A homeowner calls you and asks if you’ll stage her home. It’s a sweet lady, a widow of five years, and she’s finally 
ready to move into a seniors community from the home she and her husband built together 50 years ago.
You make a connection with the woman on the phone and agree to go to her home to conduct a home staging consultation.
When you arrive, you smell fresh coffee and oatmeal cookies which she has prepared for your visit. You smile, take off your shoes and look around. There are shelves of decorative plates and knick knacks on every wall and where there are no ceramic puppies or kittens there are family photos from the past five decades. The furniture is straight out of 1978 and is covered in cat fur.
Do you turn around and run or start making demands of this woman who you could tell on the phone is grieving the process of parting with her beloved home?
I’ll tell you what I would do in this situation in a future post but first I would like to hear what you would do.
Please share by leaving a comment below!
Debra Gould, The Staging Diva®
President, Six Elements Inc. Home Staging
Debra Gould knows how to make money as a home stager and she developed the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program to teach others how to earn a living doing something they love.
[tags] home staging, home stager, home stagers, home staging, home staging consultation, home staging dilemma, home staging priority, staging diva[/tags]
Well, this is always a touchy situation because you want the homeowner to understand that you identify with her memories and how much everything means to her, but you also want her to have confidence in you as a professional. I would start by simply explaining the process, that you will go room-by-room and then go back to do a detailed room-by-room look. Then I would ask her if she wants me to handle everything or if she wants to do some of it herself.
After the initial walk-through, I would explain that we are going to go back and do a detailed walk-through and that I am going to take notes, but that although she has some lovely memories and collections, many people would be tempted to look at her treasures instead of the great detail on the (insert something here) or the spacious living room (or whatever pertains to the situation). I would also explain how she would want to pack those items up anyway because she would not want to have any of them accidentally get broken in a showing or open house. I would also tell her she could have me handle the packing if she wanted to go through the items and pick out those most special ones she might want to have displayed in her new home, and that we would be sure to have the rest of the items carefully packed and marked for family or storage so the memories could be passed on.
As for the furniture, if she is moving to a home, she likely is not going to have room for the furniture anyway, but if she does, I would suggest having someone thoroughly clean it before moving it, but going ahead and putting it in storage if possible, and maybe renting some different furniture for the selling process. If this is not possible, I would suggest the cleaning and slipcovers if possible, explaining that some people could be allergic to pets, and that could turn off some buyers so she should make sure to take her cat with her when leaving for a showing if possible.
As I am just getting started with my business, I would love to see what some others would suggest.
I would first tell her that she has a lovely home, and I understand how hard it must be to leave her home after all these years, but I am going to help her get the most money out of her home by making it appeal to today’s buyers. I would explain the staging process will help her get a head start on moving by packing up all of the little things so that buyers focus on her house, not on the things in the house. I would tell her that in order to show off the space and highlight its features, we need to remove/rearrange furniture and update it with slipcovers, probably bring in new bedding, (the line I often use is “we need to make the bedrooms and bathrooms look more luxurious, think hotel”), and bring in some updated accessories that will create a stronger emotional appeal with buyers. And of course, I would thank her for the coffee and cookies and compliment her on them!
actually, in my opinion, i think amy bly said it very eloquently. i did have a situation very similar to this a few years back. only, she had 8 indoor cats!!! i probably spent way too much time sitting with my sweet little lady client, but in the end, a moving/packing company came in and boxed everything up (literally!), and moved it to her new place. when she was out, i brought in a cleaning crew first, then painters, then furniture, then staged with accessories, etc. she sold her home in about 3 weeks – in a bad market to boot! to this day, we keep in touch periodically. so, amy – kudos to you. i couldn’t agree with your approach more.
Staging To Sell
231.690.0398
Home Staging for Sellers
Interior Design & reDesign
http://www.staging2sell.com
jill@staging2sell.com
Serving the State of Michigan
It just so happens I’ve done a number of staging project just like this. I love the opportunity to spin old into new and create a buyer-friendly home by selecting the best accent items the home already has to offer. I too have used slipcovers on cleaned old sofas and re-purposed antiqued dressers into retro-modern dining room buffets. I’ve taken client’s old shiny brass lamps and spray painted them bronze and trimmed huge barrel lamp shades (which are back in style now) with wide fabirc ribbon. These are my favorite types of staging jobs! They push me creatively which is like a high for me. The best part is looking like a super-hero in my client’s eyes when my work is complete!
Wow! she has called for your help, so i would be very proud that she has asked for my help firstly. i would involve her in the process because her opinion in the end will be invaluable for the future of my business. love to do a job like this one!
We have handled these types of situations many times and I agree with Leah that they are a great opportunity to think ‘outside the box’ and mix the old with some new fresh touches.
Bottom line is, regardless of whether its an older lady with dated furniture or a young family with kid-loved furniture – every home owner is different and deserves to have his/her home treated with respect. We never make clients feel as if their furnishings are lacking, we always try to work with what they have but maybe put a new spin or finish on them. If that’s not possible then we move forward with rentals – with the client fully on board – so that we can do what they hired us to do – help them sell their home fast and for top dollar.
Its all about how you treat your clients. That’s what makes your clients open to suggestions and once you’ve done your job well, it paves the way to referrals and design business down the road!
I agree with Leah. I too get the opportunity to work on staging projects with seniors and really enjoy the opportunity to work with them and freshen up their homes. There are many treasures often hidden away to be found and used differently to highlight the space. My most recent project for a widow showed her personality and love of colour everywhere. Toning things down a notch or two, rearranging & simplifying the space and her home sold in two weeks. The purchasers, a young couple with one child loved the home and its charm, and hired me to stage their home.
