Recently, I had the pleasure of exhibiting at the REALTORS® Without BORDERS Convention & Trade Show, Southern Ontario’s largest annual conference on real estate.

I must say that I was very impressed by the number of REALTORS® who are advocates of home staging.  There are still a few sitting on the fence about its merits, but in time, as home staging grows in popularity, I’m confident that even more will become believers.

In speaking with REALTORS® at the show, I learned that the apprehension voiced by some was out of fear of offending their clients.  They felt that the suggestion of bringing in a home stager would be met with resistance.  Admittedly, this is a legitimate concern, but one that can be overcome.  For that reason, I decided to touch on it in this blog post.

Undoubtedly, you have come across many home owners who feel their home is perfect just the way it is.  How do you tactfully tell them that the life-size portrait of dear old Aunt Edna in the front hall is downright frightening or that the beer fridge in the bathroom has to go?  Offering your client a complimentary staging consultation alleviates that problem for you since you don’t have to be the bearer of bad news.  Don’t worry though; a professional home stager will be very diplomatic.

Once you make the decision to offer your clients a staging consultation and drop the “S-word” – staging that is – most will be absolutely thrilled that you are giving them this opportunity.  There will, however, be a small number that will meet your offer with opposition.  Now what?  This is where how you deliver the message comes into play.  Explain that as a part of your business model you offer a complimentary staging consultation to all of your clients.  If they hear that everyone receives a consultation, they won’t feel like you are finding fault with their home and will be less likely to resist.  In fact, once they learn that you offer this service to everyone else, my guess is that they will insist on the same.  After all, no one wants to feel like they are missing out on an opportunity – its human nature.

Why not try this approach; it just might work for you.  I’d love to hear your success stories on how you have overcome this issue.  Please bring them on!

Charlene Storozuk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Charlene Storozuk is the owner of Dezigner Digz, a professional home staging and interior decorating company based in Burlington, Ontario.  Her work is featured in the book FabJob Guide To Become A Home Stager, 2009 edition. She serves as regional vice-president, Canada for the Real Estate Staging Association and is a past recipient of the North American Leadership Award for her work as founder and president of the Halton & Hamilton-Wentworth RESA Chapter.

Every day I learn something new from the folks I follow on Twitter. Today I learned that Nov. 15 is National Declutter Day. Who knew?

The occasion, which was started last year by Kijiji.com (@KijijiUS), eBay’s free online classifieds site, is a great way to get sellers motivated to prepare their home for showings.

Plus, we could all use a little decluttering in our lives, couldn’t we?

In honor of the occasion, I’ve scoured the Internet for some resources you can pass on to your clients. What I’ve come up with are three handy Web sites and one clutter-busting San Carlos, Calif.-based business that can clear out a room in minutes. Intrigued? Read on.

Unclutterer.com

This Web site is all about organization, plain and simple. Organizing your life; organizing your home; organizing your office. The Washington, D.C.–based author Erin Doland is a recovering pack-rat who once “held on to objects like her third grade math assignments and every note she passed in high school.” Her book Unclutter Your Life in One Week, which went on sale this week, is a testament to her reformed, uncluttered lifestyle, and a helpful tool for anyone looking to declutter their home.

Jdorganizer.blogspot.com

Jeri Dansky of Half Moon Bay, Calif., has been a professional organizer for seven years and her blog is filled with fun, whimsical, and aesthetically pleasing ideas that are also all about decluttering. If you are looking for great storage ideas, book recommendations, and organizing trends you’ve never thought of, check out her site.

Zenhabits.net

Zen Habits is a site that takes decluttering to the next level. Author Leo Babauta describes it as “finding simplicity in the daily chaos of our lives.” Some of the best nuggets of advice I found on this site are the 72 Ideas to Simplify Your Life and 18 Five-Minute Decluttering Tips to Start Conquering Your Mess. But all the posts were inspiring with the mantra that less is not only more, less is also healthy.

