Home Staging Indianapolis Blog

The Following is a press release that was published today about the addition of Home Staging Training which will be offered to both Stagers and Real Estate Agents effective this month.  Click on the Home Matters web site training tab above to see the details.

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Linda Barnett, Founder of Home Matters, to Offer Staging and Redesign (SAR) Certification Courses

Nearly five years after having founded one of the most successful and fastest growing home staging and redesign companies in Indiana, Linda Barnett is expanding Home Matters to include a new training division. Starting in January of 2009, Barnett will offer a series of 5-day Staging and Redesign (SAR) certification courses for stagers and 2-day SAR certification courses for real estate agents.

The SAR Certification Course for Stagers combines classroom training with field experience to provide a strong foundation for the art and business of staging and redesign in vacant and occupied homes. The SAR Certification Course for Agents utilizes classroom and hands-on training to give real estate professionals the tools to improve the marketability of their clients’ homes and generate faster, more profitable sales. Each course includes personalized instruction, as well as ongoing professional and marketing support, to help ensure participants’ success.      

Both of the SAR courses were created and certified by Melissa Marro of Charleston, SC, who founded First Impressions Home Staging and Interior Redesign in 2005 and helped it become one of the premiere staging and training companies in the southeast. Marro holds several leadership positions in the staging/redesign industry, including the South Carolina State Chapter President of the Interior Redesign and Staging Industry Specialists (IRIS). Marro tapped Barnett to become the Midwest SAR Instructor because of her longstanding record of success in the Indianapolis metropolitan area and her leadership in the staging/redesign industry.  

This collaboration between Barnett and Marro marks the latest step in their efforts to enhance standardization and elevate professionalism within the staging/redesign industry. Also to this end, they are both active in—and have been nominated for various awards by—the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA) of North America and have served as moderators for RESA’s Stage it Forward (SIF) Roundtable Forums, a series of nationwide conferences for staging and redesign professionals.

The dust has settled, the food has been eaten, all of the table and chairs have been hauled away and the real estate stagers from all across Indiana have made their way back home.  Even though our accessory warehouse is just a room with racks, shelves and things; it sure came to life the day of November 13th when it was filled with people with the same dream.  There was a time not long ago that I could not have imagined there being 25 stagers in all of Indiana, let alone there being that many all gathering in one place for a group discussion about topics surrounding our industry. Needless to say the event was a HIT. Many of the Real Estate Stagers had felt fairly isolated until this Round Table event and many were excited just to be in the company of others that have a passion for staging homes to sell.  One tell-tale sign was the exuberance that everyone put into simply exchanging business cards with each other.  Everyone walked away from this event feeling that they now had 24 new friends in the business. Small groups of stagers gathered afterward to learn and share and the smiles on their faces told me that indeed this is was a great day.  Our group had quite diverse backgrounds and affiliations; there were RESA’s, IRIS’s, HSR’s, ASP’s ASHSR’s and a few naked stagers as well as some fresh out of training… But for those few hours of sharing and learning and discussing our industry, there were only interesting conversations, great questions and a sense of belonging.

Thanks to everyone who participated in our event…. A Big, Big THANKS to all of our sponsors, RESA, SIF, IRIS, ASHSR  and a HUGE, HUGE, THANK YOU TO OUR LOCAL LUNCH  SPONSOR…….PACK-RAT OF THE GREATER INDIANAPOLIS AREA.

Everywhere you look and listen today, the economic and housing news is gloomy at best and stormy at worst. With so many homes competing for a smaller and choosier pool of buyers, sellers are overwhelmed with fear that their home will sell only at a giveaway price or after a long time on the market—if it will sell at all.  But what if sellers had a way to fly toward sunnier skies while “weatherproofing” the equity in their home? They do! Home staging can help sellers find the silver lining in the gray clouds of the current real-estate atmosphere. Here’s how:

Staging is practical. Most people wouldn’t leave the house without an umbrella, slicker or galoshes on a rainy day. So why don’t sellers fully prepare to invest in their home’s equity before putting it on the market? Most buyers can have their home professionally staged for much less than the cost of a price reduction. Staging allows sellers to capitalize on buyers’ first impressions and save unnecessary time on the market.

