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The reviews are in! "My name is Julie Dana, ASP and owner of The Home Stylist near Buffalo, NY. Last summer I had an appointment with a client for a home staging consultation. It was in the inner city of Buffalo. The neighborhood had seen better times. Most houses had chain-link fences and pit-bulls in the yard. I nervously knocked on the door. When the lovely homeowner opened the door, she had Barb's book Home Staging, The Winning Way to Sell Your House for More Money in her hand. The homeowner knew - even before I told her - that a house no matter where it is or its price level can benefit from staging." Julie Dana "Barb Schwarz, the dynamo founder of home staging, might have easily been the next Barbra Streisand if she hadn't pushed aside her singing talents to pursue interior design and a real estate career. Or so she says..." Click here to see the full article. Elizabeth Weintraub
“Just wanted to let you know, my house went on the market last Wed. and on Fri. morning I had TWO offers for more than the list price! Obviously, your service worked (despite skepticism from many family and friends, they all thought I was nuts!) and I didn’t even have a chance to call you back a second time. Thanks so much for making this a painless process!” Sharon K., Wauconda, IL “I told you I would let you know when we sold our house, so here I am. We sold it today. It was on the market 6 days! I will enthusiastically recommend you guys to anyone I know selling a home. I wish you the best. Thank you so much for your valuable assistance.” Pat B., Gurnee, IL Our first ever request for Staging from Mary who had no intention of listing her house for sale for at least another 5 years. She knew how important Staging was and wanted to have a comprehensive plan to work on before the house went on the market. Mary says, “These ladies visited us yesterday, it worked out well. They provided just the information I needed. Thanks for setting me up with “Order in the House”, a great name!” Mary D., Kildeer, IL This client had called us before they listed their house. They were concerned about the cost so opted to not Stage. It was neat, very well kept and “busy” since they had a toddler. The home then sat on the market for 3 mos. with no offers. After that time, they called us again for help. While we were there helping with hanging pictures, rearranging furniture and cleaning out the china cabinet, a Realtor called and wanted to show it right away. We worked furiously and after Staging, they received 3 offers within 2 days. We came in, did only 1-1/2 hrs. work because of the showing and they had 3 bids that weekend! Melissa says, “You did a great job taking what we had, moving pictures and rearranging things. I t looked so much nicer; you did things we never thought of.” Rahul and Melissa, Mundelein, IL “A Realtor told us we could ask $150,000 for our home.... After Staging, we listed our house for $171,000, had multiple offers and sold it in less than 3 weeks! In the main room you suggested that we take down some shelving; something we had not thought about--it made the room look so much larger! The ‘to do’ list that you left with us was the best part of the process for us. It gave us something concrete to work from.” Brian and Kristin, Crystal Lake, IL The Staging was well worth it! Now when I leave the house for a showing I feel so good....it looks 110% better than it did! Doug R., Lake Zurich, IL This client had lived in her home for 30 years and for months no one had been interested in buying it. Her husband was relocating to San Diego where Staging is huge. She came back from visiting him and wanted to hire a Stager immediately. We came in and gave her suggested changes to update the property including paint, new light fixtures and repairs. Because they had already partially moved, she also wanted to rent some accessories. Sue says, “I loved all the extra ideas you had to make it look so amazing! You made all the difference. Now we actually have a bidding war going on and will sell it over asking price.” Sue K., Buffalo Grove, IL This house, in a great family neighborhood, was on the market for 7 months with no offers. The clients had already purchased a new home and moved in. We came in and gave some realistic advice about updating that needed to be done prior to any Staging. The homeowners followed ALL of the suggestions. Marilyn says “After we finished our assignments, Order in the House came in and worked their magic. Vignettes (a wingback chair, tree, art on an easel and lighting for example), accessories and artwork made everything look absolutely beautiful! Three weeks later the house is under contract and we're thrilled.
