So What Does a Staging Consultant Do?

Selling a House

To sell a house, it needs to be listed with a real estate agent, or it can be sold "by owner." Either way, the house has to be shown to potential buyers.  When you are selling a house, you want it to look its very best. That's where the Staging Consultant comes in. He or she comes and looks over every room thoroughly, making a list of things to do to the house to make it show ready.

If the house is vacant, the Consultant works directly with the real estate agent and they agree on what needs to be done to the house to make it ready to list and show. This is mostly what I do.

If the house is occupied, but wants to be on the market for sale, then the Staging Consultant works with the home owners (and sometimes agent) to re-stage each room to its full potential using things that are already in the home. This could mean rearranging furniture, de-cluttering, cleaning, moving furniture out and into storage, and updating the landscaping.  Most of this can be done without spending a dime. It's all just a matter of looking at a room with a fresh set of eyes and setting it up so that the highlights of the room are spotlighted.

The following staging was done without spending any money. In this bedroom, the junk was removed and a bed was brought in from the garage. The blinds were raised all the way to show off that awesome window and a lamp, also from another part of the house was added in the corner to add some ambiance. Of course everything was cleaned. Cost: $0.00  

Next: the Kitchen
This kitchen had lots of potential, but all of its good points were missed because of all the clutter, on the counter tops, the stove and the fridge. All of that was removed and the wood cabinets were cleaned. The extra shelf was brought in from another room and holds a lot of the items that were cluttering up the counter space. Cost $0.00

This was perhaps the most dramatic change made in this house. All of the toys were moved to the kid's rooms; the white sofa was moved to storage, and the whole room was de-cluttered. The area rug was removed and WOW!

See, NOW we notice the nice chandelier fixture, the double glass doors, the marble counter top and the hardwood floors, whereas before all you saw was a mess of toys. A small table was moved from the kitchen area and topped with a nice centerpiece. The room took on a brand new air of sophistication. Again, $0.00.  This house was sold for the asking price within a week of the re-staging.

Here is another house that was occupied, that the owners actually had staging in their budget ($1,000) so there was money for a few small changes that made huge differences:

Most of the staging in this house was de-cluttering. In the bedroom, the outdated bedding and curtains were replaced and a large mirror was put over the bed.  Cost: $180, Target.com

In the kitchen, the clutter (oh my) was removed from the fridge and counter tops, and two new bar chairs were added at the right height to make that portion of the counter space useable in a whole new way. The owners wondered why they had never thought of that. It's perfect for a kid's eating area as well. Cost: $180, 2 chairs from Rooms To Go

This finished basement was definitely a diamond in the rough. It had been used as an extra TV room but had also been the dumping grounds for more clutter. The windows were cleaned, which improved the natural light in the room. Once the clutter was cleaned out, a side table, a second lamp and a piece of artwork was added. Even though there was furniture added to this room, it looks a whole lot bigger, and its purpose is known right away. Now when you look at it you can tell it's a media area (dare I say, "man cave?")! Cost: lamp, side table, poster $165 at a local consignment store.

So the total homeowner investment was $525, $475 under budget! (Win!). The house was re-photographed and the listing updated; they got two offers the first week and by the end of that month had sold their home for the asking price.

Selling No-No's

Here are a few things that definitely turn potential buyers away. I always make sure these are clean before I stage and photograph for my Agents. If you are selling, take note; this is unacceptable:

Here is a tile shower with a fully tiled bench; a real asset to a master bath, but NOT when it looks like it's never been cleaned. Here is before and after:

To clean moldy tile or discolored grout, usually my standby cleaner of choice is Clorox Cleanup. But if the tile is too far gone for that, I mix bleach with baking soda and put in some elbow grease to scrub it all down. If the house is occupied, I might suggest these things for the owners to do; however, if the house is vacant, that leaves one person (you guessed it, Me) the Staging Consultant with Cleaning Super Powers. I actually don't mind doing it, because I know how much of an impact it has when the agents are showing the house. They always appreciate it, too.