Staging is motivating. Most owners wouldn’t sell a car without repairing and detailing it. So why would anyone put a home on the market without making sure it’s in good condition and appealing to buyers? Often, the answer is that home sellers simply don’t know what to do to improve their chances of a successful sale or how to do it. A consultation with a professional stager can give sellers the detailed and prioritized information to calm their fears and gain a “can-do” attitude!

Staging adds value. Savvy sellers (and realtors) know that staging is a wise investment. Who wouldn’t want to have their home (or listing) appeal to a wide range of buyers in the targeted demographic, and sell faster and/for more money than its competition? Talk about weathering the storm!

Staging is state of the art. Staged homes not only look better when buyers visit, but also in MLS listing photos and virtual tours. And, since more than 80% of buyers now find their next home online before scheduling a tour, staging helps ensure that a home makes a buyer’s must-see list. Every home for sale must be ready for its close-up, if it is to have the competitive edge in today’s technology-driven market.

Staging yields proven results. Statistics consistently show that staged homes sell more successfully (faster and/or for more money) than non-staged homes. And, although the exact numbers may vary according to state or region, the profitable results of home staging are being realized nationwide (and beyond)—even in this stormy market.

So, whether sellers need the expert information and motivation to do the work themselves or the hands-on services of a professional, a home stager can help ensure that the skies ahead will be clearer. During these turbulent times, home staging can provide the ray of sunshine that allows sellers to find their next dream home at the end of the rainbow—while keeping more of their pot of gold.

We are very pleased to announce that we will be hosting a Stage It Forward (SIF)~RESA Home Staging Round Table event on November 13th, starting at 10:30 am.  The location of the event will be at the Home Matters offices and accessory warehouse, located at 1206 Indy Place, Indianapolis, In. 46214.

We would like to invite all professional stagers in the vicinity to attend.  In fact, if Indianapolis is the closest round table that is taking place to your home location, we would love to have you in our attendance.  Come join us as we learn and share with each other regarding our industry.

SIF, in many ways is the collective voice of the Home Staging Industry. Craig Schiller, the founder of SIF and its members have always been committed to grass roots involvement to form that collective voice.  The driving principals were to provide a venue where Stagers could gather to discuss issues and concepts, share ideas for one and all; a place to listen and be heard, all in a non-biased, non-judgmental way.  In that spirit, the Indianapolis Round Table group will be discussing Home Staging topics ranging from National level issues to those more local in nature.

A big Thanks to our sponsors, Shell Brodnax (RESA), Sandy Dixon (IRIS) and Audra Slinkey (ASHSR) for making this event possible.

To register for the event, go to the RESA web site at www.RealEstateStagingAssociation.com and click on the event calendar and go to Nov.  Find the Indianapolis event shown on the 13th, click on it to register.  For questions about the Indianapolis event call Gary Barnett at (317) 797-1947.

Real estate and the technological world are like peas and carrots, they just go together. We live in a world of MLS photos, virtual tours, internet directories, press releases, and article submissions.  It’s entirely feasible for a buyer to see every room of a home, in high quality vivid color, from the comfort of their own home, a coffee shop, or just about anywhere they can get an internet connection.  I recently read that as high as 86% of home shoppers will view available homes as well as find their Realtor on the Internet.

As a result of this surge in internet use, many new real estate professionals are relying on the technological highway to improve their services.  The successful sale of your listings will depend on how good you are at digitizing, synthesizing and electronically marketing yourself and your client’s homes.  Curb appeal is no longer the view you get from your 1995 Chevy windows while driving down the street, instead it is the view you get of a home from digitized photos shown on your computer screen.  Finding a Realtor or Home Stager is not a matter of checking with who your friends used in the past, it’s a matter of who comes up first when the phrase “Real Estate Agent, Indianapolis” is typed into your favorite search engine.  And even when you come up high in the results of a search, internet users have learned that they can quickly check the multitude of claims made by eager, computer savvy business men and women, marketing themselves and their businesses.