Marilyn P., Palatine, IL Colleen Mclinden, writes: Amazon: Elizabeth Weintraub of About.com, writes: Barb Schwarz, the dynamo founder of home staging, might have easily been the next Barbra Streisand if she hadn't pushed aside her singing talents to pursue interior design and a real estate career. Or so she says. A book review by Robert Bruss of Inman News, the nation's leading independent real estate news service, states, "On my scale of one to 10, this excellent book rates a solid 10." Here is an exerpt from the review:
A couple of times in your life you may need to sell a house. If you do, try to remember the advice in this book. It could be worth several thousands of dollars for a few hours of your time. The message is simple: when it comes time to sell your home, strip it of all the things that make it a personalized home, and turn it into a bland product that can be personalized by someone else. This book, the best of about half a dozen on the same theme, provides simple ideas on how to reduce your home to a house. The same philosophy also applies to rental property. Kevin Kelly, Author, kk.org Haley M. Hwang, of REALTOR® Magazine Online, writes:
In the Miami Herald, Robert J. Bruss writes:
Read what people are saying about Barb's new staging book! I am making calls from Sandy’s desk and just heard a great story from Nelda Liles in Texas She said she just got her first job from your new book. A man called her and said that he is an investor and had a vacant house to sell and knew that it needed something but he didn’t know what. He learned that the term was called “Staged®” so he went to Barnes & Noble to see if they had any books on it and found yours. He read it from cover to cover and then went online and found Nelda, called her and hired her to do the job for him. Isn’t that great? Sharon Beck, ASP Dear Barb and Staff, I wanted to
drop a line and thank you for all the wonderful advice and ideas
for staging and selling a home. I bought your Book as soon as I
heard about you. It was a great deal of work but so worth it. Our
home sold for full price in a slow market (some homes in our area
had not moved in 6 months) We had two offers the first week we put
it on the market and wrote a contract just days after the first
viewing. According to the buyer we beat out 20 other homes she had
walked through. Terri Bora After reading the reviews posted by readers, I ran out and bought this book. It was the last one on the shelf! Now, that tells you something! There are other companies out there that want to charge $97.00 for an ebook, but I got this book for under $20, and it was worth every penny! Immediately after reading this book, I decided my home needed staging. Barb suggested to use an Accredited Staging Professional, but I wanted to see for myself. I did some research on the "staging" business, to see what the difference between an accredited staging professional and one that is NOT accredited could be. I read the reviews and noticed that all the negative reviews had a common thread. They were woven in green thread-Green with envy that is! This group of "me toos" are giving negative reviews while trying to promote their NON-accredited, generic, staging businesses. How tacky is that? One word sets an ACCREDITED Staging Professional apart from the other so-called staging companies....Can you say "PROFESSIONAL." I know who I am going to choose to do my home staging. After you read this book, you will too! Dave O Read the Reviews from Amazon.com Neutralizing and simplifying I found the book simple to follow, entertaining and definitely well worth reading. When reading the book, I had sooooo many "Ah, Ha!" moments! Thank you Barb, for labeling and defining the process and and providing the roadmap necessary for success. Barb's book is truly a map to be followed for the selling or living of a property. D. J. Anderson (Dallas, TX USA) Don't just buy one! My first experience with Staging was over two and a half years ago in Clarksville, TN, home of Ft. Campbell and the 101st Airborne Division. The real estate market was dragging, and houses were stagnant on the market due to deployment. My husband and I needed to sell our house quickly so we could make job transfers to the Chicago area without the burden of having two mortgages. Since the market in Chicago is so different from Tennessee we also needed to squeeze every last cent out of the sale of the home. After doing some research online and getting a lot of great Home Staging tips from the Authors website StagedHomes.com. I Staged my own home and it sold in 2 weeks for list price. My husband and I were thrilled and nearly every agent in town had to come see our home after the sale to see our "secret"...Home Staging! I only wish now that I had this book then, I really think it could have given me even more great ideas, who knows maybe we could have sold our house over list price in one week! Since then I have become a successful Home Stager using the ideals and accreditation invented by Barb Schwarz. I now lend this book to my home owner clients and Realtor clients, though I seldom get them back, they clients always love passing them on to their friends and neighbors. So after reading this book don't just buy one, chances are you won't have it for very long! Kaili Harding (Wheaton, IL) A must-keep! The great thing about this book is that I can keep going back to it and finding new and fresh ideas. I've been Staging for over 2 years and it's easy to get stuck in the same-ol, same ol when it comes to preparing someone's home for sale. I keep this book on my coffee table and glance through it often. Every time, I come away with great "AHA!" ideas that I easily incorporate into my business. It's a fun read and still provides me with inspiration! Jeanne Berger (El Dorado Hills, CA United States) Getting it done The amount of information contained in this book is staggering. I'm impressed with the frank openness, 'trade secrets', comprehensive to do lists and more. This book is a keeper because you can refer back to it as a great resource book of valuable facts with pictures, stats and helpful information. Most of all, in Chapter 5, you get plenty of the motivation needed make a time commitment to Get R Done. We all are busy with jobs, family, social obligations and it's easy to put things off. When you read this chapter, you'll realize it can cost you several thousand dollars by having to sell your house for less. Then gives the steps to accomplish your to do lists. I think HOME STAGING, The Winning Way to Sell Your House for More Money is a must for anyone contemplating the sale of their house.
