Recently I was asked to jump in on a staging job gone bad which is what prompted me to write this article. I am not here to asperse someone’s reputation, which is why this is one post that I will not be posting photo’s. I just want to make you aware so this doesn’t happen to you. It made me think about how crucial it is to know when styling and staging who is doing your staging and what the terms are…basically what you are getting. Many times, the Realtor will choose the company so make sure you see samples of previous jobs they have done and ask which items you are getting or request a preview.
A stager must have the eye of a designer, I mean think about it, stagers have complete, unobstructed freedom, this is one of the reasons I love staging because you are on your own without getting everybody else’s opinions, but… you better know what you’re doing.
STAGING A HOME IS KNOWING HOW TO EXECUTE THE FEELING OF EMOTIONAL DESIGN BY CREATING AN INVITING VIBE BY KEEPING IT NEUTRAL AND BLENDING TEXTURES
TOO MUCH OR TOO LITTLE OF ANYTHING WILL NOT CREATE THE FEELING YOU NEED.
WE ARE EMOTIONAL ABOUT OUR LIVING SPACE, ITS WHERE WE SEE OURSELVES
When I saw the photos, I couldn’t believe my eyes. Instead of enhancing the space, the furniture, art, accessories and decor seemed completely out of place and didn’t come together at all.
The living room was mismatched and out of scale, the kitchen, bath and bedroom looked like no one lived there. I love an white bed but not all white with just one black pillow on one side and flat, undersized pillows and definitely not in this particular staging project. The overall vibe of the space was just not inviting, which is not a good start when selling a house. To make matters worse the pictures were scheduled for the next day, so we had to work fast.
One thing I still couldn’t wrap my head around was that this space had a very particular style that was so easy to follow, it was an amazing, authentic industrial loft in the heart of downtown, brick walls and all. This left me wondering how anyone could not follow the prompt of such a unique space? As designers and stagers, we thrive on this kind of opportunity! And somehow my clients had just wasted a chunk of money on an ineffective staging job that should have been so much better.
Before jumping into a fix-it mode, I took a moment to step back and think about how to fix this in a day. The client had already paid up front and did not want to pay someone else, but they did put a stop on the credit card while we sorted everything out. Take note in staging you pay extra for changes, and you can also be charged month to month if the house does not sell.
SO, THIS IS A GOOD TIME TO TELL YOU TO READ YOUR CONTRACT CAREFULLY AND MAKE SURE IT IS VERY CLEAR.
ALSO NOTE: NO ONE SHOULD HAVE TO PAY FOR SOMETHING THAT IS A MISREPRESENTATIVE OF WHAT YOU THINK YOU ARE GETTING SO JUST LIKE WITH CONTRACTORS DO NOT PAY IN FULL UNTIL THE JOB IS FINISHED AND APPROVED.
After a few calls with the Realtor, we made a list of what was wrong and picked out items shown on their website hoping to expedite the process if they were readily available. We made a list and marked up the photos showing what items needed to be moved, replaced with something new or just plain taken away. The mission here was to make everything cohesive, so it fit the industrial loft vibe while playing up the assets of the space such as the brick wall or large windows and most importantly to appeal to everyone that walked in that door.
We made major changes, everything from furniture to art pieces and color combinations. We even suggested the scale and placement of furniture and accessories, BASICALLY WE DID THEIR JOB. Their attempt at our changes were 60 percent wrong so we again got on the phone voicing our concerns and outlining the changes that needed to be made. The Realtor voiced that they were now out of the picture and facetimed us in the morning before photos to help us make a few changes to try and save the day since time was running out.
We had decided it would be OK to proceed rather than wait another 2 weeks to find another stager because every day was costing money. Being out of state we couldn’t be hands on, which would have made a huge difference.
Once the staging was revamped, we knew with professional photos it would be OK, after all we didn’t have a choice. First impressions are often made online these days whether you live next door or far away and professional photographers can make or break your online appeal.
One thing I do know from all my years in design and real estate is once buyers see something negative, they can’t unsee it.
With at least a few new changes in place, we could already sense the feeling of the space change and many multiple offers from potential buyers started pouring in. Since this article an offer was accepted way over asking price. Yes, the pricing and condition of your home alongside market activity is important but so is selling a lifestyle vision. Otherwise, it’s a brick-and-mortar box. This isn’t commercial real estate, it’s your home.
The takeaway of my article is that luckily, we were able to at least save what had already been done so the client did not have to pay anymore. The staging company did try to charge them more for the changes we implemented but they fought it and were not charged. In this case both the company and the stager were both different than what the client thought they were paying for.
Thank you and feel free to reach out to me with any of your styling questions or concerns at:
Happy Staging!
Carrie
XOXO