As a buyer using today’s technology, I can quickly set the price range I want to pay and the area I want to live in and in seconds view every home that meets my criteria.  From that starting point I can start comparing and eliminating with-in seconds.  A home looks to be priced too high compared to others in this same price range and many others look better, well may not make their must see list. If your home looks dark and dated and your photos are dark, blurred and just plain horrible looking well, again you’re not even in the running.  No photos, well that’s just not good at all.  In much less time than it would take to physically visit just one property, I can view every home meeting my criteria and choose the winners. The National Association of Realtors even claims that homes with more and better photos are viewed exponentially more than those with a few or no photos.  Also, it only makes sense that clients require the Realtors and Stagers that they work with are those that are technologically savvy.  I am hearing from many experienced Realtors that their business has and continues to diminish as time goes by.  These are agents that built their lively-hood on referrals.  First year, 10 clients.  Those 10 clients told 20 more and on and on.  So what happened to their ever-dependable pyramid math?  The Internet happened.  Once again, a client can find an agent on the Internet quicker than it takes to make a phone call to a friend for a referral.  The business diminished because the math just didn’t add up any more.

E-mail is also part of the changing technological landscape.  E-mail has now grown to the point of being the communication tool of choice.  We can instantly communicate with anyone, anywhere around the world.  We can send our clients quotes, contracts, updates, inspection reports, offers, counter offers and even closing statements.  And it can be done instantaneously and as sharp as the original.

My how things have changed!  I struggled at age 38 to learn and become proficient at using a computer.  As time went by I also struggled at becoming proficient at using the Internet.  My son learned about computers at age 12 and easily moved into the whole Internet thing at about 18.  Today my 10-year-old granddaughter can do a search and locate every home for sale in my community.  My how things have changed indeed!

Moral of story; you have to diversify your services and your techniques in making a connection in today’s real estate world.

In today’s high-stakes market of real estate, homeowners need to pull out all the stops in preparing their homes for sale. Did you know that 86% of home buyers are looking on the internet to find their next home? Would you be surprised to learn that buyers prepare a shopping list of their favorite homes before ever contacting a real-estate professional? The internet images of your interior and exterior play an extremely important role in making a buyer’s “must see” list. That’s why preparing your home for the market involves more than just a little cleaning and tiding up.

Home staging is a marketing tool to help home sellers merchandise their properties. This is done to help buyers connect with—and envision their life in—your home. The way you live in your home and the way you package and present it to the buying public are two different things. You will need to take a different approach from living in your home if you want to sell your home. The very first step is to emotionally disconnect with your home and treat it as a product you want to sell.

The second step involves looking at your home through a buyer’s eyes. Start by asking yourself the following questions: What improvements need to be made for my home to be competitive in my market? How does my home look in comparison to other homes in my area and price range? What is it that buyers are really looking for in a home? A home-staging professional has the answers to these questions and can help you prepare your home it for its “close up.” Can you picture your home SOLD?

In today’s real estate market it’s not unusual for smart, savvy home sellers to look at all of their options when it comes to selling their homes. I’d like to share with you a fabulous story of how a smart and wise home seller found their way to look for a home stager despite opposing advice.

I received a call from a homeowner, asking about our services and if we could help her stage her property. She went on the say that they had a second home already bought and time was of the essence. She explained to me, that she had told her agent that she was going to have her home staged and did not want it on the market until the staging was complete. She told me that she was surprised at her agent’s response. The agent had told her that her home was in a terrific location and that the quaint town was very desirable and that she did not need to spend money on staging her home. She continue her story and told me that she thought about her agents advice for a few seconds and asked her agent about why her neighbor’s home is still sitting on the market after 5 months.

I staged her property on Jan. 14th, 2008 and received a call on Jan. 18th, 2008 from a very excited homeowner telling me they had just accepted a full price offer.  “Whoo Hoo” she said. She went on to tell me that she was extremely happy with herself in that she decided to follow her own personal research and listened to her own instinct. We too, are thrilled for her and her family and wish them many happy years in their new home.

A successful home sale can really be broken down to just a few of the right ingredients.  A good sales mix would be the price, location, condition, marketing and a balanced motivation of the buyer and seller.

There is no questioning that the location of a property and its setting can greatly influence its value. Sellers will need to convince buyers and appraisers that their home is worth what they are asking for it. When setting your price consider these factors. Your potential buyers will consider your home and compare it with other homes currently on the market within your homes price point. However an appraiser will be more objective and compare size, age and identifiable features in your home to properties that have already sold. So it makes good sense to price your home within the appropriate price range. So if your home is worth only $300,000 to $350,000 don’t insist on marketing it at $450,000.