C McLinden (Peoria IL USA) This Book is Great for My Sellers I am a real estate broker in Chicago. I found the book to be very informative with lots of tips and sensible ways to improve the way your home shows and prepare it for sale. You can spend little or no money. I am passing this book on to my sellers. Barb has has put all of her staging ideas in a clear, concise format. Nobody has come up with the staging idea before Barb. Our sellers need it desperately. This is a MUST READ. J. Ward "Jean" (Chicago, IL) Market hot or not, you NEED to read this before selling your house I am serious: you need to read this book. I had a friend sell a condo in Northern California. The area was booming in real estate, and she had a lovely, large condo. Still, she staged her house and she estimates she got more, lots more, for her house than she would have ordinarily. Staging isn't necessarily cheap; if you need to replace carpets, paint and rent furniture, it's going to cost a bit. But the price difference especially in a competitive area will be well worth it. The book has a table on refurbishment costs and their relative payback. But more practically, the book has ideas that don't cost a whole lot except time; for example, clear your basement of junk and set up a tableau of "possibilities" for the space. Go find an inexpensive indoor-outdoor green rug at an outlet store. You could put that and a rented poker table in a bright section of even an unfinished basement to suggest how to use the space. The author suggest boring but essential tasks like "paint your bright colored walls neutral beige even if you love the color" and replacing your worn carpet with neutral beige carpeting or berber. Beds should be made up to look like hotel beds; fold back the covers to show the pretty sheets. And do I need to mention the author tells each home seller to clear out closets, cupboards? It's a pain but it's also your gain. And somehow waving a copy of this in front of the stubborn member of any family who won't cooperate is more authoritative than just nagging about it. Naturally, clutter has to go. The book recommends how to arrange the stuff you do have and what to do to make each room more inviting. If you don't believe the author, take a tour of any new construction houses in your area. Go see the furnished model and then look at an empty model house if possible. One will appeal to you and one will not; yet both houses may be almost equal in value. This is why selling an empty house may not be the best idea. If you are a real estate agent, get a couple copies of this book. It will really help. Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) Bullseye sayings focus the task at hand! I am not sure I am doing an entirely perfect job of staging my house for sale myself but, the cute sayings throughout the book are helping me to remember what it is I am doing and stay focused. Like "You can't sell it if you can smell it" I really had to laugh because I had a friend come over recently and tell me I should change my puppy's name from Paco to Pee-go because, well, he's still being potty trained and doesn't always make it outside in time. Instead of being embarrassed, I remembered that saying and realized my friend was right and I bought a really good cleaner and thoroughly cleaned the area by the back door. It smells great now. I like the personal stories too. Cindy "Cindy" (Toledo, Ohio) Home Staging book a Wiinner! This is a great book for anyone looking for information on Home Staging from the person that started the industry. The author, Barb Schwarz, has many success stories and shares key tips and information sellers can use to help them understand why they need to get their houses Staged before selling. I especially enjoyed the true testimonials from trained Stagers and resources sections. J. G. Norris (Roseville CA USA) Home Staging: The Winning Way to Sell Your House for More Money This Book is Great!! It is full of important information necessary to make your home more appealing to prospective buyers. It helps the home owner understand the difference between"Designing" a home to live in, and "Staging" a home that is for sale. I have personally used some of the techniques described in this book, and hired an ASP (Accredited Staging Professional)to Stage my home and absolutely it sold more quickly,and over my asking price. I highly recommend this book. C. Samuelson |
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