were selected for how they featured ceilings.

Home Staging is Sweat Equity ON STEROIDS!

Agents, with the spring real estate selling season just around the corner I think now is the time to FLEX YOUR MINDS to make a strategic point about pricing point! While real estate staging will not raise the appraised value of a property, STAGING A HOME CAN STILL CAN BE A VERY PROFITABLE ENDEAVOR for the home seller!

Consider this... As every real estate professional knows, a property that goes up for sale on in the market has a possible low/high listing price range. This low/high price is primarily based on features, condition and finishes and of course location.

But did you know that if staging is done properly, and timed right, the asking price can be raised toward the high side of the listing price range? This raise in price can be considerably higher in some cases!

So, if one regards staging as "sweat equity on steroids!" and if you are able to convey that fact and your sellers stage BEFORE they list (in fact the "sweat equity on steroids!" analogy is a good way to explain to sellers what staging is) then staging can bring HUGE returns to them... and a faster sale to you.

Here at Real Estaging our best "sweat equity on steroids" success story was for a young couple who last spring ended up raising the LIST price of their house for $20,000.00 MORE from what the realtor originally was going to list it for, had we not done to work of staging!

YES, it is possible to stage a house after it has been for sale in the market for awhile... but proper timing does matter. If everyone (seller, agent and stager) wins bigger and better from by staging that occurs prior to listing the property... then why not stage from the start?

The listing agent and seller both need to understand that staging BEFORE a house before it goes to market is key to tapping into the financial rewards possible from staging. That is why Real Estaging coined a simple phrase... "stage it, list it, show it, sell it." It is THAT ORDER that ultimately works the BEST!

So realtors its time to FLEX YOUR MINDS and bring this strong and profitable venture to your sellers.

Stage it forward...
Craig (Me)

DO YOUR HOMEWORK... before you sign up for home staging courses

With more and more people positively experiencing the rewards of all that real estate staging brings to both the home seller and real estate professional, Home staging has begun to bloom in interest and knowledge of it continues to grow.

So, with so much positive feedback and real estate industry "buzz" about what a professional stager does... people are looking at home staging as a career option and are researching home staging training resources for professional classes and courses.

Each week more and more people are asking me for my opinion home staging classes. So to make it easier I thought I would take a pro-active step to help those interested in home staging training. This past weekend, I when I was working on updating the look of this blog, I decide to create one comprehensive listing where many (if not all) the resources that offer kind home staging educational training courses in North America could be easily referenced. WOW was I very surprised to find 30 (large and small) companies across North America that offer classes in home staging training courses.

So if you are personally interested in formal classroom training in real estate staging, let me give you a VERY IMPORTANT Tip #1… OPEN YOUR EYES and LOOK at the companies offering foundation training. Their websites are windows into their ability and professionalism.

As you click on each you will start to SEE for yourself who leaders are and who are not. Tip#2 look for copy write dates. If the site has not taken the time to update a small little copy write, what makes you think they have update the details of their curriculum?

Finally the biggest TIP of all is 3#. Its really quite simple, when researching these companies and their informational web sites, keep in mind that the career you are undertaking is Home Staging. This is the business of creating AMAZING first impressions. So if a company is going to TEACH it... they should BE it. EVERY element of their site should be clean, clear, beautifully display and convey just what they are about. They SHOULD be and LOOK like leaders in the industry!

To date, the industry has evolved enough to have trained and produced a number of individuals who now have gone out and applied and perfected their skills and are now offering their own courses. So another KEY POINT to remember is that while the “biggest” may not be the best for the small “mom and pop” shop just offer a less expensive and more comprehensive training package. This is where you must LOOK to do your homework.

I believe there are NO coincidences in the world… so oddly, as I was researching and composing this post, I stumbled upon 2 other separate and unrelated post on Active Rain, that shed new light on the subject of home staging training.

The first was a comment by (literally) "the staging diva" Debra Gould on one of my older blogs that to this day gets quite a bit of traffic... ASP? HSE? What's-a-stager-SUPPOSED-to-be? Debra who teaches foundation training offers her wise insight to anyone considering training. I encourage you to check out what she said by clicking the link above.

The second was very revealing (if not scandalous) blog about training posted by a Shell Brodnax also on Active Rain. Shell worked for 4 years for one of the largest professional staging training organization in the country that expounds upon the fact that they “certify/accredit” people who take their course.

The blog Shell wrote sheds some interesting light on the subject of training from home stagers. For in this blog she explains that while students had enjoyed the initial training experience, they soon became disillusioned after getting out in the real world and having to deal with what was NOT trained or covered in the EXPENSIVE course they took.

Shell's lists of 35 questions she often had to dance around, when asked by graduates after training. Shell speaks to the complexity of what it REALLY takes to stage a home, and run a staging business. She shares with us all some of the basics that NEEDS to be taught by organizations claiming to offer professional staging training.

