Houston Energy One Center: Redefining Building Classes

An office structure in the Houston area can be classified as Class A, B, or C. Tenants of these spaces benefit by knowing exactly what these classifications mean. The market, as well as the condition of Class-A buildings often determines where each space fits in this ranking system. Rankings make it easier to report market data because the information can be separated by building types. Second, they allow businesses to know the differences between structures. Classifications can be based on overall building condition, location, infrastructure, construction, nearby attractions, as well as many other factors. The Energy One Center is one of many highly ranked buildings in the Houston area.

Class-A spaces are considered to be the highest quality obtainable in a particular market or area. They are well kept, have great visual appeal, and are constructed with superior materials. Their infrastructure is also top notch when compared to lower class buildings. When a space has this rating, it is considered to be in a prime location. Most are easily accessible and managed by professional services. These factors affect the types of tenants occupying the building. Class-A commercial spaces typically have the most notable tenants. They also have a higher overall rental expense for any occupying business. The Houston Energy One Center is an example of this building class. It was constructed in 2008, spans 332,000 square feet, and currently houses the Foster Wheeler company.

Class-B commercial facilities are not as new as the above buildings. They tend to have exceptional management along with notable tenants. In some cases investors actually seek these structures over higher ranked ones. This is because a few simple changes can actually increase them back to a Class-A status. In order for a building to be classified under this category, it must not be obsolete in functionality and has to be cared for appropriately.

If an office space is classified under the C category, it has been given the lowest ranking possible in a particular market. They are typically over twenty years old and are located in less prosperous areas. Most need a hefty amount of renovation to be completely operational. In most cases, their architecture is unattractive and even shoddy. The company's technology, along with its infrastructure is usually outdated and needs to be upgraded. These factors cause buildings with C rankings to offer the smallest leasing rates. Many investors see Class-C buildings as a re-development project instead of a rental opportunity.

While Class-A buildings, such as the Houston Energy One Center, cost more to lease, they offer the exposure and visual ease most businesses need to appeal to various types of customers in an area. A prospective client is more likely to do business if the space is clean, comfortable, and portrays a sense of success for the company. When a client has to enter a run-down area of town, or notices that serious cosmetic work is needed for the building, the client might become reluctant about a business deal. Most customers want to feel like they are working with or providing their business to a classy and dependable company. If a business has a stunning and well-kept commercial space, it can leave quite an impression on a customer.

While researching building classes, I found useful information at http://www.boma.org/ and about Houston Commercial Properties at http://www.wellsreitii.com/, a Real Estate Investment Trust ( REIT ).

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Get Your Message Out With Real Estate Banners

Business is tough out there and real estate is no different. As a real estate agent you want to do what you can to stand out. The most important part of your job is promoting yourself, making yourself noticed more than the next person. There are many ways to do this and some are more effective than others. One of the most proven ways of advertising is with real estate banners. This will be one of the first things your potential customers will see and you want to make it stand out and represent who you are.

There are many different occasions to use a real estate banner. The main purpose is for exposure and to get your name out there. You can use one at an open house for a listing you have or at a recently completed project, etc. Potential customers pass by all the time and your name will be seen thousands of times a day. Make your banner catchy to get people's interest and market yourself. You can also place these banners when you have sold a home. People love success and if they see your banner and that you have sold another house, it will speak well for you. Use your creativity and let the banner work for you.

Nowadays, real estate banners can be made out of different materials. We have all seen the wood signs hammered into lawns. Custom vinyl banners are a more practical idea for many reasons. Vinyl is strong and durable, it will not rust, fade or chip. A vinyl sign is also weather resistant especially when compared to paper or cloth banners. If they get dirty they can just be wiped and look good as new. Then when you are done you can just roll it up for use next time.

A custom vinyl real estate banner is a great investment. Another important benefit of this type of banners is that you only need to have one or two customized for yourself. You don't require to keep purchasing new ones as you would with their paper or cloth counterparts. As a result, in the long run this form of self promotion is definitively less expensive and more effective.

There are many places where you can go to have one of these real estate banners made. Take some time to think about what you want to promote and how you would like your banner to be in terms of design and colors. Don't rush the process, this can be one of the best and more helpful expenses that you will make for your business.

