A savvy homeowner looking to stage their vacant condo in Richmond BC did extensive research to find Enjy Fouad of Envious Design. They interviewed a panel of a few other reputable stagers, but hired Envious Design. What made them stand out was their services package tailored for each individual project. It includes project coordination, contractor referral, color consultation, and of course Enjy’s favourite – home staging. The client was SOLD on Envious Design’s tailored services package.

Envious Design decided to use Fluff Rentals to source from their warehouse of contemporary furnishings. The staff at Fluff are great and it’s always great fun to shop for the client’s property. The best part of all is staging the property with all the handpicked furniture, accessories, and decor pieces from Fluff. The realtor that this was the best staged property he had seen, and that it showcased the client’s property to its best potential and made it the best looking unit within the building.
After the completion of the colour consultation, project coordination on time and staging his property, both my client and his realtor were so pleased with the dramatic shabby to Envious results! The client was very happy that he was able to hire a home staging company that help him with all his project needs from A to Z.

Living Room (Before)

Living Room (After)

Dining Room (Before)

Dining Room (After)

Bedroom (Before)

Bedroom (After)

I had recently rented some original art from our local Vancouver Art Gallery for a $4.5million dollar penthouse I was staging. Many PRES members have their own art, or source from rental furnishing companies but on occasion we all need something a bit more upscale! The art rentals is the non-profit organizational arm of the Vancouver Art Gallery. Local artists provide pieces on consignment and they are rented out for a portion of their asking price. The average rental is about $70 per month with over 1200 original pieces of art done by Canadian artists!

After having such a terrific experience with Donna Partridge, Manager and her fantastic assistant Holly, I asked if we could hold our monthly meeting at the Vancouver Art Gallery Art Rentals area. She thought it was a great idea and so the PRES members met and one even signed up as a volunteer she loved the art so much!

If you have never sourced from your local art gallery see if that is an option that is available to you. There are many art galleries that will rent art that is on consignment from local artists. Check it out in your area it is a WIN-WIN for all concerned!

Dana J. Smithers – Founder & Creative Director – PRES Staging Resource Centre

If you are still unsure about taking that ‘leap of faith’ and living your dream of becoming a Home Stager, then please join me LIVE for the PRES Staging Webinar on Thursday February 18, 2010 from 7:00 PM to 8:00 PM Pacific Standard Time. I will go through the PRES home staging AND redesign course and answer any questions you may have!

You will also receive a SPECIAL OFFER just by joining the webinar!

All you need is your computer and your phone. Make sure all your programs are closed except your internet and you will get a better connection.

FOLLOW THESE STEPS:

1. On Thursday night go to your computer and CLICK or Cut and Paste this link in your internet browser:

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/join/575894843

2. Phone in to get on the webinar call and listen to the prompts:

Dial +1 416 900 1165

Access Code: 575-894-843

Audio PIN: Shown after joining the meeting (if you are calling in my phone you just press #the two digit pin number#)

Meeting ID: 575-894-843

On the webinar you will have an opportunity to ask questions and find out answers to any questions you may have. I look forward to talking with you!

You will only receive a SPECIAL OFFER by joining the webinar!

FRASER VALLEY REAL ESTATE TRADE SHOW

Mila Herenda of MIZO DESIGN SOLUTIONS coordinated a booth at the Fraser Valley Real Estate Trade Show held in early February with Nancy Glover of MIND YOUR MATTER. Other PRES members participating were Yvonne Swain of HINT OF ELEGANCE and Sally Weatherley of EXIT STAGE RIGHT.

They all had a great time collaborating for this event, and enjoyed meeting real estate professionals. It was interesting to learn that some realtors already had strong affiliations with staging companies, while others were just starting out and were just learning about staging. Some didn’t believe in staging, while others embraced our industry.

We were fortunate to have the support of READY, SET, SHOW of North Vancouver, who were very kind in supplying furniture rental at a generous discount. Yes, the rug you see is from 18 Karat and part of READY, SET, SHOW’s inventory.

GreenApple Staging & Images at the Calgary Real EstateBoard Tradeshow

The Calgary Real Estate Board Conference and Tradeshow event was held on January 20th.  GreenApple Staging & Images was proud and excited to be an exhibitor, among approximately 100 others, all contributing to the theme, “A Brave New World”.

The GreenApple team had a great time mingling with both the attendees and other exhibitors. We had tons of traffic at our booth and got a chance to meet so many hardworking and forward thinking Realtors.

There is definitely an increased interest this year in Home Staging, professional Real estate Photography, and pre-market Consultations as part of an individual Agent’s marketing package. All part of the new economy. I believe these strategies are not just trends — they are definitely here to stay as our society continues to emphasize visual media.

It wasn’t all business! We had some fun, too, with our visitors . . .

Oh, and would you believe that every single lunch kit at the event contained nothing other than a green apple?!

Our booth was staged with our brand colors — black, white and apple green, of course — and we were happily surprised that GreenApple was declared one of the top 3 Staging Exhibitors! All were tied with an Honorable Mention for booth design and service. I was told by the judges that they just couldn’t choose between us.
Not bad for our first showing — we’ll take it!