Bottom Line... Home Staging is NOT just fluffing a nick knack, it is a BUSINESS! So if you are going to invest in your time and money for a future career, look for companies that not only trains staging... but focus on teaching the ins and outs of owning and operating a home staging business.

So I guess it comes down to… let the buyer LOOK and be aware.

Stage it forward...
Craig (Me)

Post Script: I happen to know that this is one of my most visited posts... if you are looking into a career and training in home staging I STRONGLY encourage you to read this: Home Staging 101: Day in the life of a stager- this ain't for the faint of heart! This post by Kate Hart is a bit tongue-in-cheek... but it REALLY is what this "glamorous" industry is all about.

New Carbon Monoxide Amendment Goes Into Effect

Pursuant to legislation approved in 2005, the New York State Uniform Fire Prevention and Building Code now requires the installation of carbon monoxide detectors in newly constructed multiple dwellings or multiple dwellings offered for sale. The code defines “multiple dwellings” as a building occupied by three or more individuals or families living independently of each other. This amendment

Stagers, why spend money? List your business for FREE on a national Home Staging directory.

I know that I have shared my thoughts about the real estate social network called Active Rain before. So now that it has grown in membership I once again eel compelled to share with you once again what a great site this is. Active Rain simply amazes and inspires me. For while Active Rain is wonderful marketing, educational, networking and showcasing resource for all professionals in the real estate industry... this one site provides more possibility and opportunity for the home stager and the growing Home Staging Industry then any other I know of.

December 31st marked the closing of Active Rain’s inaugural year (actually they launched themselves in June 2006)... and what a year it was for all the members who have joined and shared in this incredible cyber community.

In a year where the real estate industry was spinning with change and challenge and as we saw large companies jockeying for position on the web... Active Rain appeared as if out of nowhere.

An important lesson for home stagers and leaders in the real estate staging industry can be learn from the simple fact that the creators of Active Rain believed that individuals, not corporations, ARE the heart of the real estate and the industry segments that make it up. It is for this reason they created a means to give dedicated real estate professionals a way to share their ideas, insights and concerns about all aspects of real estate.

Using Active Rain blogging, industry professionals found a totally FREE way to share their voices and highly effect means of educating both colleagues and consumers as to the realities of a dynamic and ever changing industry.

Generosity has worked in Active Rains favor. Since its start, membership has exploded! As of today (December 31) Active Rain proudly has over nearly 12,500 members. With all those members and the fact that countless non-members visit to read and take advantage of the daily feed of fresh information, this site a force to notice among ALL segments of the real estate industry. Pure possibility ripples out as more and more real estate professionals join, find their blogging voices, and share their insights.

Just when one thought it couldn’t get any better, the developers of Active Rain looked to make the services they offer even better. While Active Rain is predominately a social net work of information to, for and within the real estate professional community, Active Rain created another site called “Localism”. Localism is going to give professionals a voice that will be seen DIRECTLY by the consumer into the markets served by the real estate professional.

So while you will find many professionals representing different segments of the real estate industry, I know Active Rain and its sister site, Localism, holds the greatest possibility to create amazing marketing impact for the staging industry, as well as for individual stagers. Their national listing of stagers is truly a Home Staging Web Directory. It has blossomed to nearly 300 Home Stagers. Innovative, fresh, and unique... Active Rain provides real estate stagers with a means to freely gain differing perspectives, share ideas, showcase their businesses, ongoingly grow in knowledge (in both real estate and home staging) and market services.

Where else on the internet can any home stager (regardless of where they were trained) go to join a FREE national staging directory that openly and willing offers and shares so much? More than any other any website on the net, this one totally FREE directory site provides more current information for the Home Stager working to grow and showcase their business on a daily level than any other.

So in 2007, as Home Staging Industry continues to struggle for continuity and awareness, look to Active Rain's National Directory of Stagers and it's FREE Stage It Forward group to provide a forum for Home Staging professionals to turn small ripples into waves of opportunity and move our industry ever forward.

Wishing you, "all the best" on and in the New Year.

Stage it forward...
Craig (Me)

Joy to the (Active) Rain

For those professionals in fields of real estate, mortgages, real estate staging I just want to make sure you know that there is an AMAZING site full of information about real estate and pretty much every aspect of the industry. It is called Active Rain.

Active Rain,now with over 11,000 members, is a social network (like MySpace)... but with out the controversy.

Anyway, in an effort to visually demonstrate the generosty, unity, diversity and professionalism that occurs daily on Active Rain, I created the wreaths below.

If you are a professional in ANY aspect of the real estate industry I strongly encourge you to join Active Rain. Oh and to be a member is totally, 100%, no hitches FREE!
















If you are a professional in ANY aspect of the real estate industry I strongly encourge you to join Active Rain. Oh and to be a member is totally, 100%, no hitches FREE!

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