Realty Freak

My Diagnosis; CRAZY

It is often said half jokingly that a good real estate agent is part psychologist, so for all you other arm chair therapists out there, tell me what you think of this feedback report I received on one of my listings.

1. How was the curb appeal of this home? Excellent Good Fair Poor

2. What was the appearance of the interior of the home? Clean and well-kept Average Improvement Needed

3. Are there any features of the home that are distracting or disagreeable? None Painting Carpet Decorating Appliances Furniture

4. Does the listing depict the property accurately? Yes Not sure No

5. Is the property priced within market value? Yes Not sure No

6. Do you have any other comments, suggestions or questions? Shows well, my client liked it but she had a tester for electronic frequencies and said the home had a bad reading

My diagnosis; the client has a fear of taking ownership of her decisions, she is using “electronic frequencies” as a way of not having to decide for herself whether or not she likes the condo enough to buy it.  My advice for her is to seek real therapy.  My advice for the agent is to learn how to better qualify her clients, even if this person buys eventually, it is doubtful her ROI on time spent will be worth it.

More Snake Oil

According to this ad by Property Image Consultants; it's an "accepted fact that staged homes sell faster and for more money."  I assume they mean to say that staged homes sell faster and for more money than homes that are not staged.  Problem is, I have NEVER seen a shred of statistically significant evidence that shows a positive correlation (much less causality) between staged homes and sale price or time on market.

So I say to all staging consultants that it's neither a fact nor accepted that home staging does anything except maybe rip people off.  If anyone can prove otherwise, let me know.