Fabiola Delgado de la Flor is a Marketing professional working at CustomPromoBanners.com. We offer free artwork with your banner order, our experienced graphic designer will work with you to create the perfect design for your campaign. For additional advice on creating Real Estate Banners to promote yourself while increasing your exposure visit Custom Vinyl Banners.

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Cheap Moving Boxes - Where You Can Get Them

Moving out of a new house entails a variety of expenses and you would only want to find ways to minimize your total expenditures. One thing you would think of saving on when moving is the set of boxes you would need to pack your things in. You can look around the neighborhood for cheap moving boxes. You might even get some of them free of charge.

The first place where you would try to search for containers is at your friend's or neighbor's house. You might want to alert your friends and neighbors that you are looking for some boxes that you could use to pack your things in. There will most probably be at least one who has a box or boxes that he would like to dispose of. You should be getting them from your friends and neighbors without dishing out a single cent.

You can check your local postal service if they can give you moving boxes at cheap rates. The postal service usually has packaging materials that come in a range of sizes, which is exactly what you would need.

Establishments near your home or office might be able to help you. Go around and ask grocery stores, electronics shops, furniture displays and industrial supply companies for containers. They might even be able to offer you sturdy plastic containers, aside from cardboard ones. Try to talk to the proprietor or business owner himself so you will have a higher success rate, compared to talking to the cashier or shop clerk, since the latter is generally not empowered to give away or sell store properties. You should also drop by a few minutes before the shop closes. This is when you would probably chance upon the store sorting which boxes need to be thrown in the dump.

Warehouse or membership shopping clubs are also generous in giving out boxes. Ask if they do give out their boxes and containers. Liquor stores usually have boxes they need to dispose of every day. Liquor boxes, since they hold premium glass bottles, are often sturdy and good for packing purposes.

However, when getting used boxes, you have to check very well that they can, indeed, be reused still. If you will be transporting valuable or fragile items, you should check out your removalist company. Some removalists offer cheap moving boxes that can surely keep your valuable items safe and secure. You should also ask them the best way to pack your fragile or cherished belongings.

Looking for cheap moving boxes Brisbane? Visit our site for packaging materials including boxes in all sizes, mattress protectors, butcher paper and other moving necessities at very competitive prices.

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Why Your House Would Not Sell

There are several factors that control the selling process of your house. Some of these factors could be controlled by the homeowner and others are not. However there are 5 main Reasons that make a real estate do not sell in a timely fashion. These top five reasons are as following:

1- Price.
2- Condition.
3- Location.
4- Real Estate Agent.
5- Marketing Plan.

Price

It is a smart move to interview many agents, more than one before listing your house for sale. Even if the first or second agent makes you feel comfortable that you decide to list your hose immediately, it is always better to have multiple choices and compare each agent's advantages, disadvantages, marketing plans and their price recommendations. One of the main and important services that your agent is offering you is an accurate price of your property.

However, there is a valuable lesson you should know before a certain agent buy your house listing is if one agent quotes you a significantly higher price than the other agents, then that means that this specific agent is probably not the good and right one for you. The market does not lie, so each agent you deal with should arrive at a very close figure, it must not be the same price but when there is a difference of EGP 20.000, something is defiantly wrong in the price that your agent is offering. If you list your house higher than the market normal value then you need to rope your price later to be able to sell it.

But why do home sellers overprice their house? Often it is their agent's advice to do so as we have previously discussed. Another reason is that they will overprice the house based on the past value. For example, if you have priced your house five years ago and its cost was EGP 180.000, then you will assume that its price has increased now and add an annual rate of 3 or 5 percent to come up with EGP 200.000 or even more, which is totally not correct.

Your house is only worth what today's market is saying it does, regardless what the house was worth one, two, five and even ten years ago. Keep in mind that houses are just like stocks, sometimes they go up and some other times they go down. A property's value is determined by today's value not yesterday's plus an interest rate. Pricing is one of the important reasons that control the selling process and it can really delay the selling of any property if it is overprices.

