Staging New Hampshire

In a recent post on inexpensive wall art by Monica Murphy, Monica showed us how to create wall art using scrapbook paper.  What I love about this idea is how easy it is to change out the art as needed.  Off to the store I went to pick up my frames and various papers.

I was telling my daughter about this wonderful idea and she informed me that she had made a picture for a friend as a baby shower gift using this technique.  In addition to using a sheet of paper in the frame, she cut up shapes from different sheets of paper and created a scene.

She used cookie cutters to trace the shapes.

She used a glue pen sold with the scrapping tools to glue it all in place.

This 12 x 12 picture cost a total of $13 including the frame and she has plenty of paper left over.

This was done for a baby, but this idea could easily be used for any room.

This past weekend my husband was going through old digital photos on our computer.  After finding a few "what the heck was I thinking" photos, I thought it might be fun to put a dare out there in the Rain.

I'm brave (or crazy) enough to post a picture of myself from 1989, are you willing to put yourself out there with me?

What did you look like in the eighties?  It really wasn't a very attractive decade.  Permed hair, shoulder pads, high top sneakers, banana clips, legwarmers, and neon colors were just a few of the trends.

Well, as promised...

Here I am with my bad eighties perm.

Now it is your turn...lets see what 1980's fashion trend you can represent!

UPDATE:  1978 photo added in comment section

It may be a realtor who is afraid of losing the listing who is pushing to get the house on the market.  It may be a seller who, now that they have decided to sell, wants it on the market yesterdayl    There could be seasonal issues, school beginning or school ending issues, relocating to another state for a new job time restraints.  It may be a divorce situation where the sellers are anxious to get on with their lives.

It doesn't really matter what the reason is, too many sellers are prematurely listing their houses. 

I've heard it over and over again...sellers don't have the time to make the suggested improvements.  They can't afford to wait two weeks to get it on the market.  "Listed" somehow means "sold" and getting the house on the market becomes the priority.

Unfortunately, and ironically for these sellers, the act of rushing onto the market is what ultimately keeps the house on longer than need be.  Today's buyers are not interested in making improvements.  They want move-in-ready.  Worn carpet or dated wallpaper not only represents work to buyers, it also suggests that the house wasn't properly maintained and other areas of the home become suspect. 

This seller was ready to list, believing that removing the worn, dated carpet was not necessary.  The Realtor and I convincing him to delay listing until the carpet could be removed and some accessories could be added made a huge difference on the quality of product being marketed.  Taking the extra time  resulted in increased perceived value. 

For those sellers that do list prematurely, once they realize their mistake, the house's "days on market" are accumulating.  Too many days on market leads to a price reduction.

A sellers best chance at getting closest to asking price is in the first two weeks, when the price and the interest in the house are at their highest.  You only get one shot at that just-listed popularity. Just-listed interest is so short lived...can you really afford not to be prepared?

Here is my advice to anyone considering selling their home.  Make the best use of your time.  Take the time necessary to properly prepare the house for sale.  Do not list until the house is completely ready to be shown. 

It's not time and money saved when you cut corners, it is actually time and money lost. 

Time spent on improvements increases your chance of selling and decreases  your chance of price reductions.

When it comes to my home staging business in New Hampshire, my tag line "creative and unique solutions one room at a time" is much more than just a tag line.  As a home stager, it is a way of life.

I find that more often than not, creativity plays a big role in a succesful staging.  Many of my clients have made it clear from the beginning that they "have a limited budget" or "have no money" or "cannot afford" when it comes to paying for my services. 

Don't get me wrong, I have been blessed with clients who totally "get it" and I am grateful for those opportunities, but cost usually is a determining factor on most jobs.

If you are a stager, this is not unfamiliar to you.  Sometimes we are able to help realtors and/or sellers understand the value of the investment of staging and sometimes we just are not.  When you are challenged with budget restraints and have to make the best with what the client has, "creative" and "unique" solutions are often what make the difference.

If you are a homeowner preparing your home for sale and you are deciding which items to donate, sell or even trash...you may want to wait until after the home stager visits.  The items we choose to use may surprise you.

Here are some photos from a recent job, where creativity played the starring role in updating the room and also saving the homeowner money.

This photo was taken by a realtor, who was planning on using it on MLS.  I convinced her to give me the chance to get her a better photo.

Although the room is actually quite large, it gives the impression of being small and crowded.  The king size bed has no choice but to go in front of the windows and this makes the space seem like it has furniture placement issues.

The bedding and valances are dated.

I was only given one visit to make as much of an improvement as I could.

I flipped the existing bedspread over to the white side.  The homeowner had an old comforter and shams she had put aside to donate. 

 Hey, charity begins at home, right!  I used the comforter at the foot of the bed and added the shams..

Turns out there were valances to match the comforter, but I wanted panels for the windows behind the bed, one on each side to frame the bed and make it feel more like it belonged there. 

Here's where the creative part comes in...