Junk King

Childhood friends, Mike Andreacchi and Brian Reardon met on the soccer field at the age of 9. Little did they know that roughly 20 years later they’d be starting a business together. In 2005, Andreacchi and Reardon founded Junk King in the San Francisco Bay area. The basic premise is this: You have stuff you don’t want, and they can take care of it for you.

Junk King will collect and either recycle or dispose of basically all non-hazardous “junk” from homes and businesses. We’re talking stuff like furniture, wood, appliances, concrete, construction and building materials, yard refuse, and plain old garbage. No paints or solvents allowed, though.

“We help prepare the home to put back on the market,” Reardon says, tackling jobs like attics, kitchen cabinets, garages, and yards. “And if the owners or the REALTOR® can’t afford to pay for our service up front, we’ll wait to collect after the property has gone through escrow. It’s a win-win.”

Junk King prices by volume, and takes jobs that range from one item up to multiple truckloads. Special rates are offered to real estate practitioners.

What started out as one truck out of their garage has grown into a fleet of six trucks with 15 employees, which saves many items from ending up in a landfill, says Andreacchi.

Junk King Recycling Facts:

• Junk King recycles up to 60 percent of the materials it picks up, and estimates that more than 908 tons have been saved from landfills.
• Since January 2009, Junk King has recycled approximately 450,000 pounds, or 225 tons, of scrap metal.
• In total, Junk King has collected 2,450,000 pounds of copper, aluminum, wiring, and other metals; 840,000 pounds of plastic, paper, and recyclables; 590,000 pounds of computer equipment; and 685,000 pounds of miscellaneous junk.

Andreacchi and Reardon are beginning to franchise their business, which now consists of three corporate-owned locations and nine franchisee-owned covering the San Francisco Bay area and, starting in January, Atlanta. Looking to the future, Andreacchi and Reardon hope to see Junk King grow into a nationwide service.

“We want to be the Coca-Cola of the junk business,” Reardon says.

The Internet is the first source for viewing a property for most buyers, even before talking to a real estate professional. That means curb appeal is important because they are “driving by” the listing, and you don’t know it.

Here are 10 things to consider when assessing the curb appeal of your listing:

1. Pressure wash siding, decks, and walkways.

2. Clean windows and gutters, and check downspouts.

3. Check the growth of trees and bushes–ensure they don’t block light from any window.

4. Kill any mold or mildew around the property.

5. Mow the lawn, eliminate weeds, and rake and dispose of leaves, especially if it’s a wooded lot.

6. Paint the front door. Color choice has a big impact–so you might want to get a professional’s advice.

7. Make the front entry sing “welcome”. The degree of what can be achieved depends on the size of entry and, of course, your budget. However, even minimal improvements will make a huge difference: Consider flowers, a new mailbox, hardware, lights, and house numbers.

8. Don’t forget the rear yard–buyers may attempt to see the back yard during a drive by, even from another street.

9. Outdoor lighting is a huge plus as 50 percent of viewings take place at night. Today we are fortunate to have access to inexpensive but tasteful low-voltage lighting. Consider placing lighting along the sidewalks, driveway, or attractive landscaping elements. Take extra care to ensure your front door and numbers are clearly visible from the street.

10. If the inside of the home is visible at night, be sure the interior lighting also enhances what is seen from the outside.

Remember: You never get a second chance to make a great first impression!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Christine Rae is the co-author of “Home Staging for Dummies” (Wiley, 2008), found of Decorating Solutions Inc., and an internationally recognized expert and trainer in the home staging industry. She is the editor of Staging Standard, an industry trade magazine on staging, and co-author of the e-book “Home Staging Business Guide.” In 2005, she launched an international staging certification program, the Canadian Certified Staging Professionals, and Certified Staging Professionals in the United States and Australia.

We’re planning for the 2010 series and we want to hear from you. We’re looking for a pro stager who also practices real estate.

Do you have at least a decade of experience with a high sales volume?

If this sounds like you, and you’d like to be considered for a 2010 Masters Series video, please contact senior editor Katherine Tarbox at ktarbox@realtors.org.