House Condition

The second reason is the house condition. Buyers are looking for model-home conditions, they want to purchase a home, which is basically in a good condition and does not need major fix up work. The paint inside and out of the house should be near perfect. Everything should be kept perfectly straight and in order. Even if you have received an offer, the condition of the house would cause the buyer to offer less than market value. You need to make the house and pain it from inside and outside, cleaning everything, including the carpets, windows and light fixtures. Although it may be difficult, seller really has to walk through the house as if he is the buyer, being very critical and asking whether he can buy a house in this condition or not. You can then invite all three agents to visit the house again and make another market analysis. One of the most common things that you should take care of during your house show is pets, especially dogs. You need to make arrangements for your pets, let a friends keep them for a while or have some relatives take care of them during this important stage of selling your house. There is nothing worse than an offensive pet (or pet smell) to chill prospective homebuyers from quickly buying your home.

Location

Location is the third reason that affects your house and its selling process. There are so many factors that can mark a bad location, such as undesirable schools in the neighborhood, a high crime rate, messy neighbors or noise pollution. Location is the only thing that is out of your control. However, if your house is in a poor location, you can compensate this bad location factor with offering a lower listing price than what similar houses in better areas have sold for. You have to be more competitive than other home sellers and attract the buyers to overcome the poor location obstacle.

Real Estate Agent

Another reason that does not help in selling your house is the real estate agent itself. Your agent could cause huge problems if he or she is hard to get along with or difficult to work with. This is something you cannot really anticipate. Agents who are rude, arrogant and difficult to work with will not have a s many showing as an agent who is cooperative and enthusiastic. Just because an agent is top producer in your area does not guarantee that he or she has the respect of other agents in town. The only way to make sure you are hiring the right agents is to check out the reputation of this agent and get personal referrals. Forget the famous real estate brokerage names, which advertise heavily. What really matters most is the success record of the individual agent who gets your listing. Never sign a listing for longer than 90 days, unless the listing agent includes a written clause allowing you to cancel the listing after 90 days without specifying a reason to do so. A 90-day listing clause is the best way to assure you that your agent will work hard, smart and fast to get your property sold during that period.

Marketing Plan

So your house is priced right, in good condition, has a good location and your agent is easy to work with. Still your house does not sell. If this is case with you, the marketing plain is probably the problem. It is not enough to just put "for sale" sign in front of the house and wait for the offers to come in. The successful agent must have a strong and aggressive written and planned marketing plan. Your agent must make effective use of the latest technologies and must be attuned to the new information age. A good agent will be spending a good deal of money marketing their listings with all the possible means until it is actually sold. So you must make sure your agent has a definite marketing plan that is made as an addendum to your listing agreement.

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Painting Interiors

Fresh interior (and exterior - but we'll save that for another article) paint is very important when a house is on the market. Unfortunately many sellers think that means white walls - or something close to white. But white (even Linen White - a favorite of sellers) isn't usually the best choice for several reasons.

First, white rooms can feel very cold and stark, not warm and inviting, which is how you want homes on the market to feel. Second, dirt shows up against white (think of those white slacks), so sellers must be extremely careful. And finally, white can make rooms feel very plain and boring, rather than pretty and interesting. And while you don't want the wall colors to stand out, you do want to make certain they showcase the house. Which means bold or daring colors are not a good idea either. So what should sellers do?

Sellers should choose colors that go well with most furnishings as well as styles of homes - but that aren't too bold or too dramatic. Taupes and sages are often good choices, as are colors that have have yellow undertones (for warmth) in them. These colors are considered neutrals, which means not only will they go with most furnishings, they won't make a design statement on their own. And while you don't generally want to go with a dark shade, a medium shade will probably be just fine. Too much lighter than that and you get back to that boring off-white.

It also isn't necessary to paint all of the rooms of the house in one color. Depending on how the house flows, it may be a good idea to tick to the colors that are next to each other on a fan deck. This means the color variation is subtle (usually just a bit lighter or darker), which makes the entire house feel connected. Yet the variation helps the rooms of the house feel separate enough for the different activities that occur in each.

Trim colors should generally be white, unless the style of the house calls for stained woodwork or the trim isn't attractive. So if the house is a Victorian or a contemporary, stained woodwork is expected. Otherwise, it will make a house appear dated. Painting the trim the same color as the walls will make unattractive trim disappear, which is much easier and less expensive than replacing it. Just remember to paint the trim in a semi-gloss, which makes it much easier to keep clean.

Painting the house may seem like a lot of trouble (if you're doing it yourself) or expense (if someone else is doing it for you). But the results are profound because your house will look and feel clean, updated, and attractive.

