Just came back from Las Vegas from the yearly RESA Staging Convention - a place where stagers from North America and around the world gather once a year to learn from the experts, meet new stagers, participate to the Awards ceremony and have some fun.
This year I had the honour to be voted as one of the finalists in the "2012 RESA Professional Stager of the Year" - Canada. I also nominated my favourite real estate agent, Arsen Gulesserian from Remax Crossroads Realty Inc. in the "2012 RESA Realtor of the Year" - Canada.
We both won the award for our category!!
So here I am with Christine Rae holding 2 awards, "2012 RESA Professional Stager of the Year" and "2012 RESA Realtor of the Year" - Canada in front of the CCSP booth.
I am so honoured and thankful for the RESA members who voted for us so we were selected as finalists, for the jury who chose us:), for the RESA organization that gives us, stagers, legibility and support, for the CCSP family and of course for my husband who took care of our lives while I was too busy trying to make a name for myself in the staging industry.
I could not have done it without you.
Monica Stanciu is the Founder and Principal Decorator at Staged 2 Sell Solutions Inc., a full service Home Staging and Design Corporation, internationally recognized leader within the home staging industry, located in Markham, York Region, Ontario.
Monica is the recipient of the prestigious "2012 RESA Professional Stager of the Year"- Canada and the CSP "2011-2012 Mentor of the Year" Awards.
Monica has a showroom full of high end accessories, furniture pieces and quality artwork to better serve their growing clientele in GTA. She has been featured in Staging Standard Magazine, Cornell Crier, Acasa newspaper and CREW magazine.
Staged 2 Sell Solutions Inc.services Real Estate Agents, Investors and Home Owners in the Toronto - GTA area and has helped stage, market and sell over $350 million worth of real estate since 2007.
Call us today: 416-912-6734 to see how we can help you with our outstanding staging and redesign services!!
...We don't just transform spaces, we transform lives...
Winners to Be Announced in Las Vegas at the Industry’s Yearly Convention February 1, 2012
Markham, ON – December 5, 2011 Monica Stanciu of Staged 2 Sell Solutions Inc. is named as a finalist in the Real Estate Staging Association™ (RESA®) Home Staging Industry Award™ in the Professional Stager of the Year category. Industry professionals from all over North America submitted for consideration for the industry’s most prestigious awards.
The RESA® Home Staging Industry Awards™ are the most prestigious awards in the home staging industry. Home Staging professionals from all across North America compete. RESA® will recognize professional stagers in different regions of North America and each of those winners will compete for the overall awarding of the RESA® Professional Stager of the Year™ and the RESA Rookie Stager of the Year™. RESA® also recognizes a Product or Service of the Year™, a REALTOR® of the Year™, Spouse of the Year™, and Best Occupied Staging in both the United States and Canada.
“RESA® congratulates and recognizes each person for their contributions to our industry. Our Industry Awards are a wonderful way to give back to the staging industry as a whole and to recognize some amazing people” said, Shell Brodnax, President/CEO of RESA.
“I am thrilled to be a finalist in this category, I am blessed to be able to help my clients and it is very rewarding when others notice. Sometimes we are so focused on what's in front of us and we forget to look at the road behind us, to see how far we have come.“ says Monica Stanciu, President of Staged 2 Sell Solutions Inc.
The finalists will be judged by a panel of industry professionals and the winners will be announced at the RESA Home Staging International Convention, February 1, 2012 in Las Vegas.
For more information regarding Real Estate Staging, please visit www.RealEstateStagingAssociation.com or www.RESAConvention.com or call 888-201-8687
For more information on Monica Stanciu of Staged 2 sell Solutions Inc. visit www.staged2sell.ca, or call 416.912.6734
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When everybody is scared that the sky is falling down in the Canadian Real Estate market, this property sold in half day at asking price.
Once again, a well priced property, a great listing agent and professional staging were the winning combination for this success.The sellers moved out from the property at the time of staging, so we brought in contemporary furniture pieces, accessories and props to make this townhouse stand our from the competition.
It went on the MLS on Friday morning, by noon the property was sold firm - November 2010
Please click here to see the transformation.
After few months of organizing, packing and sourcing shelving and storage solutions, and looking for ideas from my fellow activerainers, we made it.
Staged 2 Sell Solutions has its own showroom now and we are very excited. With over 70K worth of staging inventory, selecting, packing and loading the staging truck is so much easier now. Everything is organized by colour and function, furniture on heavy duty shelves to make use of the vertical space... it is great to go there every morning. We organized the space with a little showroom to meet and greet redesign clients and real estate agents.
Having a store front, we designed a big sign that already brought us clients and will use the windows to showcase our current projects. Getting excited as I write:)
As staging consultants I am sure you got to see lots of weird things. I did. And met fantastic people too.
Last week I did a staging consultation to a beautiful townthouse in Markham, which is a suburb of Toronto. While I just found the usual on the main and second floor, the basement was another story: an oversized glass cage with 2 CROCODILES. Although the glass structure was something that a ZOO can take some inspiration from, I don't think the crocodiles can help in any way with the selling of the house.
