Who Determines the Price for Staging?
Price. Cost. Money. Expense. Budget. Fee. Spend.
Who Determines the Price for Staging?
Price. Cost. Money.
Expense. Budget. Fee. Spend.
Lately
something that troubles me is the perception that the Seller (and/or Realtor)
gets to dictate the Staging budget and comes to the Stager telling us what they
want it to be. The Stager has not even
seen the house yet. This is not the
right way to think about the Staging because the person stating the price has
no idea what goes into Staging a house properly to get the desired results - a
sale. Unless you run a successful Staging company, you do not know what it
"should cost."
Staging is an INVESTMENT - and the person best equipped to
determine the Staging price ...is the STAGER.
Just as you Realtors reading this don't like it when your Sellers tell
you at what price they think they house should be listed for sale, we don't
like being told what our Staging costs "should be."
My favorite
clients are the ones that let me see their house, allow me to price the Staging
properly and agree to get it done realizing I am pricing my services to cover
my process and what I do will help their house sell.
This is not
I only want to spend $$ on the Staging but I want all of this done type
service. This is a You want the results
Staging will give you - so you need to pay for that service, time and talent. No champagne tastes on a beer budget. Beer budgets get you poor Staging or surface
Staging ...neither of which actually helps the house sell.
Who knows the RE Market?
The fact is in order to get the proper price to list and sell the house,
Realtors have to do market comps, see what sold, and what is listed and come up
with a range that works. When a Seller
tries to tell a Realtor what their house is worth, they are basing it on
information they might get online, but only a Realtor can get access to the
details on MLS that gives them an educated and informed position on pricing the
house. I know it is annoying to Realtors
when a Seller tries to tell them what they want - especially when it is not
based on valid information. Who knows
the RE Market? The Realtor or the
homeowner who has not sold a house in 10 years?
Same is true for Staging.
A Seller might wish to spend a certain amount to prepare their house for
sale, and yet they really don't know what all is involved in getting a house
Staged because they are not running a Staging business. Realtors are not either. It is not wise for them to talk pricing with
their client before they have spoken with their Stager because once that dollar
amount is tossed out there it hangs in the air and the Stager is left to try to
make it work. Very few Stagers I know
operate on a cookie-cutter pricing system that allows any client to figure out
what the pricing will be. We operate on
a project-by-project basis and base our pricing on a number of factors.
As an
example, in order for a Stager to give an accurate price to Stage a vacant
house we have to look at the inventory that is needed and time it takes to get
the Staging installation done. We
consider the square footage of the house and the price-point to make sure the
inventory reflects the type of house being sold. We look at who is part of the Staging
process... does it take 1 person or 4 people?
A 900 square foot condo will not be priced the same as a 2,500 square foot
house.
There are
real estate agents that will list a house at either an inflated price to get
the listing (or as some would call it buying the listing) or lower their
commission to get the listing. Realtors who don't believe in that strategy to
get business will quickly dismiss that type of agent as one that does not do as
good of a job or have as quality a marketing plan as a full-service Realtor.
Yet the
same situation that a Realtor will say produces a low quality agent and lower
results (low baller, discounter) is somehow expected in the Staging world. I am here to say - stop the hypocrisy.
There is
VALUE in working with a quality Stager - because their work ultimately reflects
on YOU and your ability to get that property sold - whether you are a Seller or
Realtor.
It's true
that each market is different - and prices for Staging vary around the
nation. However, what is consistent is
that the STAGER is the one that needs to
determine the price for the Staging.
Here are some points I am asking
Realtors to consider:
1.
Please do not give a seller an idea of price - let your Stager quote any
pricing.
2.
Allow the Stager to properly price the Staging and share with the Seller
directly so that if your seller has questions, the Stager is the one answering
them.
3.
Any negotiations on price should be between the legal owner of the house
and the Stager.
4.
Realize that at some point if the Staging cannot be done properly it
should not be done at all. Throwing some
decor and a few pieces of furniture in house is not Staging.
5.
Understand that the Staging helps YOU get the results you want with
selling the house. It is a team effort,
so please do not undermine the Stager's pricing. And by the way, when the house sells at a
better price, YOU make more commission!
6. When a Seller asks you about price, simply say, I will have my Stager get in touch with you to get you an accurate price for Staging your house.
When a
seller limits the ability of the Stager to do the staging properly but coming
up with some arbitrary dollar amount they hope to spend, they will not be happy
with the results. When the house does
not sell, the Seller rarely takes responsibility for not allocating the proper Staging
budget and points fingers at the Stager and the Realtor.
As the
market normalizes - this practice of dictating a budget to a Stager without
even receiving a pricing proposal will hopefully stop. The old adage of "you get what you pay
for" is true. I am not in the
practice of making it work to the point where I barely net a profit on the
Staging and cannot stand proudly behind my product. I am a business owner and here to make an
income and profit on my time, talent and creativity. You want the Staging done right - you need to
pay for that service. You would not be
happy if you hired a schlocky mechanic to fix your car only to have it break
down two weeks later. You will not be
happy limiting the Staging by reducing the budget as the buyer experience will
still not be enough to entice them to make an offer.
Remember this:
If the investment in Staging is less than a price reduction and Staging
can help your house or listing be priced BETTER than the competition from the
get go - don't you think it's worth doing it properly? Staging saves or help the seller make 10-20X
their Staging investment - and that is something they can take to the bank.
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For help preparing
your house or listing for sale in the greater Denver
