What is Staging?

Decorating? Remodelling? Updating?

No, no, and no! Decorating is something homeowners do to create the environment that they enjoy. Remodelling and updating are projects homeowners do to create more value and/or a better quality of life.

As a Realtor I am hired to sell the house for the best price! Staging is simply the best way to showcase qualities and generate that sale. As an example, think about the bad MLS photos you have seen, what made them BAD? Generally it was poor camera skills but many of them are just plain confusing. If I can't make the picture look good why would the potential buyer want to tour the home? Buyers are not interested in the decor or great pieces of furniture that do not stay with the house after transfer. Biggest problem seller's face is most buyers can not see the houses potential. What they can see are the challenges; the clutter and the perceived lack of space.

My goal as a staging Realtor is to simplify the rooms by reducing the "stuff." That sounds very easy but most sellers love their "stuff" and do not see how it creates a challenge. The way we live in our homes is based on what is comfortable for us. (That is true in my home too!) I am not saying my seller's need to live uncomfortably but we need to work as a team with the goal in mind.

Take a step back with me and look at the marketplace. If you are the manufacturer of a given product you would look at many factors before attempting to sell it. The price, quality, competition and packaging come to my mind. To sell the most of that product you have would need to be the best in those categories. Taking this concept to real estate the Realtor is responsible for the Comparative Market Analysis. The CMA should objectively look at the first 3 categories and act as the foundation for the pricing strategy. Historically the seller is responsible for the presentation or packaging on the house... not any more! This paradigm shift will allow the staging Realtor to create a "Staged List Price" based on the market data reflecting both staged and unstaged homes.

I will close with these stats from StagedHomes.com:
93% of ASP staged homes sell on average of 1 month or less!*
Average days on market before the SOLD:
160 days for non-Staged Homes*
31.8 days for ASP Staged Homes*

* Based on a StagedHomes.com survey of over 400 homes across Canada & the Continental US prepared for sale by an Accredited Staging Professional (ASP™) from June 2007 through November 2007

Staging your home

Are you having trouble selling your home?

The number of homes for sale in my market is staggering. As a seller your goal is to be the 1st SOLD right? How do you plan to accomplish that goal? Price and condition are the most common ways.... I am going to suggest staging your home.

"How you live in your home and how we sell your house are two different things!" -B. Schwarz

Okay, what is staging a home? I will start by saying what it is not; decorating your home! Simply put it is re-evaluating your home from the buyers perspective. What are the key features or as your REALTOR what am I selling? Are those features being showcased or are they hidden by your furniture and decorating? That is not to be taken personally, I am sure your decoration is great but that is not what sells homes today. You hired or are looking to hire an agent to SELL the home not put it up for sale, right?

The best example I can share with you is this:

A home I had been marketing for several months was receiving multiple showings and great online views but no offers. After completing the ASP designation I staged the home and within 14 days we received and accepted an offer! See the photos of the master bedroom at the right for a small example! Contact me for a consultation or referral to a local ASP Realtor in your market!

HUD stops downpayment assistance

It has been talked about for months and HUD will stop funding loans with downpayment assistance Oct 31, 07. Here is a link to a great article on the subject:

http://realtytimes.com/rtcpages/20071003_sellerassist.htm

Interesting Mortgage Notice

I found this story online and feel that I should post it here for you to read! http://www.ohiorealtors.org/absolutenm/templates/article.aspx?articleid=3545&zoneid=51

This is one of the stories that no wants to hear about let alone have happen to them....

May Fairlawn Report

The month of May has been good for real estate in Fairlawn.... across the board the numbers are up! Click on the link below to view the reports for residential, condo, mutli-families and vacant land. http://www.cutlerhomes.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=135&

If you are looking to sell a home in this market please check out my website for great tips! http://www.WhereIsMikeScott.com

Something new this month is addition of Cutler e-Clips. This is a type of virtual tour that we are now using to market homes we are selling. This is a free service that I am offering that takes no more time for the sellers. If you would like to see what this looks like please visit http://www.cutlerhomes.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=135&

Thanks for taking the time to read this post and please post feedback for me

April Market Report of Copley

As a whole the Copley area homes and land are a bit slow getting started this year. Please don't let that alarm you, it is only April and the buying season is just getting started! If you wish to review any of the data for Copley please click on the link below!

