"Yes, I'm so sorry, but the bowling trophies have to go."
"Yes, I understand you're really proud of them."
"You have a lot of them and they are displayed in every room of your house. "
"No, you don't have to throw them away. You can pack them up to display in your next home."
"Really, potential buyers won't be interested in how good a bowler you are. The trophies will just be a distraction."
"Not everyone loves bowling as much as you do. Advertising that a semi-almost-couldhavebeen-a professional bowler lives in this house is not a good marketing tactic. You'll have to trust me on this."
"Having a beautiful mirror and some nice candlesticks on the living room fireplace mantle, rather than bowling trophies, will make it more attractive to potential buyers."
"Yes, you have to remove the trophies from the shelves you installed to display them on in the master bedroom, too. We want to make the master bedroom feel like a nice hotel or a spa retreat."
"Yes, as a professional home stager, I really do know what I'm talking about when I tell you what you need to do to get your home ready to sell. My job is to make your home attractive to the greatest number of potential buyers."
"Now about that bowling ball fountain in the front yard..."
Photo Credit: Uncle Bumpy on Flickr
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2010 RESA Professional Stager of the Year
Michelle has staged hundreds of Los Angeles homes, many of which have sold with multiple offers, above listing price.
She works with home sellers, listing agents and asset managers to prepare homes for sale throughout Los Angeles.
Moving Mountains Design provides vacant home staging, occupied home staging, color consultations, corporate and executive relocations, move organization, redesign, and interior design. We also stage model homes, REOs,foreclosures and auction properties for real estate investors and asset managers.
For more information about our Los Angeles home staging services, contact Michelle at (626)385-8852 or by email.
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What about my Nascar lamps? Can I keep them?
Michelle - In today's market, sellers can definitely use the advice of a professional stager. Understanding how to present a home in its best light is critical.
Hmmm...depends upon your market demographic, Laraine :o)
LOL - GREAT example of overcoming the Collections Objections! I recently had a Seller with a ton of baseball trophies - this conversation could have been verbatim.
(I've recently seen some "decorating" shows where they used old bowling balls as "lawn art" in the rock & sand gardens.... the fountain for this buyer wasn't in the middle of one of those yards, was it? ;)
Oh you stagers are just no fun at all. I suppose next you will tell me that the eight foot long dark mahogony china cabinet packed full of Hummel Figurines has to go too :-)
Connie: This was written with "tongue firmly in cheek". All of us professional home stagers, and many real estate agents, who have been in business for a while have had a similar conversation with a client.
Cindy: You mean the 8' long dark mahogony china cabinet that's placed on the 7' long wall and juts into the doorway to the dining room? The one you have to shimmy past to get to the other side of the room? I don't know...what do you think? (wink)
Michelle, I had to laugh at this. I just saw this in a home for sale....there were so many it took over the room (which wasn't very big to begin with :)
I'm glad I made you laugh, Carole.
Hey Michelle, it's the sacred golf shrines here in GA I have to deal with. Oohh and that side eye hairy eyeball stare could cut me like a knife when I tell them they need to be packed away!
Michelle, reminds me of my seller with the 14 foot high palm tree lamp in the entry. Thanks for giving me my Monday laugh.
LOL! Were you at the home I just staged?? Too funny! Thanks for letting them know the trophies needed to go.
OR....the house that looks more like an Antique Store than a home....make it go away!!
uhmmmm would that be the same as a sword collection, went into a home that the first thing you saw when walking into the home, was a collection of swords on the wall, about 8 of them, they were purdy, but, what do you think? Leave them or take them away???? <evil grin>
Oh wait you mean a buyer will not want to see the trophies ??? and the photos of all the deceased grandparents ??? lol
Cynthia: Just thinking of that hairy eyeball gives me the willies!
Kathy: A laugh on Monday is always a good thing. I can't even imagine a 14' palm tree lamp.
Cathy: As you know, once you've been staging for a while, you get to see a lot of things you wish you didn't:o)
Kathy: People do love their antiques. A few (if appropriate to the house and in scale) are OK, but too many...not so much!
Randy: Samurai or Civil War Military? IMHO, things like swords, guns, bows & arrows, etc. should be prepacked. Besides those items are prime targets for theives.
Mary Lou: Ancestor photos need to be prepacked along with the trophies!
Hilarious only because this is SO true Michelle!
When I recommend removing all of the little league trophies (and there are MANYto be had here with all the children), I'm given the evil eye. Then when I proceed to the removal of the religious collections, I am truly evil.
I've learned to bring up these issues in our first phone call, BEFORE I see the home or meet them, so they are not so SHOCKED when I bring it up in their home.
Debra: Many people are shocked to learn that not all home buyers share their taste and may actually be offended by what is displayed in the home. People who really want to sell their home will comply, but the ones that don't aren't that committed to selling. Good idea to broach the subject beforehand.
It's so true, I don't know whether to laugh or cry!
I just really don't understand why some home owners are so resistant to starting to pack some stuff up. I mean, they want to move, they're selling their house . . . so why don't they want to make the process go as quickly as possible??
I like Debra's tip above . . . mentioning it on the phone before you even know what's in their house . . . maybe it's less personal??