RealEstateConsumerInfo.com: Staging Advice - Make those REPAIRS

Sellers and Realtors: Staging Education, Part Two, Repairs

Part of my role as a professional home stager is to educate Home Sellers and Real Estate Agents about the realities of Home Staging.  Watching home staging programs on TV frequently misleads viewers and does not often impart the details of how a professional stager works and how the staging process plays out.

In the Fresno, Clovis and Madera foothill and mountain communities the housing market remains a very strong Buyers market.  I have heard many stories of buyers getting homes for 40-50% of the value that was established for them 2-3 years ago.  Many sellers are underwater with their loans and need a way out.  Home staging can help with these issues. 

Professional home staging is frequently misunderstood by many real estate agents and homeowners.  Sellers and agents are often fearful of the stager and the process.  They often think that it is primarily about decluttering, removing family photos and then adding beautiful items from a stager's inventory or having to buy new furniture themselves. 

While those aspects can be important they are NOT the sum total of what a professional home stager can do for you and your home.  We do NOT come into a home to demean or berate how the seller lives.  Our goal is to help sell the property and to make the process as easy on the seller's as possible. 

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This is Part Two of a Seven (7) part series about the ins and outs of real-life professional home staging.  You can read Part One here: An Overview to Professional Home Staging.  Part Three, DeCluttering is here.

REPAIRS or deferred maintenance  

When a potential buyer visits a home where repairs are clearly visible it screams out to them, ..."beware these are not the only problems with this house.  MORE ARE HIDDEN AND SOMEDAY YOU WILL PAY FOR THEM."   

While this may not be the case it is what buyers imagine and they will likely move on to the next listing BEFORE they even consider that listing. 

Here is a case that has an easy fix, but the owner's choose to ignore the problem:

                                  

What does this say about the house?  In my opinion it says that the owners don't take care of small items therefore they probably don't take care of the major items.  Will the heater or air conditioner work when I need it?  Are there unseen plumbing or water issues? 

Professional home stagers can usually provide Real Estate agents and Home Sellers with extensive checklists that can assist sellers in determining repairs needs.  Generally they cover items on the exterior and the interior of the home.  My checklist for sellers is six pages long (I know that length may seem intimidating but selling a home is not a walk-in-the-park).

Here are just some itmes on our list: 

Exterior:

•  Repair or replace missing and/or damaged fence slats, stakes and posts.
•  Remove dead tree and shrubbery that it causing damage (or may cause damage) to the house
•  The garage door should open freely and quietly.
•  Clean grease and oil spots from concrete or asphalt surfaces.
•  Polish door handles, door knockers and anything that should be shiny.
•  Replace/repair any broken or unsightly items.. such as handles, mailboxes, lock pads.
•  Power wash siding, walkways, decks, under the eaves and anyplace where dirt and spider webs are a problem. 
•  A fresh coat of paint anywhere, in or on a house says to buyers  "this house is cared for."
•  Make repairs to worn shingles or roofing tiles and gutter seams
•  Clean out the gutters.

Interior:

•  Rub a bar of soap on all window and slider tracks to aid in ease of opening. 
•  Keep stairways tidy and assure that all handrails are sturdy, secure and safe.
•  Repair or replace missing or damaged tile, hardwood, vinyl and baseboards.
•  Repair or replace or reface countertops: broken tiles, chipped laminate.
•  Pay close attention to bathroom sink and tub surrounds.  New caulking may be needed. 
•  Replace old, outdated and soiled carpeting.
•  Re-enamel, patch or replace badly chipped or stained fixtures. Tub, tile and porcelain refinishers  are often less expensive than purchasing new. 
•  Repair noisy or leaky toilets and faucets.  Clean faucets filter screens for a nice even flow.

My list for sellers is much more extensive, the above is just a taste. 

(The list that a home stager provides is never meant as a substitute for a professional home inspection.)

If a seller is not willing to make repairs to their home, then it's unreasonable for them to expect potential buyers to pay for those repairs.  Eventually those repairs will need to be paid for, by the seller, but waiting for buyers to ask for that means that a sale may be missed. Buyer's will move on to another listing that is a well-maintained house. 

DON'T GIVE THAT SALE AWAY TO THE COMPETITION! 

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Dream Interior Redesign & Staging, by Ginger Foust, is a full service Professional Staging and         Interior ReDesign company.

Locally serving the Californiafoothill and mountain communities of Oakhurst, North Fork,      Coarsegold,Ahwahnee, Bass Lake, Wawona and Mariposa.  Also servicing areas of Fresno, Clovis and Madera, California.

Providing Virtual and Conceptual Staging Worldwide.

 Click here to see a short slideshows with examples of our work. 

 Visit our website at www.dreamredesigns.com for more information or call 559-877-2442.