Have a great week and HAPPY EASTER!

http://www.cutlerhomes.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=129&

West Akron is making moves

As we move into the spring season the market is starting to heat up! The numbers of active listings and sold are increasing... you could be next! Check out the details below:



http://www.cutlerhomes.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=125&

March Market Madness

The month of March if full of Madness, and I am not just referring to basketball! NorthEast Ohio is known for the crazy weather this time of the year; today we have snow in the am, rain in the pm and predicted to be 60 on Friday!

Let's look at something positive, the Fairlawn real estate market. In the last month we have had 6 homes sell, average sale price is $192,075 or $101.68 per square foot and 97 days on market. That also means the average seller can expect to close the sale with 94.2% of the list price. The media can say all they want that we are a declining market but the stats would suggest that Fairlawn is doing well. See the link for all the areas of the monthly report,

http://www.cutlerhomes.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=128&

Hope this helps you in accomplishing your real estate goals, have a great day!

Bath Market Updated for March

As we are finally into Spring you will be seeing more and more for sale signs! The market volume is increasing and with the FED keeping the rates low we should see an increase in pre-approved buyers.

The attached information is half what a seller needs to properly position their home to sell first! The other half is actual knowledge of the condition of the other homes to effectively compare with the subject. The process should look at the sold values, but must position the subject home based on the other comparable homes currently for sale. After that is established the seller needs to determine when they want to sell; 1,2,3 or last? An agent should position the property based on these factors and continue to monitor the comparables until the subject reads SOLD.

Click on the link:

http://whereismikescott.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=125&

Have a great day!

MS

Bath Monthly Update

This post will complete our tour of the local area that I will be posting related market data. In this edition, I had to split the single family homes into categories above and below $300,000.

http://www.cutlerhomes.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=127&

The number of homes on the market is very high for this time of year and positioning is key for sellers.... the question you should ask yourself is this:

If there are 8 homes that are similar to your home in size, beds, baths and location (your competition) when do you want to sell? 1st, 2nd, 5th or last? That should determine your positioning on the market (price reflective of condition and motivation).


As always if you have questions about these reports please refer to the FAQ's or you can always email me.

Copley Market Update

View the most updated data for the Copley area at

http://whereismikescott.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=123&

This data is from the real estate data base on Feb. 5 at 10 am.

Any questions please email me at mailto:mike@whereismikescott.com
thanks, come back and have a great day

West Akron Market Update

Here is the 1st installment for West Akron:


Attached is the link to the West Akron Updated Market Data, due to the size I had to break it into several parts. There are two sections: Sum21 West Akron (south) and Sum22 West Akron (north). Inside of the north section I had to split the residental into reports above and below the price of $150,000. If you have a question please contact me via email as I generally have access to that all day.

http://whereismikescott.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=122&

Something to look for in the near future is my Featured Open House podcasts. I will be describing the homes key features, price and location for you to make the decision if this home would fit your needs. I will also provide a direct link to that home on my site for more photos and details.


As always, if you have a suggestion to make this better and of more value please contact me! My goal is to create something that people will find as helpful no matter where they are in the in the real estate process: buying, selling or holding!



Thanks for your time and have a great day!

Fairlawn Market Update

Here it is, the first market update for my blog! Click on the link below and you will be directed to my site where you will find the update in PDF form.

http://www.cutlerhomes.com/getagent/Pages.php?Page=0000342766&aid=000500567&temp=1090&aname=Mike+Scott%2C+e-pro&aimg=1&agent_hasfeat=118

Check back next week for the updated information on West Akron! Have a great week everyone :>)

Market Update

My goal for this blog was to create a place where a potential customer could go and find key information about the current real estate market. That key information will consist of what is Active, Pending and Sold for the given month. Adding to that the average days on market, dollar per square foot of list price and sold price and the final sale price for given properties.

My target markets are West Akron, Fairlawn, Copley and Bath of the Greater Akron market. Therefore I will post a monthly update for each of these areas for single family, multiple family homes and condo properties. My plan is to post data weekly on a rotation basis so each of the 4 areas are updated once a month. How I am going to accomplish this is still being worked out but please check back as this is my #1 priority for AkronRealEstateMatter.blogspot.com