Ann Anderson is the founder and Director of School of Interior Redesign (http://www.schoolofinteriorredesign.com/) and the co-creator of the Ready2Sellin30Days (http://www.ready2sellin30days.com/) system.

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The Three HMO Rules

Property investment is not difficult, I compare it to used car dealing except the figures are larger, the strategy is different and it is much easier. Property is less complicated than cars and the longer you keep property the more valuable it becomes unlike cars which usually depreciate. However, whilst you are waiting for your property to increase in value, you have to live and cash flow is essential especially when property prices are going nowhere, you need to cover your costs.

I believe that HMO's outperform the property market and so I have come up with the following unproven statistics acquired from observation of the HMO market. Take a building, for example, a large house, and turn it into a HMO with a minimum of five units, the HMO being developed over the years to maximise its full potential as a HMO then the following HMO Daddy rules apply:

1. Rule of twenty is that after twenty years the original purchase price of the property which is then converted into a HMO will equal or thereabouts the gross rent. For example, a house purchased in 1991 for ?30K will produce a rent of about ?30K per annum today as a HMO.

2. Rule of forty ten is that after forty years a house purchased and turned into a HMO then the gross rent per annum will be about ten times the purchase price. For example, a house purchased in 1971 for ?4K will produce a rent today of about ?40,000 per annum as a HMO.

3. Rule of three is that a HMO grosses about three times the income of the same property let as a single unit.

Note: You need to spend a considerable amount of money over the years improving and keeping your property up to standard to achieve these returns.

Be clear about why you are investing in property and remember why when things get tough, as they will. Most people want financial independence. How much money will give you financial independence? It is generally accepted that a million pounds would not be too far off the mark. So how do you get a million quid? Borrow the money to buy a million pounds of property today and apply the rules above and wait for the property value to increase and in the meantime get a good income from rental.. HMO's give a substantially greater income compared to single lets so you should easily be able to repay any mortgages or loans.

To find out more about running your own HMO, get your FREE copy of "Beginners Guide To HMO's And Multi-lets" now at http://www.hmodaddy.com/

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The Pros and Cons of Investing in Real Estate

In 2007, a lot of people were talking about purchasing houses cheaply in order to fix them up and sell them quickly. Shortly after that time in 2008, this became impossible to do; very few people were buying homes at that time. Even existing investors started to struggle between the responsibilities of paying the mortgages on their own homes coupled with the responsibility to cover the mortgages on their investment properties. In fact, many people fell into foreclosure. But luckily, this is a different time. Prices are low and bargains abound, but even with that real estate investing is not for everybody. The purpose of this article is to summarize some of the pros and cons of real estate investing in the current market.

Pros

Investing in rental properties can provide a monthly income: Real estate investors who want to obtain a little extra money every month will find that investing in rental properties can satisfy this goal. Many people were hit hard by the financial crisis, and as such there are many people who need housing who do not have the ability to obtain a mortgage.

A house offers people an appreciating asset: In the event it's true that the housing market is about to turn around, people who purchase a property now will be buying an appreciating asset that they will be able to sell for a greater amount in the future. Anyone who has the ability to wait until housing prices increase before selling has the potential to earn a large profit.

The real estate market is less risky than the stock market: People who have extra money to invest may be wary of putting it into the stock market because of the market's volatility in recent years. Placing money in real estate avoids the stress of the daily ups and downs that are inherent in the stock market. Thus, real estate is a more predicable investment asset.

Cons

The risk of default: The economy is expected to improve, but this doesn't necessarily have to be the case; it can also remain where it is or even get worse. If that were to happen and investors lose their ability to make a living, they may not be able to afford the mortgage on their rental properties.

Owning rental property increases the amount of work: People who own rental properties are called landlords and they have expectations that they have to meet. When things break down on the property, they will be expected to fix them. They will also have increased liability; accidents can happen on the property and the tenants or their guests may decide to sue. To protect against this actuality, rock-solid insurance is an absolute must.

The risk of not receiving the amount of rental income expected: People who seek to rent their properties may expect to be able to charge a particular amount of rent, but sometimes they might not be able to collect the amount expected. Anyone who is not willing to take this risk may not see real estate investing as a viable option.

Conclusion

The bottom line is that investing in real estate can provide a steady income, but it is not without risk. Therefore, careful planning is needed before making a decision one way or the other.