Landscaping

Landscaping is such an important part of your curb appeal, which is essential to sell a house. But in these two examples, all that was done to vastly improve it was (Surprise!) cleaning:

This house has a gorgeous flagstone walkway leading up to their front door. But who would notice it under all that dirt?  Cost: $24 at Sears for the Outdoor Windex Cleaner and hose attachment.

 

This house was an older home that at first glance we thought we would have to repaint. As it turns out, window cleaner and spraying with a garden hose was all it needed!  Cost: $24 at Sears for Windex Outdoor Cleaner and high pressure garden hose attachment.

This is what I use for outdoor surfaces, with a high pressure attachment on a regular garden hose. It works on windows, porches, walkways, siding, patios, driveways, garage doors, brick, anything on the exterior of the house that gets dirty:

Here is an example of an easy and inexpensive way to brighten up an otherwise neglected looking spot outside. There's my Spider plant in the middle, with some flowering annuals I got on sale at Home Depot. Plus I freshened up the mulch. Cost: $14 for a flat of annuals and a bag of mulch:

Here's a corner of my own yard that was in desperate need of some love:

See how much better it looks? But also how it *feels. You want potential buyers to see your landscaping and get the feeling that the house and yard has been loved and well taken care of. 

Not all Staging Consultants are willing to get down on their hands and knees to clean moldy grout in a tiled shower, nor are they prepared to clean out landscaping or do windows. I actually enjoy doing these things because of the dramatic difference it can make to the appeal of the home. Agents hire me because I don't mind getting my hands dirty if that's what it takes to get a house ready for them to show, and more importantly, SELL.

A typical job goes something like this:

1. An agent calls me and we arrange to meet at the house.
2. We do a walk thru, inside and out, while we make a list together of things that need to be done.
3. I give her a time estimate as to how long I think it will take me to finish everything on the list and we agree on a price per square foot (that's how I bill, see below) for my time (I charge more for heavy cleaning and less if the house is already fairly clean) and materials (mulch, annual plants, cleaning supplies, touch up paint, etc.).
4. The agent gives me the code to the key box and I get to work. I try to remember to take "before" pictures but I'm so bad at forgetting that!  After the work is done, I do take professional grade photos, at least two to three shots of every room, highlighting the best selling points and architectural details in the photos. I then edit the photos to make sure they look professional and in high definition. Photos are so important when listing a house!
5. I get the photos to my Agent and she composes the listing. Sometimes she includes all the improvements I've made in my staging process such as "updated landscaping" or "super clean inside and out!"  I love that. And Yes, I would be guilty of going to the MLS listing to admire my own work. :)

More About My Pricing

For example, a 2500 sq. ft. house, *unoccupied* with 4 bedrooms, 2.5 baths with showers, tile, carpet and wood flooring:

• Medium-high degree of interior cleaning (kitchen, all baths, toilets, blinds, vacuum and steam clean the floors, garage interior, ceiling fans, fireplace) and exterior cleaning (pick up trash, rake out flower beds, wash off walkways) and landscaping (adding mulch and annual flowers) and then taking and editing the photos, I charge .25/sq ft or $625 for time and materials such as cleaning supplies, mulch and annual flowers. 
• For the same size house, unoccupied, for a light cleaning and photographing I charge .15/sq ft or $375. 
• For a major overhaul that includes heavy cleaning, painting interior rooms, cleaning out junk or furniture left behind by previous owners or renters, trimming outside hedges and/or trees, mowing and edging the yards, deep cleaning of stained or damaged carpeting, or heavily stained tile and grout, I charge .40/sq ft or $1000 for a 2500 sq. ft. house which includes time and materials such as heavy duty cleaning supplies, spackle, Behr premium paint, mulch, annuals. 
• For a house that is show-ready but just needs good photographs I charge a flat fee of $125.

Note: I prefer to be paid after the work gets done rather than waiting for the house to close. The number one reason for this is that houses for sale often are not sold by the original Agent that listed it (and hired me). A change in Agent most likely means I would not be paid. Another reason for being paid upfront is that it could take 6 months or more to sell the house, which would mean I would be waiting that long to be paid. I can't stay in business without getting paid, so these are my stipulations. There are always exceptions, though, so I do try to remain flexible.