This scenario is definitely one that pulls from all your “people” skills. I really try to turn the conversation into one where I let her know that I understand that all her wonderful knick knacks and collectibles are so important to her and they should be packed up first. You can tell pretty quickly what pieces of furniture and artwork are special to her (they usually point them out) and pack them up if they won’t work. After this you can work to update the look without worrying about upsetting her. A little creativity can transform a dated home into a “modern retro” feel.
I usually get clients in this or similar situations through their grown-and-living-out-of-state children. They agree to see me because their family asked them to, not because they have a clue about staging. As others have said, I invest a LOT of time explaining the what and why of staging, and we spend a whole lot of time on the difference between a home, a house, and a house that has been staged so buyers can envision it as their home. We spend a lot of time walking through the house and discussing what is used everyday, what is used infrequently, what will be needed in the new house, what has to go…effectively, we plan the downsizing and the move. This is a long process. But it frequently helps my clients in ways that go beyond just selling their house. If the client is excited about the change, really wants it, they usually ‘get’ the staging idea and throw themselves into it. If they are uncertain about the move, sometimes this process helps them get excited about the change. Once, all I accomplished was having my client decide she was not ready yet…almost a year later she called me back. It took her that year to say good bye. But, boy, she was ready then.
An older couple called Cole House Design this past Spring, that were in a similar situation. They wanted to downsize, but had no idea where to start in preparing their home for sale, other than they had seen home staging on TV. With 3 cats, a house full of knick-knacks, and family photos everywhere…the wife had the most trouble with the changes, particularly the simple task of packing. However the husband was very enthusiastic (he had been the one to call me), and was looking forward to see how we staged the home.
We first started by simply clearing the clutter, which the wife volunteered to do, as they were her prized possessions. We had a painter come in and paint out the bubblegum pink and citrus peach walls. The husband and I went shopping for area rugs, flooring, drapes, etc. We hired a cleaning lady to come in and tackle the cat hair. This couple helped a little in the final staging of the home as well, with the husband hanging artwork, and the wife ironing drapes. Now this is NOT how I typically complete the staging of a home…but as long as this couple felt like they were contributing and having a say in what the final outcome of the home would be, they were perfectly happy with the changes Cole House Design made.
The result…the house sold in 6 days for 97% of asking. And the retired couple…in the end they loved the changes so much that they want to duplicate the look in their new home.
Nicole — I would love to know whether you got paid for shopping since the husband went with you? That’s an unusual situation, isn’t it? But what a great outcome in terms of the quick sale and high price!
Nicole, thanks so much for sharing your story!
Amy, I get paid to go shopping even when a client comes with me to the store. Some clients like to do that because they want more say in what I pick but they know I’m the expert who will make the choices go faster. I tell them they’ll benefit from my designer discount and then I let them make the actual purchases rather than me having to get money to buy it for them. But my time is still charged. More info on this in course 3 Taking the Mystery Out of a Home Staging Consultation.
Hi, Debra,
I have that course, thanks for the reminder. I’ll have to look at it again; I find there are so many variations on how you work with people in this business!
Amy, thanks so much for your comment about the variations on how you work with people in this business! I started to answer you and realized I was writing a whole other blog post! Watch for it next week!
Thanks everyone for sharing your comments here. It’s hard sometimes to know what to fill a blog with three times a week, but your comments help me know what you want to read about and your ideas and input inspire me with new ideas!
Keep those comments coming everyone, I love hearing from you!
1. The homeowner/widow called us [the stagers] requesting our expertise. HELP! So, here I go: HELP is on the way!
2. Hopefully, my attitude [about their future] will convey a genuine excitement that’s contageous as they box up bits & pieces of their known life for the unknown life.
3. MOVING is a top 10 “life upheavel”. As a professional stager, it’s my responsibility (a) to listen, LISTEN, understand, observe, but expertly lead/assist my client as we stage their home so it sells for the most $$$ (c) as quickly as possible. This is (I believe) professional kindness.
4. How well we do what we do impacts our clients financially: realizing “top dollar plus” IS financial security: a down payment; a new start, etc.
5. It’s a bonus to observe the client & home / house when I stage a property so another buyer also appreaciates the “once upon a time” beauty!
Being a stager is wonderful!
Wow everyone, I am totally ecstatic about starting my own staging company even more as I read all your comments about the lil old lady and her 50 some odd yrs of memories. I have taken in all your comments and experiences and I especially love Debra’s input that we still would get paid even if the client comes with us as they are paying for our time. It does make it easy as I don’t have to budget what they give me, they are pulling money out of their pocket!!!
Way to go on the staging process Nicole, and I look forward to more inspirational stories to come!!
Wynette
I also want to ask how long with did this take, the de-cluttering, de-personalizing and painting and placement of furniture? A couple days??? I remember Debra mentioning that she usually will walk through on day and the house would be totally staged the next. Or everything would be done in one day. How would that be possible?
Wynette
It’s a difficult situation. I have done a few of these. Trust and a sense of friendship is most important. More time to develop this needs to be taken. Usually they are open to changes. If they are living there during the selling, it can be harder. If they can move out, even temporarily while you make the expected changes, that is even better. Perhaps there is other family members that can help. It’s definitely a longer process but when they reap the benefits of the proceeds and look ahead to the new transition in life it makes it worth while. They have to go through their things at some point and it helps when they have you as their liaison!
Thanks for sharing your experiences and ideas Cheri, I know everyone will find it helpful!