Hint: This architecture style is often known for being square or rectangular with one or one-and-a-half stories and steeply pitched, gabled roofs. In the mid-20^th century these small homes were popular in suburban developments.

ANSWER: See if you are correct >

Let me start out by telling you that our home was the recipient of this quick and easy facelift.  My husband and I bought our home as a fixer-upper. It’s taking longer than expected to finish because little things such as life, time, and money seem to get in the way. When it came time to update the bathroom, we had a decision to make. Do we totally renovate it, or spend the money on a new patio instead?

Since both of us love the outdoors, the patio won out. Here’s what I’ve done with the bathroom temporarily and something you can pass along as an inexpensive fix for those selling their homes.

You’ll see that the cupboards looked tired and were starting to peel. The previous home owner painted them before listing, but he either didn’t clean them thoroughly, or he used the wrong paint.

In the second photo, you’ll notice that the hinges were painted over also. Word of advice, don’t do that as a quick fix when selling your property.  Prospective buyers will be put off by the amount of work involved to remove the hinges.  Believe me: I know this first hand since I had to chisel each one out. It took hours!

Before painting, make sure the cupboards are thoroughly cleaned with TSP to remove any dirt or grime. In the past, I’ve used melamine paint for cupboards, but it wasn’t available in chocolate brown. Instead, I went with Benjamin Moore’s Aura paint line and it hasn’t disappointed so far. The cupboards still look as good as the day they were painted.

Once you are finished, you may want to replace the knobs if the current ones are worn or outdated.

Total cost of this project: Paint: $35 + Hinges: $36 for a grand total of $71.

It just shows what a difference you can make without breaking the bank. Of course, a little staging with accessories also kicked up the transformation a notch.

I’ve passed this idea along to some of my clients; you may want to do the same.

Charlene Storozuk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Charlene Storozuk is the owner of Dezigner Digz, a professional home staging and interior decorating company based in Burlington, Ontario.  Her work is featured in the book FabJob Guide To Become A Home Stager, 2009 edition. She serves as regional vice-president, Canada for the Real Estate Staging Association and is a past recipient of the North American Leadership Award for her work as founder and president of the Halton & Hamilton-Wentworth RESA Chapter.

By Mary Cook, Mary Cook & Associates

Now more than ever, model homes are key sales tools for developers. In the current housing market crisis, people are weighing every factor in their decision on buying a home.

Beyond the typical questions on the quality of the finishes, school districts, and mortgage rates, those who are looking to spend their life savings on a place are looking for deeper psychological reasons to sign on the dotted line.

Does this home speak to me? Can I imagine my lifestyle being a fit here?

That’s why my firm spends so much time getting to know the prospective audience for which we design model homes. We design for specific people, often taking the time to create fictitious characters such as “John the Wall Streeter,” who lets his girlfriend decorate his place.

For a residential development on Michigan Avenue in Chicago, an extra room was designed as a jewelry designer’s workspace in one model. At one of our senior communities in central New Jersey, one model that featured bright pinks and greens (inspired by Lily Pulitzer) sparked a buzz among visitors.

By envisioning who might live at our clients’ properties, it allows our designs to connect with prospects with the power of specificity.

Even if you don’t have the same decorating taste as John the Wall Streeter or other characters, designing the model home for real people provides a lived-in authentic feel. Details help inspire — and ultimately show buyers that they can truly personalize a new home.

Mary Cook

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Mary Cook, a Chicago native, is the president and founder of Mary Cook & Associates, an award-winning interior design firm specializing in providing design services to the builder/developer, senior housing, golf and resort and CCRC industries. The company has grown to acquire national presence, installing hundreds of design projects across the United States.

Home modifications are an important step in getting buyers with disabilities into a new home. That’s why it’s important for real estate practitioners to be educated on the needs of their clients, where they can find specialized contractors, and the availability of financing programs.

According to the U.S. Census, 51.2 million people have some level of disability, which accounts for 18 percent of the population. Of those, an estimated 1.6 million Americans residing outside of institutions are wheelchair users.