Most home buyers, when given a choice, would choose a new home that is in top condition. This is why new construction homes have a marketing advantage over most resale homes. Their competitive edge comes from offering a house that is clean, bright, and showcases the most current in-trend features. Builders enhance the appeal of their homes by showcasing tastefully decorated rooms with modern color palettes. This is where the condition of a property is extremely important to the real estate sales mix.  Keeping this in mind, this is where the home seller of a resale home needs to understand that by addressing items that represent the homes condition is in keeping with the home buyer’s expectations and helps their home compete aggressively in the marketplace.

Home sellers who hire professional home stagers to assist them with the presentation part of the selling process will gain the advantage of the first phase in the marketing process. Home Stagers are a home seller’s point-of-sale marketer/merchandiser. They can enhance the overall impression left with your viewer.   Buyers need to know the particulars of a property for sale. They also need to know why this particular property is worth buying. They need to know what benefits there will be as a result of their purchase.  An effective marketing campaign can make a home stand out from the others in the marketplace.

The best deal in real estate is always a WIN/WIN for all parties involved.  Bringing together a motivated seller and a motivated buyer will result in typically a smooth real estate transaction.

If you’re having trouble selling your home you might want to ask yourself if you are missing any of the right ingredients.

I found the book to be a practical, comprehensive, and provides detail,  with all-inclusive information on how to sell a home faster and for more money-even in today’s challenging real estate market. The book features current facts and statistics, resource lists, photographs, room-by-room and step-by-step guidance, and home-preparation checklists. Its target audience includes homeowners, realtors, builders, investors, and home stagers, and those individuals interested in exploring a career in home staging.  I have read many books on the subject of home staging and would definitely recommend this to be at the top of your must read list.

For those of you not familiar with the authors, Christine Rae is an internationally recognized trainer and author in the home staging industry. She is the founder and President of Certified Staging Professionals, through which she has instructed over 2,600 entrepreneurs on how to start and grow a successful home staging business. She has received numerous industry awards; most recently, the 2007 Staging Innovator of the Year from the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA), which has members throughout the United States and Canada.   Jan Saunders Maresh-a Certified Staging Professional-is a bestselling author and nationally known journalist, instructor and television personality with more than 25 years of design experience. In 2005, she founded Naked Room Solutions, a home staging and interior redesign company.  This book is available at bookstores and can be ordered online at www.dummies.com or www.stagerslist.com.

As for me, well I’m just simply blessed to have played a small part in their huge accomplishment. Please join me in raising a glass, and make a toast for their contribution to our industry.  Congratulations Ladies!

When buyers are house hunting, they look for homes that not only meet their financial needs and desired location, but also their perception of a home’s condition and its value. Therefore, we view our role as a Professional Home Stagers, helping to position our client’s home as “moving it up the property ladder.”

The “property ladder” is a metaphor for a home’s marketability position. The “rungs” of the ladder represent the salability of a home: “poor” at the bottom, moving up to “fair” and then “good” in the middle, culminating in “best” at the top of the ladder. The marketability position is directly influenced by the perceived condition/value a buyer places on a property; thereby allowing the art of home staging to be extremely beneficial toward helping move the home to an improved sellable position. A (“best”) home at the top of the ladder allows the HOME SELLER (S) to reap the most successful sale: the highest price and/or in the shortest amount of time on the market.

How is this accomplished?

Our Professional Home Stagers help determine where the property currently is (which rung) on the ladder by assessing its condition and contents. They then determine how to reposition the property by making specific recommendations to move it upward. There are two main variables our home stagers consider at this point; one is meeting the expectations of the home’s targeted market (or demographic) of buyers; and the second is the price point of the home. Why are the targeted market and price point so important? Because meeting the expectations of buyers—by the way the home is styled or merchandised—will help them connect emotionally with the product that is being sold. Understanding the demographics of the targeted market helps our stagers make recommendations that are just right for the home. The price point will tell the stager what quality of furnishings and other home design features a typical buyer in that price range will expect.

Finally, our stager recommends other design elements that help influence home buyers—including color, scale, proportion, symmetry, balance, flow (traffic) patterns and best use of space. When all these variables fall into place, they create a perfect match between what typical buyers in the demographic see and what they expect. This will move any home upward and lead buyers to an emotional connection with the home. Ultimately, this emotional connection is what helps buyers choose a particular property for their next home.

As Professional Home Stagers, we feel it is our professional obligation and responsibility to give home sellers every possible advantage to make their homes more marketable by repositioning/transforming their products (homes) upward on the property ladder. In doing so, we ensure the best end result: A Fast Profitable Sale!