Head Logo
January 2008 Newsletter
January 2008 - Issue 16 < >
In This Issue
Sign Up
Quick Links
Happy New Year!

2008 CandlesAs Christmas decorations are put away (well, almost) and the New Year begins, we are thankful that 2007 has been a productive and prosperous year at Staged Interior. We are blessed to have worked with so many Real Estate professionals and homeowners to have their houses staged and sold. We appreciate our family and friends who helped and encouraged us and most importantly prayed for us during that extremely busy time.

In January we are already seeing vibrant activity in "Staged Interior Staged Home Sales." We have taken on new roles in the ASP Staging community and are continuing to focus on educating Real Estate professionals and homeowners concerning the benefits of staging. We are looking forward to an even greater year in 2008 for Staged Interior Staged home sales activity.

Please call us now to prepare your house for sale for the spring market and have your miracle stories featured. Let's have a great year!

Trish

Washington DC IAHSP Chapter Logo
As the news media are already pounding us with US Presidential campaign news, we are glad to let you know that one election is already decided. I was nominated and elected in December as the 2008 President of Washington DC Chapter of International Association of Home Staging Professionals (IAHSP), and my husband Young was elected to chair Membership and Public Relations Committees. We are thankful that our local ASP Home Staging community of over 250 ASP Stagers has trusted us to take on these roles.

The International Association of Home Staging Professionals is dedicated to fostering a stronger professional environment by building on its member's knowledge, helping create business opportunities, fostering a sense of community within the Staging profession, and increasing IAHSP's identity in the industry. The IAHSP association encourages the further education of its members. Earning the Accredited Staging Professional designation is one of the major goals of many Home Staging professionals in our industry. IAHSP is here to serve its members and to bring networking opportunities, business building ideas, and new skills to each Stager who joins our association.
Picture of staged room
You would imagine that January would be a dormant season in Real Estate, but we are excited that three of the homes we staged went under contract within the last few weeks in January. One of these is a beautiful townhome in Old Town Alexandria, which is the only interior unit home sold in the neighborhood since August of 2007. After the seller, Jeff, called us to have his house staged before he even selected a Realtor, he de-cluttered and had the house painted according to Trish's specifications. His house actually was sold twice - the first buyer backed out and purchased an end unit instead. Jeff's perseverance paid off and his house is sold this month. Jeff says:
"Thanks again for everything. I really enjoyed working with you and your team. The process was simple and painless and the investment was well worth it. I had no idea how great an impression the staged home would make. Of the 100 people that toured through the house, nearly all of them commented on how beautifully the home was staged. People were even asking what colors we used on the walls! Not only would I make sure to stage my house on my next sale, I would strongly recommend your services to those currently in the process of listing a home."
Thank you Jeff for hanging in there with your upbeat and positive attitude! You were most pleasant to work with.
Before and After Pictures of Living Room
(This house was staged by Trish's team and sold in 3 weeks)

Try looking at your house "THROUGH THE BUYER'S EYES" as though you've never seen it or been there before. Any time or money invested on the following will bring back more money in return, and hopefully a faster sale.
  1. Clear all unnecessary objects from furniture throughout the house. Keep decorative objects on the furniture restricted to groups of 1, 3, or 5 items.
  2. Clear all unnecessary objects from the kitchen countertops. If it hasn't been used for three months... put it away! Clear refrigerator fronts of messages, pictures, etc. (A sparse kitchen helps the buyer mentally move their own things into your kitchen.)
  3. In the bathroom, remove any unnecessary items from countertops, tubs, shower stalls and commode tops. Keep only your most needed cosmetics, brushes,perfumes etc.., in one small group on the counter. Coordinate towels to one or two colors only.
  4. Rearrange or remove some of the furniture if necessary. As owners, many times we have too much furniture in a room. This is wonderful for our own personal enjoyment, but when it comes to selling, we need to thin out as much as possible to make rooms appear larger.
  5. Take down, or rearrange certain pictures or objects on walls. Patch and paint if necessary.
  6. Review the house inside room by room, and
    • Paint any room needing paint.
    • Clean carpets or drapes that need it.
    • Clean Windows.
  7. If you need room to store extra posessions use the garage or rent a storage unit. Leave on certain lights during the day. During "showings" turn on all lights and lamps.
  8. Have stereo FM on during the day for all viewings.

* This article was printed from StagedHomes.com with permission

Trish KimAbout Trish Kim

Accredited Staging Professional Master
2007 Barb Schwarz Staging Excellence Award Nominee
President, DC Chapter of
     International Association of Home Staging Professionals

Trish Kim has been bringing her clients unique interior design experiences in Washington DC Metropolitan area since 1988. She is the owner and design consultant of Pendleton & Young, Inc., doing business as StagedInterior.com, and is an Accredited Staging Professional Master - ASPM, the only staging professional with a Master designation in Northern Virginia as accredited by StagedHomes. StagedHomes is recognized as the leading international training organization, teaching staging professionals the skills to effectively stage homes for their clients and give them the Staged Home advantage. Trish was personally trained and mentored by Barb Schwarz, the creator of the staging home concept, and is a member of International Association of Home Staging Professionals, IASHP. Trish's strengths are in creative spatial arrangement, color coordination and composition, which create the "WOW!" factor so essential in giving sellers the needed edge in this market. Her talents are evidenced by the Before and After presentations. Trish is married to her husband Young Kim, an ASP and the business manager for Staged Interior, and has two grown children and a daughter-in-law in Fairfax. She also has mastered the art of spoiling two precious grandchildren, Jake and Tasha.

Staged Interior TeamStaged Interior Staging Team

All of the successful staging projects are not accomplished by one person but by many. With Trish's leadership and creativity, we work with a team of Accredited Staging Professionals (ASP's) and ASP's only. With ASP's Code of Ethics and Standards as the foundation, each member brings her experience, talent, creativity and, yes, muscle power to the team. The joy of successful staging and the quick sale thereof is shared by all team members.

We are looking forward to working with you so that your miracle stories can be featured in our next newsletters. Until next time have a great holiday season!

Member of:

  • Northern Virginia Association of Realtors
  • Dulles Area Association of Realtors
  • International Association of Home Staging professionals
  • Staged Homes

Sincerely,

 Trish Kim
Accredited Staging Professional (ASP™) Master

phone: 703-261-7026

Forward this Newsletter to a Friend
Staged Interior | Pendleton & Young, Inc. | Centreville | VA | 20121