Realtors get creative to sell homes in current economy

Note from Rob Seitz: This month, I invited one of my students to be a guest columnist and to write about her mother's business, Hudson Valley Staging in Thornwood. She offers valuable information to Realtors! A 3,000 s/f chic-style modern home in Mt. Kisco, featured cultural furnishings that were sentimental to the owners, but not pleasing to the buyers. With the help of Cathy Perucci, a home stager and redesigner (HSR) certified professional stager and owner of Hudson Valley Staging, a home that could have sat on the market for months sold in 11 days. Home staging is the art of decorating a home to capture and entice a buyer's interest by accentuating the positive aspects of the property, while downplaying the negatives. Homes that are staged have a competitive edge over other homes on the market. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), statistics show that home staging makes a difference in the amount of days a property is on the market and how much it sells for. The longer a home remains on the market, the lower the selling price and the fewer number of showings. In a struggling economy, home staging, which is a newer concept on the east coast, is becoming a necessary component for selling a home. Vacant staging is especially critical. "It is hard to become emotionally attached to a house with no furnishings," said Perucci. "Vacant homes can have a very cold feeling, and buyers cannot visualize size and scale, so furniture helps give them a frame of reference." It is important to balance a room's furnishings by not placing small furniture in a large room. She often uses Cort Furniture, the N.Y.C.-based furniture rental company. "Every room has to be seen as having a purpose," she said. The cost of home staging can vary depending on the size of the project. Costs can increase or decrease based on the number of rooms needed to be staged, the cost of rental furnishings and accessories, or if the homeowner's items will be used. Occupied homes can cost a few hundred dollars to purchase items to complete the look of the home, while vacant homes can cost a few thousand dollars for rental furniture. "For my agency, I get paid at time of closing by the broker, but for other Realtors I work with, the cost of staging comes from the homeowner," said Perucci, who is also a licensed agent. According to the NAR, 85% of home buyers are on the Internet viewing listings before considering a visit to the home. Because of the popularity in online real estate marketing, it is important to create a positive first impression. Perucci says it is often easier for a home stager to speak to a client about their home rather than the Realtor. "Realtors don't want to offend homeowners whose listings they value," she said. Home stagers provide expertise that homeowners trust. For the property Perucci staged in Mt. Kisco, the buyer became interested in her services after seeing a presentation on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/user/CathyP957). The listing agent for the home, Kathy Glass of Elegran Real Estate & Development, N.Y., said, "Bringing in Cathy Perucci helped cinch the deal on the selling of this house. She was able to depersonalize the space and highlight the unique features of the property." For homes have been on the market for a year and others that are empty and in foreclosure, Realtors should consider using home stagers to give their listings the advantage. The trend is popular in Canada and on the west coast, according to Perucci. "Within the next few years, home staging will also be the norm on the east coast," she said. "Realtors must understand that buyers need to visualize the true potential of a home, and the only way to do that is to make the home they are selling stand out in the crowd." Tara Perucci is a full-time graduate student at Fordham University, Thornwood, N.Y.