After several months on the market, and some bad advice from the first realtor, I decided that it…read morewas probably time to address some cosmetic issues and do some staging on my late mother's 1956 Corvallis home, which had never been updated. Needless to say, the house had issues, including a roof at the very end of its life, an awful pet urine odor, evidence of previous rodent activity, dirty, chipping plaster walls, some nasty wallpaper and panelling, outdated lighting and flooring, outdated bathrooms (one of which had carpet, eww), no baseboards, and uneven flooring in some places. I reside in Colorado, which added a whole other level of difficulty and frustration. (Trying to sell a home 1300 miles away is VERY difficult, especially for a Type A personality...)
I had contacted a contractor for an estimate. On a whim I did a Google search for home stagers in the area to stage the home once the work was done. I found Creative Concepts reviews, and spent quite a bit of time on their website reading articles and reviewing before and after photos. I also found their Facebook page. I decided to contact them for a staging estimate. Through our correspondence, Margaret let me know that her company also does contracting, and she would like to take a look at the home and provide a second estimate.
I am SO glad I agreed! Margaret was very honest, and had to convince me on a couple of items that she felt would make a big impact for buyers walking through the door. She looked at everything through the eyes of a buyer. She also informed me of the bad advice that my realtor had given me. After a conversation with another realtor friend who agreed the advice was terrible, I terminated the agreement and found another local realtor.
The estimate I was provided was VERY fair and reasonable, and actually a little lower than the other contractor I had been working with. I had a fairly small budget ($18,000) to address the numerous problems. Somehow, she was able to address all of the issues, and then some, within that budget. Very shortly thereafter, she and her team began the work.
My prior contractor stated it would take 6 weeks to complete. Margaret's team completed the work in 2. Immediately following the construction, she staged the home BEAUTIFULLY! I have NEVER seen my mother's house look so warm and inviting. Just stunning.
We were back on the market in no time, and listed the home over $40,000 higher than our original list price. In less than 3 weeks on the market, we had a very strong offer - $59,000 higher than any other offer we had received when we first listed all those months ago. (Do the math: The home was originally on the market for 4 months, and the highest offer we received was $220,000. For an $18,000 investment, we were under contract for $279,000 in less than 3 weeks. Amazing!)
While the house was under contract, we experienced an unfortunate break-in. Within 30 minutes of hearing about the break-in, Margaret and her team were back in the house fixing the busted doors and changing locks. An immediate response, which I was so very grateful for.
I cannot recommend Creative Concepts enough. Margaret was incredibly responsive throughout the project (very respectfully putting up with all of my anal-retentive emails needing to know every little detail of the project). Her design was spot-on, and she was absolutely CORRECT in her advice. I wish I had known months prior about Creative Concepts, as it would have saved me a lot of stress, a lot of money and time, and at least 50 gray hairs.
I am forever grateful for Creative Concepts. My husband and I own a rental property in Salem, and will definitely be using her services again for any updating/construction projects while we own the home, and staging when/if we sell it.
Folks, do yourself a favor and call Creative Concepts for a consultation BEFORE you list your home. You will not regret it. Margaret and her impeccable design eye will help you make your home look it's very best, appeal to buyers, and get your home SOLD much more quickly.