In fact the property was on the market for quite a bit, with no much interest, this is why I was brought in.
After some negotiations, the owner agreed to remove the cage and put the crocodiles in a pet hotel while the house is on the market.
I am just curious: what are some of the extravagant things you found over the years in your clients' properties?
When I get a call to do a staging consultation I ask the standard questions: how big is the property, location, number of bedrooms, finished basement or not, etc... the usual. But no matter how detailed this information can be, until I see the property in person, the property is just an address and a consultation time in my Blackberry.
Then the connection happens: I "meet" the property, the Real Estate Agent, then the homeowners who let me go in every room and open their closets:). This is when I feel I become a member of the "selling team": the agent, the homeowners and the staging consultant. It happened when I "met" the 26 Foxwood Rd., Thornhill Woods.
This property was a stager's dream: sparkling clean, great rooms, plenty of original art and some great antique pieces. The living room needed some furniture as it was almost empty and the family room needed an update. These are the only rooms where we brought rental furniture, in rest we just borrowed some pieces from other rooms and some of the existing furniture went in the basement, where we created a Rec Room. The homeowners were open to my suggestions and did their homework: pack and store the China Cabinet and the hutch from the Dining Room, lots of packing and storing, moved and stored the furniture from the family room...
There is a challenge in each staging project. Here I wanted to use as much of the homeowners' original classic art and antique pieces, but I needed to make the property appealing for the buyer's demographic, average age: 38. We had to stay very formal in the Living/Dining Room as we used the existing altique pieces in the dining area, but we went a bit more contemporary in the family room. We brought in some mirrors, art, coordinated accessories for the entire house and the end result is shown in the link below.
Were we successful?
www.26foxwood.com
This is the virtual tour provided by my agent partner, Arsen Gullesserian. I will post the Before pictures in my next entry.
Below is a summary of Cornell Projects for 2010 and beyond, as per Steve H. - www.cornellvillage.ca
Transportation
Donald Cousens Parkway - Work is expected to begin next year on the portion south of the 407 that will connect to 9th line north of Steeles. Completion is expected in 2011.
Bus Terminal - This terminal is planned for the south side of Hwy 7 near Donald Cousens Parkway. The project is expected to start in 2011 with completion in 2013.
16th Ave & Reesor Rd - New intersection to remove jog in road as well as new 2 lane bridge just East of Reesor Rd. Existing single lane wooden bridge will be kept for pedestrian traffic. Project is expected to start in 2011.
Public Projects
Community Centre and Library - The Community Centre will be located on Bur Oak Ave (south of Church street). It will connect with the Hospital and will contain a swimming pool with slide and splash pad, triple gym, library, rehearsal room, fitness centre, youth and seniors room. RFP is expected to go out in spring of 2010 with construction to start in the summer of 2010. Community Centre is expected to take 2 years to build (2012 completion).
Hospital Expansion - The 1st phase of clearing land, installing sewage and building parking lots started this fall with completion expected by summer of 2010. Once final approval is given from the Provincial Government, the hospital expansion is expected to start in the fall of 2010 with final completion expected by 2014.
Cornell Rouge Public School - Current plans are for this school to open in 2013. This date could get pushed up due to the full time Kindergarden program getting implemented.
Fire Hall - Construction of the Fire Hall on Bur Oak, just south of the Community Centre, is expected to start the summer of 2010 with completion by the end of 2011.
Private Projects (High Density)
Medical Building - This 4 storey building is currently being built on south side of Church street. It is expected to be completed by the end of 2010.
Macwood and Springhill Condos - 6-12 storey condos (1200 units) are planned for the North-West corner of Hwy 7 and Cornell Centre Blvd. Final approval for the plans is expected by spring 2010 with sales projected by the end of 2010. They currently have sewage allocation for 200+ units.
Lindvest Condo and Retail - The first phase of 1,300 condo units, 50 live/work and commercial/retail/office buildings on the South side of Hwy 7 were approved 2 years ago. They have sewage allocation for a 150 unit condo building and the live/work buildings. There is no estimated start date for this first phase.
Cornell Gates - They are still working on the plans for this project. They are trying to encompass all of the land holders on the north side of Hwy 7 between 9th line and Bur Oak which will likely contain many high density buildings. They will need to update the Cornell Secondary plan first before they can bring specific projects forward. This is a few years away yet.
Woodhaven Retirement Residence - Plans have been approved for this 5 storey building situated between the existing Woodhaven building and Bur Oak Ave. There is no estimated start date although they will likely have it done for when the Community Centre opens. «
Staged 2 Sell Solutions Inc. staged this cute lived -in property in Toronto. Few days later and a bidding war, the property sold $121,200.00 over-asking!!!
We just brought in few accessories and voila...this is the transformation on a very small budget.
Please click on the Before and After link:
Cedarbank, Toronto
Here are the listing photos:
Cedarbank, Toronto
Now, this is the highest over asking we got so far, couldn't resist not share it with you.
We keep hearing from our clients or Realtors that in a hot Real Estate market they do not need to stage their properties, as they sell fast anyway... getting more than 120K over asking is a proof that staging works in any type of market.