So a Blog is supposed to be entertaining? Not just informative ....

This pearl of wisdom was shared by my son recently. Apparently, ever supportive, he has been reading my fledgling blogging attempts and found them wanting - informative but dull as dirt. I apologize. It is a humbling experience to realize that the gift of chat, which comes so fluently and easily to me when I am face to face with a real audience, is stilted and , dare I say it ... boring, when I am alone with a computer screen.

That said, IS Real Estate interesting? Is there anything to say, to help inform, to illuminate, and still be humorous?
While the business side of buying and selling real estate is a deadly serious matter, the experiences can range from the fun to downright hilarious.

Let's Talking Staging

I did an open house at a swanky downtown condominium once where the Owners had listened to their agent, me, and staged the unit beautifully. It was sparkly clean, they had removed pretty much every piece of extraneous clothing from their closets, their furniture was the right size for the space and everything looked pretty much right out of a House and Home magazine.

With the uber hot resale market in Toronto, the crowd that attended the well advertised Open House was anxious to fall in love with the place and snatch it up before anyone else. While this condo was one of three identical units in the building on the market, and all pretty much at the same price point, this one looked fantastic!

"It's bigger than the others, isn't it?" I was asked over asked over, "Are they willing to sell the furniture with it?" But by far, the stand out in the crowd was the gentleman who I discovered in under the covers , cosy in my client's Queen sized bed, his shoes neatly stowed under the side of the bed, his coat on a chair! "Excuse me , what are you doing?" I asked incredulously. "Well, if I'm gonna buy it, I want to know what the experience of sleeping here would be" he said. Obviously I was an idiot for not seeing the merit in this savvy buyer's point of view. I left a note for my clients to change the sheets.... Happily, the condo sold that evening.

Moral of the story? Staging works! People don't want to see all you mismatched stuff, the sofa with one too many beer stains, your 3 foot high speakers from the 70's - guys you know I am talking to you here, your wives and girlfriends have pointed out to you that they make those things waaaaay smaller now, and let's not even begin with the 65 inch TV! People want to buy your place because they want to buy the lifestyle that they feel is associated with it. In urban areas, the spaces cater to those wanting a chic modern aesthetic both in where they live and how they live. The suburbs are family places and the houses are more family-centric but shouldn't be cluttered and frenetic! People want to commute to a happy family retreat but not a daycare center - toys away, (especially those big plastic play houses and kitchens), empty the diaper pails, put away your dirty laundry. Company is coming! Honestly, when your agent asks you to store a piece of furniture away, don't be angry or hurt. It may be a cherished piece . Trust me, we hate to ask, it's all very uncomfortable for us. But we do know what sells and anyone who has ever seen those TV shows with the before and after, the public is judgemental about your stuff!

That said, the opposite to an overstuffed house is the empty house - also a huge negative when selling your home. Did you know that an empty room looks smaller than when it's fully furnished? Most (over 90%) can't imagine what a house could look like with furniture in and will focus on all the negatives, real or imagined in an empty house.

I always work with my clients to edit their things down to the pieces that show off their home's features and spaciousness. Sometimes we need fresh paint or a repair; always thorough cleaning and voila - a saleable home. If the furniture you have doesn't fit the space as well as it fits your needs, we can rent items that are better suited to sell the life style and maximize the sale price!

At the end of the day it does come down to how much ends up in your pocket after the sale. “ Staged homes realized on average a 6.4% increase over the list price.” (Coldwell Banker Broker on 2772 homes in 8 cities) That's huge!