Stephen Beard is a sales associate with Keller Williams Realty in Oakland/Piedmont, Calif. who specializes in accessible housing for people with disabilities. He has developed relationships with contractors who specialize in building wheelchair ramps and other types of home modifications and accessibility architecture. This is especially important in more established markets with older homes that typically do not easily lend themselves to modifications.

Beard understands the issues around mobility challenges as someone living with Cerebral Palsy who uses a cane.

“I saw an opportunity to specialize in real estate in a way that would allow me to serve this community that has not had many advocates in the real estate community in the past,” Beard says. “I am always thinking, ‘Are we going to be able to build a ramp here? Or is the bathroom big enough to do a 360-degree turn around in a wheelchair?’ because there are so few properties that are accessible to begin with here [in the Bay area].”

According to Access Living, a Chicago-based non-profit advocacy group for people with disabilities, approximately 95 percent of new single-family homes and townhouses built with federal assistance fail to incorporate accessibility features.

Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) introduced the Inclusive Home Design Act, H.R.1408, which would require that at least one entrance of a new home be built without stairs, all doorways in the home be at least 32 inches wide, light switches and climate controls be placed at a wheelchair-accessible level, and at least one bathroom on the main floor of the home be wheelchair accessible. However, the measure has not moved out of the Financial Services Committee since it was introduced in March 2009.

In addition to the universal design elements that are being encouraged in new homes, there are various custom modifications and adaptations that can meet the needs of buyers, such as adding grab-bars, installing wheel-in showers, and adding accessible counters and sinks.

“We have to find a home that is close enough so that we can modify it to meet each individual’s needs,” says Beard.

It is also particularly important to know if the home is going to be accessible enough to view before your client arrives. “I lose a lot of credibility if I take a client in a wheelchair to a home they can’t get into,” says Beard.

There are several Web sites that serve as educational resources or information clearinghouses for housing modifications and financing.

• Homeaccessprogram.org: Recommended by Beard, this site was created by Handi-Ramp, a manufacturer and distributor of handicap accessible ramps. It lists real estate practitioners who specialize in accessible homes, and directs users to resources, such as the Home Access Program’s mortgage partnership and Homes 4 Angels.
• Homemods.org: created by the National Resource Center on Supportive Housing and Home Modification and run through the University of Southern California Andrus Gerontology Center, offers the Executive Certificate in Home Modification. Encouraged for anyone working with the supportive and/or adapted housing community, the program consists of five online courses that cover the ins and outs of home modifications, ethical issues, and community resources.
• Centers for independent living: These local, community-based non-profits are great places to find independent living resources for people with disabilities. The ILRU (Independent Living Research Utilization) has a directory of centers for independent living throughout the country.
• State and local programs: Many states, counties, and local non-profits have incentive programs encouraging home ownership for people with disabilities. Maryland’s Department of Housing and Community Development is one example, along with Wisconsin-based Movin’ Out, Inc.

Beard, who has worked in real estate since 2004, does not approach his job as a sales person, but rather as a consultant or a service provider. He learned as much as he could about the various subsections of the disabilities community during his first years on the job through networking and meeting with leaders of various advocacy groups. He also became more involved, joining the board of directors for the World Institute on Disability, a nonprofit promoting independence, as well as serving on the Alameda County Board of Developmental Disabilities Planning and Advisory Council.

Because Beard took the time to educate himself on the needs of the community he sought to serve, now 70-80 percent of Beard’s clients are people who have physical handicaps, cognitive challenges, and learning disabilities. He has become a go-to real estate pro in his niche.

“One of my passions around this community is to broaden awareness. I want more REALTORS® to be aware of how to serve this community; I think it’s so important,” says Beard, who welcomes phone calls and inquires on his Web site.

Hint: This style of home is known as being narrow and rectangular with one and one-half stories, low-pitched gable or hipped roofs, and small covered porches at the entry. This home style was popular in the 1880s until the Great Depression.

ANSWER: See if you are correct >