“The King Staged Closet Has No Clothes” Conventional staging wisdom when it comes to closets (yes, there is such a thing, at least for a walk-in master closet in a more expensive home) is that two-thirds full is optimal. Less than that, and the closet looks too empty; more than that, and it looks too...Read More
The Opposite of “Easier Said Than Done” Real estate sales is a field (like many other, I’m sure) where a lot of things are “easier said than done.” Get Sellers to price realistically? “Easier said than done.” Persuade homeowners to spend a relatively nominal amount on staging, that will help sell their home faster, for...Read More
Three Quibbles A new study purports to put a number on the value of curb appeal: 7%. The study’s authors did that by analyzing Google Street View photos and sales data from 88,980 properties in the greater Denver area. Specifically, they performed these three steps: “The researchers manually scored a set of properties, grading 400 images...Read More
Realtor “Atta-Boy”: “Nice Listing!’ A new listing has a surprising number of parallels with the opening of a Broadway play. There’s the opening night anticipation. There are the hopes (and fears) about whether the audience (prospective Buyers) will like it. And there can be a sense of dread about what the toughest critics will have...Read More
Setting the Bar (Way) Too High One of my favorite Op-Ed page cartoons shows an unconscious patient being operated on by a team of surgeons. Suddenly, there’s a spike in the patient’s vital signs, whereupon he bolts upright, and loudly announces to the laboring surgeons: “You should know that I’m the most successful personal injury...Read More
When? How Much? If an otherwise well-staged, well-marketed home isn’t selling after a reasonable interval on the market**, a price reduction is invariably indicated. How big? It all depends on how overpriced the home appears to be. Toss Out the CMA Once a home is actually on the market, interest from prospective Buyers ” or...Read More
