Staging Malfunctions, or, Seller Cold Feet

Ready, Set . . . NOT Set

Call it the real estate equivalent of a "wardrobe malfunction": the staging appointment, made weeks (or months) earlier, finally arrives, and . . . the client just can't go through with it.

That just happened this week to a stager I regularly work with.

Unfortunately, she had been planning to use the home to conduct her staging workshop (in return for making their home available, the home owner gets free staging worth as much as $2,000).

As a result of the last minute cancellation, the stager had to scramble to arrange backup homes to work on with her students -- several of whom had flown in from out-of-town.

False Start

While not that common, I'd estimate that about 10% of my clients get staging cold feet.

So what is it about?

Usually, the home owner is simply not ready emotionally to sell.

That's most often the case when they have been in their home for decades.

But I've also had clients who were only in their home a few years who unexpectedly put the brakes on, too.

Next Steps

Usually, the hesitancy is temporary; once the owner revisits their original motive(s) for selling, they realize that staging is an important part of the process, and indeed, is an inexpensive way to increase their home's market value (an important consideration, especially if the motive for selling is financial).

Another tack is to switch to identifying the owner's next home, if they haven't already.

Especially when someone doesn't know where they're moving to, leaving their current home can be unduly stressful.

Once in awhile, though, the home owner decides that they truly aren't ready to move.

In which case, it's better for all involved -- owner, Realtor, and prospective Buyers -- to simply acknowledge that fact, and wait till the timing's better.

P.S.: It's also invariably the case that unmotivated stagers . . . make unmotivated Sellers.

The "Rebound Realtor"

Realtor-Client "Second Marriages"

Fools rush in where Angels fear to tread.

--Alexander Pope

A second marriage is the triumph of hope over experience.

--Samuel Johnson

"Rebound relationships" seldom work out because one of the people in the relationship usually hasn't had time to get over the last one.

Is the same thing true in real estate?

In my experience, it depends on two things: 1) who the client is; and 2) who the last Realtor was.

(As they say, "Duh!)

In fact, there are four main scenarios:

One. Bad Realtor/Good Buyer.

There aren't that many bad Realtors out there -- they tend not to able to make a living at it! -- but there are some. There are also Realtors who are overextended, burnt-out, inexperienced, or simply inattentive.

"Inheriting" a client who's just had a bad experience with one of the above takes a little extra effort upfront, to establish trust.

However, once that exists, I've found such clients to be very gratifying to work with -- and extremely appreciative.

Two. Good Realtor/Unmotivated Buyer.

For a Realtor, this is by far the riskiest scenario to step into, because ultimately what any Realtor has to sell is their time -- and unmotivated Buyers devour it!

Fortunately, there's an easy way to establish whether a particular Buyer is unmotivated.

I simply ask: a) how long have you been looking?; and b) how many homes did your last Realtor show you?

If the answers are "more than a year" and "more than 50 homes," respectively, I pass (note: unmotivated Buyers have been known to fudge the foregoing numbers).

Three.

Good Realtor/Unrealistic Seller.

Like the unmotivated Buyer, the unrealistic Seller is also usually easy to spot.

Typically, their home didn't sell for one reason: it was priced too high.

When that's the case, no amount of marketing, staging, or salesmanship is going to produce a Buyer.

When it's obvious that that's going on, the key issue becomes: are they now willing to price at market? (which also begs a secondary question: why wouldn't they price at market for their first Realtor?)

Four. Bad Realtor/Good Seller.

I don't see this often, but there are saleable homes on the market that nevertheless are lingering because they're not being properly marketed.

The photos are grainy and unflattering; the sales literature is full of typos; the homeowner is amenable to staging, but the "incumbent Realtor" never even brought it up!

Being the successor Realtor in such situations (like scenario #1) offers the opportunity to really be a "hero" to the typically beleaguered homeowners.

Other Scenarios

Are there other scenarios?

Sure.

Just like in real relationships, sometimes Realtors and their clients have style and/or personality clashes that get in the way of their working together.

Usually, that becomes apparent during the interviewing process -- but not always.

The "X" factor in all of the foregoing scenarios is the identity of the former Realtor (which I'll always ask).

If I know them and their reputation . . . I can usually skip all the other questions.

Single Men, Taxi's, and "For Sale" Homes

"Serious" vs. "Non-Serious" Home Sellers

Men are like taxis. The theory is that when a man is ready for, or open to, the possibility of a relationship he turns his taxi light on. If you happen to be the girl that hails the cab (him) while the light is on, you've got a possibility of a decently long ride. But if you grab a cab with the light off, it doesn't really matter what you do, it's just not going to go anywhere.

--Candace Bushnell, "Sex and the City"

Substitute "serious home sellers" for "men" in the quote above, and you have a pretty good shorthand for what's going on in the housing market at any given moment. (And no, this isn't meant to be sexist; arguably the same phenomenon applies to single women.)

Just consider all the contrasts between "Serious" and "Non-Serious" home sellers ("motivated" and "unmotivated," if you prefer):

Serious: Price their home consistently with the Comp's ("Comparable Sold Properties").

Non-Serious: List their home at a price that nets them "what they need" -- or what their neighbor got 3 years ago.

Serious: If feedback and days on market indicate the price is unrealistic, reduces the price 3%-5% at regular intervals.
Non-Serious: Won't budge from the original list price. Or, after an eon of market time, will cancel-and-relist . . . at the same price.

Serious: Ferociously cleans and de-clutters before hitting the market. Donates accumulated stuff to charity to make their home feel as big as possible. Spends a nominal amount on cosmetic updating (painting, floor refinishing, landscaping, etc.) as needed. Brings in a stager -- and takes their advice!

Non-Serious: Thinks their home is perfect as is -- so why do anything?

Serious: Accommodates showing requests whenever possible. Cleans, empties the Kitchen sink, turns on all the lights, etc. ahead of first showings -- and especially second showings!

Non-Serious: Does none of the above. Thinks showings are a good time to water the lawn . . . in their underwear!

Serious: Has the municipal point-of-sale inspection done prior to going on the market, and fixes any items listed.

Non-Serious: Leaves the point-of-sale inspection for if/when there's a Buyer (illegal in some cities).

Serious: Hires a good, full-service Realtor who tells them all of the foregoing, markets early (pre-list) and energetically, negotiates well, knows the neighborhood, etc.

Non-Serious: Hires the cheapest Realtor they can find -- or none.

And on and on.

While serious home sellers don't literally turn on the equivalent of a taxi light -- based on all the things they do (or not) -- they're just as easy for Realtors and prospective Buyers to identify.