The charity set...had a matching shower curtain.  I cut it up the middle, folded the top over to hide the shower curtain ring holes and used drapery rings with clips to hang from the rod.  The homeowner found it very amusing, saying "I never thought I would be cutting up an old shower curtain for my bedroom and have it considered an improvement!"

By photographing the room from further back and including the second nightstand, the room feels more spacious.

Lucky for this homeowner that she hadn't gotten around yet to delivering her donated items, so her only expense for this room's makeover was the two curtain rods and rings and the two throw pillows...one quick trip to Walmart.

I consider myself very fortunate to live in the best of both worlds. 

 The beach is 5 minutes from my house. 

All the necessities of fine living (shopping, bank, market, fine restaurants)  are within a couple miles of my house. 

Boston is less than an hour away. 

 However, once you venture down my driveway...it's like you have left the world behind. 

 I live on four acres, mostly protected wetlands, nestled in the woods.

The convenience of city life nearby, and the solitude of country life outside my door! 

In our woodland paradise we enjoy the company of many of God's little creatures.  Here are some of my favorite photos of our little friends.

Butterfly and spider web

This birdbath full of food was too hard to resist!                  Morris, yes we named him, loves tomato.

Barn Owl checking out the area.                      No idea, anyone know what this is?

Look closely at this one...

This greedy squirrel

wanted all the birdseed for

himself...he got right

inside the feeder!

  No, we did not have him for Thanksgiving!                           Winter bird

      Winter or Summer, the squirrels are always looking for food!

Living in the woods, in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, we have daily visits from deer, primarily in the winter months when they are in need of food.  We have never seen albino deer.  My daughter sent me these photos from northern New Hampshire of two beautiful albino deer.

Seeing these pictures gave me the idea to share photos I have taken of the deer in my yard in Portsmouth, NH.  Here are some of my favorite shots:

More deer than birds at our birdfeeders!                           Look closely...it's tongue is sticking out!

They are such peaceful, sweet animals.  I never get tired of seeing them.

Any winning team will tell you that their success is not based on any one individual player. 

It takes the individual talents of many,

working as a unit, each knowing the

strengths and weaknesses of their

teammates to be a winning team.

Simply put:

When it comes to selling your home, who you choose to be on your team will determine whether or not you win or lose. 

I consider myself a Red Sox fan...I wear my Boston cap proudly. 

I've only been to Fenway once and I don't watch every game, but I really enjoy the games that I do see. 

I know most of the players names and I have my favorites. 

 I tell you this so you will understand that I have no other real interest in sports and I really have no business writing a "sports" analogy post.  

I could use a little help from some real sports enthusiasts.    Feel free to step up to the base, or is it bat? (sorry, pun intended) and help me out here.

Back to real estate...who is on a "House for Sale" winning team? 

Let's make the homeowner or seller the coach, they assemble the team and they ultimately make the final decisions.  The coach should choose his players carefully, based on their expertise.

 The Realtor is the captain of the team, and is responsible and accountable  for strategy.  They are the go-to guy, the leader who facilitates between the teammates and the officials.

Speaking of officials, the real estate attorney...let's make him the referee.

Our MVP is the Professional Home Stager, whose transformation  gives the property

an advantage over the competition.

 Other players on the team...loan officer, home inspector, painter, plumber, landscaper, electrician.

Bottom line here is "it takes a village" ...  Ooops, wrong analogy...sorry!

Remember, you are the coach...

assemble a qualified and experienced team,

 work together and work smart,

 outplay the competition. 

Planning on selling your house in New Hampshire?  The fact that most New Hampshire home sellers do not consult with a home stager is very good news!  Good news for you, and any other seller who chooses to professionally stage their house. 

This is also very good news to the Realtors listing the staged homes. 

Any time someone uses a successful method that the majority are not using, they have an advantage.

There is a big advantage to be had here in the Northeast.  With so many listings on the market today and so many sellers using "don't want to spend any money on the house" excuses, a staged home stands out from the competition.

There is so much complaining about the terrible market, the slow market, the state of real estate...  doom and gloom and falling prices. 

 What is a seller to do? 

I'll tell you what not to do...don't fall prey to the headlines and accept it as your fate. 

 Many sellers in New Hampshire are doing just that.  One after another they are becoming "price reduced" statistics.  

Those in tune with today's market know that a key to the sale is in the preparation.

Buyers want move-in ready...

For the best possible result,  DON'T LIST your house until it is ready, and by "ready" I mean professionally home staged.

 And by "professionally home staged" I mean consult with a professional who can advise you on every single thing you can do to sell faster and for as close to your asking price as possible.  Once you have been advised on what to do...do it!  

 Once the house is show ready, make sure your online photographs represent a spacious, well maintained, emotionally appealing home.  Maintain the appearance for every showing.

Strategically marketed products sell...use this to your advantage.

Home staging is the trend of the future.  For now, it remains a marketing tool that only a few are taking advantage of.   Don't miss your opportunity to be one of the few!