tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15223784.post116241286560923331..comments2023-10-08T06:24:07.089-07:00Comments on Seattle Bubble: Home Staging Tries To Fight Slowing MarketThe Timhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14832570891451659976noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15223784.post-1162485504668409522006-11-02T08:38:00.000-08:002006-11-02T08:38:00.000-08:00All of these staging strategies, cupcakes, etc. ha...All of these staging strategies, cupcakes, etc. have been at work in the Dallas market for years.<BR/><BR/>Eventually, you get to the point where every home is staged, with fresh baked bread in the oven, Yankee candles burning, soft music playing in the background, blah, blah, blah...<BR/><BR/>Nothing sells like price. However, you do need to get some emotional reaction when the potential buyer first lays eyes on the house.<BR/><BR/>Not everyone can see past the fairy dust you have sprinkled around the house.<BR/><BR/>In the suburban Dallas area, there is a company called <A HREF="http://www.mansionminders.com/" REL="nofollow">Mansion Minders</A>. Their job is to put a family into a big, vacant house, and make it look like someone lives there. They get nice furniture, and tenants that will take care of the place.<BR/><BR/>The tenants live there VERY CHEAP, pay the utilities, and keep the place "show ready" - but have to vacate at a moment's notice if a sale goes through. Think of it as "a living stage."<BR/><BR/>The trick, if you are the tentant, it to find a very expensive house that is WAY overpriced. You get to live like a king, on a bum's budget, and the house rarely shows, and will not likely sell.<BR/><BR/>Coming to a rainy city near you...Eleuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08248482892459370601noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15223784.post-1162429157101057662006-11-01T16:59:00.000-08:002006-11-01T16:59:00.000-08:00I think staging properties for sale may be the wro...I think staging properties for sale may be the wrong course of action. I read posts on "The Housing Bubble Blog" about how sellers in California had been offering freshly baked cupcakes to potential buyers. I think that's the way to go. I cannot think of a more tempting / convincing incentive.Terryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11828480316508814814noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15223784.post-1162422919828090422006-11-01T15:15:00.000-08:002006-11-01T15:15:00.000-08:00Caffeine defficiency: that was last April, with h...Caffeine defficiency: that was last April, with hordes of Spring '06 buyers.<BR/><BR/>I haven't even been in PNW since Spring '05. I promise to get right back on my medication.PugetHousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06212635665958191321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15223784.post-1162421371214371802006-11-01T14:49:00.000-08:002006-11-01T14:49:00.000-08:00There is no substitute to lowering the priceBingo....<I>There is no substitute to lowering the price</I><BR/><BR/>Bingo. You need traffic to sell a house and get it if your house is priced somewhat agressively for the market.<BR/><BR/>I have one anecdote on staging. My buyers saw a very well-staged house in Redmond last year April. It was much in need of updating, but looked so darned comfy. My clients had a visceral reaction upon touring this pretty-OK house. I had to talk them out of the bidding war. The house sold for $90k above asking, about $70k above what I had determined to be the maximum reasonable price.<BR/><BR/>The secret seemed to be in the utter homeliness of it. The table was not set for a dinner party. It looked as if the owners spent every day loving the simple life, and had just stepped out. Maybe your favorite uncle had a house like this.<BR/><BR/>This setup happened to do a superb job of inducing an almost rabid sense of competition in the horde of Spring '05 buyers. Such a fine touch also impresses the current sparse buyers, sans escalator clauses.PugetHousehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06212635665958191321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15223784.post-1162420838771923922006-11-01T14:40:00.000-08:002006-11-01T14:40:00.000-08:00" The most recent (September) MLS statistics for T..." The most recent (September) MLS statistics for Thurston County show residential listings up 95% from last year, sales down 17%, and a median sold price up just 2.4% since they purchased the home—essentially stagnant since hitting $250,000 in February."<BR/><BR/>sounds like the bubble has popped.john_law_the_IIhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14231101798981208231noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15223784.post-1162420050307615232006-11-01T14:27:00.000-08:002006-11-01T14:27:00.000-08:00My own, streamlined, 'Staging Checklist':1. Face w...My own, streamlined, 'Staging Checklist':<BR/><BR/>1. Face wall.<BR/><BR/>2. Repeat: <I><B>My home is not a lottery ticket</B></I> 10 times.<BR/><BR/>3. Goto step #2.wreckingbullhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17638414960637604072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15223784.post-1162419933440249312006-11-01T14:25:00.000-08:002006-11-01T14:25:00.000-08:00This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.wreckingbullhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17638414960637604072noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15223784.post-1162414213223988962006-11-01T12:50:00.000-08:002006-11-01T12:50:00.000-08:00There is no substitute to lowering the price. I wo...There is no substitute to lowering the price. I wonder if it would have sold if they took the cost of the staging and cut that from the list price.Shadowedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02275066426135302508noreply@blogger.com