Why do you need a Professional Stager?

Some people just can’t scale down.

Other people can scale down but their houses still don’t sell. We’ve all heard stories of people who have chatted with their friends, learned the newest trend for paint colours, painted their homes that new colour, “decluttered” and yet their houses still have a For Sale sign on them.

Houses that sell well are those where a professional stager has been involved. The reason is that professional staging performed by a certified and qualified stager is so much more than painting, “decluttering” or pillow fluffing. A professional stager goes through your home in great detail, notes your home’s assets and problem points and comes up with solutions to showcase your home so that it will be competitive with similar homes in the area, sell faster and often at a higher price than an unstaged home.

Statistics from the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA) show that the services of a professional stager can bring a return on investment (ROI) of between $1.89 – $5.89 for every dollar spent on that stager’s fees. What accounts for the return on the staging investment? It’s the analysis of your home and the application of tried and true formulas to ensure that your home is presenting the best that it can to the buyers most likely to be interested in it. Homeowners often have a strong emotional tie to their houses, furniture and accessories or their own conveniences that they have set up within the home for daily living. Sometimes those choices get in the way of selling. Often those choices can be in the wrong place or detract or distract from how well the house’s assets can be presented.

Over 90% of future buyers review homes online. If that home isn’t showing properly and appealing to the buyer most likely to buy that house, the Discard button is hit and rarely does a buyer ask for that property to be placed back on the list of houses they want to see.

As an owner, how important it is for your home to sell quickly? Do you have ongoing mortgage payments or two monthly mortgage/rent payments if you have already moved? How important is it for your home to sell for the best possible price? Are there debts to pay off or expenses that are coming up? If these considerations are causing you concern, call us for a consultation. We will make recommendations for you and you can decide which next steps to take.

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Style v. Trend v. Fad

When it comes to your decorating or renovating budget, it is really important to understand the difference between these concepts when allocating your budget. Let’s understand the differences.

Style

Style is a concept that is meant to embrace a period, philosophy of design or cultural period that can last for decades. Types of styles that you may have heard of are contemporary, mid-century modern, French provincial, art deco, traditional, transitional, rustic, postmodernism and so forth. Most of your planning and spending should be in this area unless you are looking to renovate every 10 years or so.

Trend

A trend, on the other hand, is a general direction in which a style is evolving or changing. A trend will generally last for several years. Trends will cover a number of aspects such as colour, pattern, appliance materials, countertop or tile materials, detailing and accessories. An example of a recent trend would be the white on white kitchen using a traditional, transitional or Nordic style. This trend is now ending in favor of the use of colour. Another trend was the use of stainless steel and chrome in fixtures and appliances. This trend is now ending and being replaced with the use of warmer or mixed metals.

Fad

A fad is the least lasting concept. It may be very popular in the short term (very roughly 2 years) and then is often quickly forgotten. Because the turnover is quick, the least amount of your budget should be spent here. Examples of a fad may be the use of faux fur pillows or throws and textual artwork and accessories (where the art or accessory is composed of words or phrases).

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Trendy Picks don’t always work for Everyone

When Interior Decorating and Interior Design work best, it is when the decorator or designer makes sure that the choices made have both “form and function”. What this means, is that, not only should the pieces chosen be beautiful and stylish, but they should function well for the purpose intended in the client’s home. Sometimes current fads or trends will work well for some clients but don’t make practical sense for other clients who have different needs for their space.

Let’s take a look at the chaise sectional sofa. Almost all versions come with a space at the chaise end which isn’t backed. If you have several people coming over, is that end piece always the last seat being chosen? The reason is that it isn’t comfortable to sit with no back support for long periods of time. Does everyone avoid the corner? The reason is that if someone is occupying the unbacked section, the corner occupant is forced to sit cross-legged or position his or her legs in another person’s leg area. Although the sofas above look like they could seat many people, realistically only 3 seats on the white sofa and two on the red sofa would be the “prime” seats if you are having a number of people over.

While the chaise sectional is a beautiful and stylish piece and will work well when used by a small number of people at one time (or family members that don’t mind draping themselves over each other!), it may not be the best choice for many occupants who plan to be sitting on it for a while. If you truly love the chaise sectional concept (and there are different versions of it around), be sure to consult with an interior decorator so that the version you get works best for your taste and needs.

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