Hey there happy nesters!
Can it really be 2018 already? It’s hard to believe Christmas was just a couple weeks ago. We had so many amazing opportunities, achievements, and changes in 2017. As we move into 2018, we want to take some time to note just a few!
In our first full year of business as Staging The Nest, we were so blessed to have staged 26 vacant homes, additionally we staged and prepped many occupied homes, and completed countless Walk & Talk Consultations as a part of our Realtor Partnerships. We met so many amazing people from homeowners, agents and brokers, new and experienced real estate investors, and more! We also had the opportunity to stage a beautiful luxury home in Houston that went under contract in under 24 hours, as well as several other homes that sold in under a week! Home Staging Works, I’ll tell ya’!
Photo Credit: BK Design Real Estate Photography
Photo Credit: BK Design Real Estate Photography
One of my personal & professional accomplishments in 2017 was that we renovated and flipped a gorgeous house in the Northwest Houston area. It had been a goal of ours and we tackled it like true pros! This home was a FULL GUT job! It took two months longer than we had hoped {and lots more money} but it turned out GREAT!! We plan to purchase at least one more investment property in 2018 to renovate and flip, but who knows, maybe we will do more! Check out our flip!
Photo Credit: BK Design Real Estate Photography
On a personal note, we had many ups and downs throughout 2017. One in particular is with our daughter Zoe. Although I don’t really share a lot of personal stuff {or maybe I do – I guess it depends on who you ask}, I felt like this one was worth noting! Zoe is tenacious, loving, intelligent, feisty, creative, crafty, and not to mention absolutely beautiful… I know I am a little biased! In July 2017 she was diagnosed with high functioning Autism. This year has brought so much learning and growth in my personal life in order to help her through this diagnosis. Although I won’t got into all the details, I will say that it has been a learning curve! We had to adjust, learn more patience and understanding, slow down in order to keep a tighter schedule for her, and so much more. I still have lots of days where I feel like I have failed and I want to pull all my hair out, but those are fewer and farther apart now! In just a few short months, through Applied Behavioral Analysis {ABA} Therapy, Zoe has made great strides! I wanted to mention this because we believe that without faith and family we have nothing! My daughter is my “WHY!”
Photo Credit: Studio154 Photography
Now back to staging homes! We also staged a model home for a large home builder. The goal of the project was for them to have a space that would allow them to get video content and photos for their marketing. We were not only able to provide them that, but in only one month’s time they were also able to sell 3 additional homes because of the staging. When we de-staged the project, the sales team were insisting on leaving the staging in place!
Photo Credit: BK Design Real Estate Photography
In 2017 our “One Woman & One Man Show” grew into a small team! We on-boarded two part-time assistants {Kate & Angela} to help with warehouse prep, staging and de-staging, and more! For 2018, Angela has transitioned into assisting with Marketing, Social Media, as well as beginning with prepping for our staging projects solo! That is huge! Kate is a college student at OSU and works with us during the summer and winter months while she is not in school, which also happens to be our busy months!
Last year our company was featured in VoyageHouston and won several awards for our staging, customer service, as well as our commitment to our continuing education in the home staging industry. Although we had many more accomplishments, we also had what we like to call our “lessons learned.” We look at each issue or challenge as a way to grow and learn! We attended “lunch and learns” with other local stagers and real estate agents, and we refocused our social media content after attending an 2017 HSRA Home Staging Summit in Dallas. After each project, we have a staff meeting and reflect on our personal “lessons learned.” For example, if we forgot to bring something {no matter how small} to a project, it caused a loss in time and sometimes money as we would have to make a quick last minute purchase. If that happens we always say, “Well that’s a lesson learned!”
Last year Texas had one the most tragic storms hit our area. Hurricane Harvey came with winds up to 130mph and rains that released millions of gallons of water. Hurricane Harvey was one of the largest and most devastating storms that has ever hit Texas. As a company, we were blessed not to have lost anything although many of our friends and colleagues did. However, because of the devastation in the area it made for a interesting end of the year in Real Estate. As the community began the rebuild, so did our focus on our business with new beginnings – new beginnings of personal and professional growth, staging training and continuing education, business processes, inventory, warehouse, and more much more!
There is something special about having a clean slate or what others would call a reset button. We have a whole new year waiting for us full of hope and possibilities. For all those that we have had the privilege of working with and all those that have supported our small company last year, we Thank You! Because without you, we couldn’t be doing what we love!
We would love to work with you in 2018! If you need to have your home or your client’s home staged, contact us today! As we always say – Don’t Delay, Stage Today!
832-427-2463 | Ashley@StagingTheNest.com
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