Identifying your client’s posture for the staging process
A stager offers a blunt demarcation between a homeowner's view of their listing as their “home” or as their most “valuable asset.”
More so than even signing the agreement with you as their listing agent or seeing the sign go up in their front yard, watching a stranger, albeit a friendly one, move a few pieces around your home to make it ready for photos is a weird place to be in.
I’ve played this “stranger” role countless times and it appears that homeowners often find themselves in one of a few postures relating to the staging process.
You can assist the staging process to go very smoothly by identifying what posture your client is at with the process, and helping them accordingly:
The “have at it’s” -- these are the people who have made the transfer from home to the most valuable asset as the property sells and all of their goodies are sorted and packed. They prefer to either stay out of your way or not be at home at all for the process.
The “how can I help’s” -- these clients are in the process of transfer, they’re helpful and curious and overall, enjoy seeing what their space will look like through a “professional’s” eyes.
The “I’m not okay with this” -- these clients are the most fragile. They are still very much attached to their home and see it as such, their home. It defines them, holds their memories, and to some degree, their worth. These clients hover, they critique, they question with doubt. It is these types of sellers that need gentleness and kindness. Most of all, they need to hear that the presence and work of a stager in your home is NOT a judgment of your worth or the home you’ve created for the people you love the most.
The stager is there to create a space that allows a buyer to imagine themselves writing their own story within the home for the people they love the most.
Staging with Farrington means partnering with a stager who understands the unique postures of homeowners when it comes time to part with their home, honoring their spaces and stories, and helping them get through the home selling process regardless of which posture they begin in.