Staging a House
Posted: Tuesday, May 29, 2007 10:01 AM by Jaclyn Levin
(From Sarah Clagett, TODAY Producer)
As I was breathing the exhaust fumes inside the Lincoln Tunnel waiting for AAA to come change my flat tire on my way back from a long day shooting an open house, I thought about the all things I go through for my job. For example painting a stranger's home to help viewers learn how to sell theirs. This is where my latest work adventure ended.
Generally speaking, as a professional journalist, I adhere to the ethos that I shall never stage any event, as this goes against the most basic principles of journalism. But my latest project was a bit of an exception, and in fact, everything was completely “staged”, since this concept is best defined as "working to improve one's house to maximize the value ahead of a potential buyer's offer."
Staging a home…how complicated could that be? It seems simple enough, right? Well, no, not at all, actually. Our goal was to provide some simple ways to improve your home on the cheap, and to make it more appealing for a buyer.
In a matter of days TODAY found three willing homeowners who are trying to sell their homes. While some may be ready for improvements, the idea of a bunch of strangers coming into your place, turning it upside down can be stressful. Nonetheless, we found three willing souls, and proceeded with a ratio of one producer to one residence. Shortly thereafter, I found myself in northern New Jersey, staring at the house that would be my project.
As the producer for Day 1 of Barbara Corcoran's 3-part series on "Setting The Stage" - I had a few concerns about our assigned $100 budget. But our resident real estate guru Barbara Corcoran assured me it was possible. WATCH VIDEO
Having experienced a few home sales and moves myself, (and subsequent punishment for tracking mud in the house as a kid, right before a showing) I had some ideas in mind as to what this project would entail, and I thought that it would be more of an opportunity to witness some new decorating ideas. But, with the tight budget, I realized we had our work cut out for us - gardening, painting, decluttering, rearranging furniture and lots of cleaning. The list goes on and on, but the basic idea is that the homeowner can do the work without paying much. For our segment we had a few extra sets of hands that I was responsible for finding, and in the end, we spent only $91 on our project - and the money was all spent on paint. For three days, as I "staged" in various capacities - I wondered how Journalism school actually prepared me for this task.
By the 3rd day, it was clear that major progress had been made as the living room was no longer recognizable, the walls sported a fresh coat of paint, and the yard looked quite well manicured. By the end of the project, we were all quite excited - excited to be done fixing up a stranger's home. The owners were thrilled with their "new" home, but at times wondered where their belongings had disappeared to. Barbara Corcoran's tips include neutralizing the bathroom & taking everything off the kitchen counters. So needless to say, those everyday items were out of sight when the owners got home.
With the home tastefully staged within our $100 budget - I think we did a terrific job getting this house ready for the market. Actually, I guess I should say it was ready for the market, since it already has an offer. I now can understand why the average staged home sells in just 7 days. It looks like I'll have to "stage" another story when I go sell my own one bedroom apartment in New York City.