We also held a draw and have given away a Pre-Market Consultation package and an MLS Photography Package. When I called the winners today, they were thrilled and are eager to apply these services to their next listing.

It’ll be all work and no play for awhile, as the “Spring” real estate season seems well underway already in Calgary. But that is exactly what we bargained for!

Thanks to everyone who visited us at the event, and all of those others who supported us in other ways.  We appreciate it!

Deena Cottingham & her team of GreenApple Staging

For all of 2009, the PRES Resource Centre decided we wanted to help more charities and found a way to do this. Instead of asking for a payment to PRES, for our training home clients, we asked them to make a donation on our behalf. And they did and we are grateful!!!

Some of the charitable donations were made to Canuck Place, Covenant House, Childrens’ Wish Foundation, Food Bank, BC Children’s Hospital and Big Brothers.

We look forward to spreading the wealth and abundance that we all have to those less fortunate at this time in their life.

With Complete Gratitude from the PRES Staging Resource Centre THANK YOU!

During the PRES 5 day staging & redesign course we do our ‘hands-on’ practicum in real client’s homes. Some definitely are ‘show homes’ and some are just wonderful, everyday family homes. We do both home makeovers for selling (staging) and home makeovers for living (redesign). Both are home transformations that often leave our clients SPEECHLESS!!!

This is a testimonial from a home we did this week:

“I was really excited for Dana and her students to come to my home. I am having company for Xmas and I really wanted my home to look its best. When I came home for the reveal I was (almost) speechless. I could hardly recognize this as my home. The transformation was absolutely amazing. I couldn’t believe they just used my things and made such a beautiful home for me and my family in just one day. My husband thought I had bought new furniture but when he realized it was just the creative work we had done he said WOW! He thinks you are the best!”

Teresa and Melwyn, North Burnaby BC

If you want to become a PRES Training Home contact us at info@PresStaging.com for 2010!

What a great night at the Kensington Paint & Decorating Benjamin Moore store in Burnaby. Thanks Tim and Eric Rasmussen! Guests enjoyed a fun night of learning about 3 of the key areas to preparing your house for selling – Decluttering & depersonalizing; highlighting architectural features with correct furniture placement and choosing the right paint colours. Jeffrey Murray, the BM Rep did a great job of explaining the technical aspects of paint. BM has some great new paints out Aura for one is great because it dries within 1 hour and no primer is needed; they have some new eco-friendly paints with no VOC omissions.

Most of the technical goes right over my head because I just love to pick the colours!

This is great news for those of us already in the business and those who are thinking about it. Think no more!!! While this is a USA stat, Canada is always close behind. For the entire article go to this link:

HOME STAGING #1 EMERGING CAREER

By Rachel Zupek
CareerBuilder.com writer

Editor’s note: CNN.com has a business partnership with CareerBuilder.com, which serves as the exclusive provider of job listings and services to CNN.com.

In today’s uncertain job market, even the jobs once marked as “recession-proof” are not as safe as we thought. So where should you focus your job search? Several trends — existing and emerging — continue to drive job growth and creation throughout the United States. Developments in technology, health care, environmentalism and globalization, as well as current trends in the economy are clearing the path for several cutting-edge careers to surface.

If you’re in the market for a new job, here are seven emerging careers that are making a mark and poised for growth in the coming years. Please note that salary and job growth information is not collected for all positions because of the size and awareness of each job.

1. Home Stager
The real-estate market is not what it used to be and homes are taking longer to sell. Potential buyers usually decide how much they like a property by picturing their own possessions in the house. That’s not always easy if the home is cluttered with unattractive décor and furnishings. House stagers work with real-estate agents and their clients to improve the appearance of their home and make it more appealing for potential buyers.
Industry umbrella: Interior design
Job growth: N/A
Salary: Most stagers are self-employed and set their own fees. Prices may vary from $75 for an initial consultation to $500 for staging an entire house.

Very good news indeed and we have gone from a ‘buyer’s market’ to a ‘seller’s’ market these past few months.

I can’t believe it is already May! The market has picked up so that’s great news. I have been busy finishing my two new ebooks for the DIY seller who wants to get their home ready for selling. These ebooks were created for people who really like to do their own home staging and with the economy being what it is, might want to save themselves some money.

Make no mistake though, the PRES stagers are the best in the business and you may want to start with our professionals and determine what you can do on your own.

Up until May 11th you can purchase Do-It-Yourself Home Staging: Getting Ready for an Open House in 10 Easy Steps for $19.97 and for a Limited Time Only you can receive my mini-ebook on Creating Curb Appeal that Sells! Then the price goes up to $47 still a great bargain – a small investment worth a whole lot more when you sell your house!

Check it out: Do-It-Yourself Home Staging will take you room to room, divulging expert tips and techniques on how to de-clutter, de-personalize and rearrange your home so that it will attract the most prospective buyers. This ebook is a hands-on, economical approach for home staging. It’s so simple, with or without any previous decorating experience, you will be able to follow along easily and achieve exceptional results.

Full of tips, checklists and before-and-after pictures, Do It Yourself Home Staging leaves no room untouched, providing you the most comprehensive plan for getting your home “open house ready” in such a way that saves you time, money and energy!

Happy Selling!