Spring in near.....Staging advice

With the spring real estate season approaching, I thought I would share a little staging vs non staging advice.   Sometimes the hardest part about being a stager is convincing a client that they should follow through with most if not all of my recommendations.   I can't blame them entirely since I am asking them to spend even more money on a home they are about to leave.   I wish I could show them the future just as Ebeneezer Scrooge saw his future of doom.   


Well, as is happenend I can show you almost that very scenario.  The condo right above our place was put on the market last September. It was renovated extensively about 7 years ago and is a 4 bdrm/2bath.  List price: $475,000.  Exactly one week later,  another 2nd floor condo one street over was also put on the market. This house had just been gutted and renovated by a builder.  Its a 3 bdrm/2 bath. List price: $489,000.  


As it turned out, I did not stage the property above us even though my landlord did ask my advice.  Advice was given, but unfortunately advice was not taken.  One of the items I suggested doing was repainting in more neutral colors as they were strong colors that wouldn't appeal to a broad market. The colors also made the rooms look smaller.    The other condo one street over used very "of the moment" neutrals. 
I also suggested staging some furniture, particularly in the open living room/dining room/ kitchen area.


Here are pictures of the two condos:

The verdict?  The condo one street over sold 2 months later, November 1st.  The condo upstairs from us lowered the asking price to $440,000 and finally took it off the market January 1st without any buyers.


There you have it folks. There are many factors involved in getting a house sold, but staging can play a very important part!