HELP! MY SELLER CAN’T (OR WON’T) MOVE OUT!
Staging options when you need some occupied assistance - an interview with our Creative Director .
Real estate pros know that a vacant, fully staged home is the best way to sell a home fast for the highest bid. But sometimes that’s just not a reality for the home seller. Making lemonade out of lemons, what’s the spectrum of occupied staging options? There are a few! So let’s dig in with Spade and Archer Seattle Creative Director who keeps our office flowing smoothly with all kinds of staging projects every day.
Let’s get clear on terminology, what’s effective, and what you can expect from these tiered staging options for occupied properties.
Q: What is occupied staging?
A: When a homeowner is still living in the property, either on a partial or full-time basis, we consider this an occupied staging project.
Q: What is a rearrange?
A: When we only use the home owner’s belongings to freshly design the property for listing, that is called a rearrange. Our design team will go into an occupied home, provide guidance on how to declutter and organize, select which furniture items to hide, and which to feature. After our team is finished, the home is categorically ready to be shown and listing photographs are ready to be taken.
Q: What is an enhancement?
A: Similar to rearrange staging, our design team will evaluate a home in a consult and use the owner’s belongings to stage a home, but an enhancement stage is when we supplement with Spade and Archer furniture, art and decor to create the overall design scheme. This service touches every surface creates a clean, modern overall look that appeals to the ideal demographics of the future home buyer. In this scenario the homeowner is either still living on-site in the staged home or they may be living off-sight while we are using their items through the process.
Q: How long does it take?
A: In most cases, all of our services are completed in a single day.
Q: Can the homeowner be there?
A: Spade and Archer recommends the homeowner and all subcontractors, realtors, cleaners, or other service providers are not present during our installation. There are many moving parts to our staging process and having the space to ourselves is the most effective way to meet our goal of a great product for the eventual buyer.
Q: Why does it work in our current market?
A: Slower real estate months generally result in more occupied homes on the market. With uncertainty around how long the sale will take, homeowners are less motivated to move out. That being said, I believe it’s an opportunity missed to not list in the winter months as there are many people still looking and the inventory is low, thus allowing the winter listings to stand out. If you want to take advantage of the winter real estate season, not moving out and simply using us for a rearrange can really hedge your bets and allow you to still stand out with a well-arranged home.
Q: Is there a running rental rate?
A: An enhancement has a recurring rental rate as some of our Spade and Archer's items are supplemented into your design. If it’s a pure rearrange, then the one-time labor fee is all you pay.
Q: Does it work?
A rearrange does work, however, it is less effective than our vacant stages. Generally, when used it creates a much more marketable listing. The best and most price-effective product we offer is a vacant stage in our Guaranteed Home Staging® program -- a no-risk option where full staging in the vacant home is paid at closing, and if it does not sell, Spade and Archer does not charge the homeowner a dime. This Guaranteed Home Staging® program allows both the homeowner and Spade and Archer to work as a team to get the home sold as fast as possible and at the highest price. Like the rearrange, a vacant Guaranteed Home Staging® listing does not have any recurring rental fees and can stay staged as long as needed with no additional cost. The difference is the rearrange product is paid upfront, while the Guaranteed project takes the payment out of escrow. It also gets you a full stage, inside and out, with a design that is guaranteed to sell. All in all, we have many different options that can fit your needs no matter what the financial situation is or how cold it is outside.