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Visit free-rental-property-investing-info.com for free landlord forms, tools, and no-hype educational info focusing solely on income property. Browse topics like landlord tenant laws, landlord insurance, buying a property, and more.

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Earning 18% At The District Of Columbia Tax Auction

One of the best things when you invest in tax liens in the District of Columbia is that the certificates earn 1.5% per month or 18% annually. They can include unpaid property taxes, water and sewer bills and special assessments that are delinquent from the previous year. However, there is a component of the sale which could lower your returns--DC has an overbid that does not earn interest.

What is an overbid?

In order to separate bidders competitively in an auction, jurisdictions such as Washington DC add an overbid component to their auctions. This overbid does not earn interest and lowers your overall yield. The amount is held by the district (think--interest free loan to DC) until the property redeems and the overbid is then returned to the tax lien holder along with his investment (and interest earned on that investment).

During the auction, the starting bid begins with the amount of the delinquent taxes. Bidders then raise the dollar bid until a the winner with the highest dollar bid is left. The difference between the initial bid and the final bid is your overbid.

Remember, this overbid does not earn interest! Back when the market was very competitive, the overbid could by 50%, 60% or more of the value of the underlying property. Thus, you may only earn a very nominal amount on your invested dollar.

Why Would Anyone Bid Over the Amount Due In Taxes?

Large overbids can and do get bid at the DC tax auction. This often happens because the investor now gets the right to buy subsequent taxes in the next few months and onward at a rate of 18%. Taxes in DC become due twice a year in March and September giving the tax lien investor more opportunities to add to their investment and this time at 18% fully.

Furthermore, if the property is not redeemed by the taxpayer or interested party, the amount of the overbid is used to pay any outstanding taxes, liens and assessments. This can be good and bad--good because you won't have many out-of-pocket costs after you get the deed and bad because you have no control of what municipal liens and fines are put on the property before it goes to deed.

How do I get a deed to a DC property by buying tax liens?

The District of Columbia is a strict foreclosure jurisdiction. This means that you need to take your tax lien through the courts just as you would a mortgage foreclosure.

The tax sale investor can start foreclosure six months from the day of the DC delinquent tax auction. You'll need to hire a DC tax lien attorney to help you. Although the DC tax attorney may charge you an upfront cost, his or her expenses must be paid by the taxpayer when they redeem the lien so long as the charges are within reason.

The only way you won't be paid is if your lien goes to judgment and you receive the deed. One caveat to this is that you won't be reimbursed for any legal expenses (including title work) within four months of the tax auction.

How long does it take to foreclose on my tax lien in D.C.?

The DC court system and its judges are in no rush to see their taxpayers lose their property to a tax lien investor. If you're lucky, no one will contest your case and there will be no bankruptcies, probate or other delays. In the perfect world, the entire process should only take nine months or less after you file. However, if anyone comes forward to contest the case or throw it into bankruptcy, it could take years.

Jon is an avid real estate investor and tax lien investing guru. You can find him on his expert website about Tax Lien Investing or find his best articles on his "best of" page about how to invest in tax liens.

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How Can You Sell Your House in "As Is" Condition?

There are a large number of house buying companies all across the country that advertise as wanting buy houses in "as is" condition, in addition to being able to pay cash for them and close much faster than a conventional buyer. So why would you want to contact one of these companies in your area if you have a challenging house to sell? Also isn't it true that those types of companies just want to try and rip you off? These are two very important questions that I'm sure you have asked yourself if you have a fixer type house to sell that may not be best suited for the retail market in its present condition. For the remainder of this article I am going to address these important questions and more in order to help you better understand why these "We Buy Houses" companies exist and how you may be able to utilize the services they provide in your area.

If you happen to be in a situation where you need to sell a house that is in dyer need of major updating and/or some renovation and repair you can be sure that the traditional way of selling a house will be a bumpy ride for you. When people have a "pretty house" to sell they generally call their local realtor, have them come up with a list price that is supported by comparable properties and they list the house for sale on the RMLS realtor network. The hope is that other realtors will see the property and have a buyer for it, then soon thereafter you will be presented with an acceptable offer for the property and you will be on your way to a hassle free closing. Although no real estate sale is that easy these days, that is the general process for houses that don't need and major updating or repair.

If you do happen to be selling a house that is in need of minor TLC and updating to major renovation and repair, you can pretty much expect a bumpy sales process if you plan on going the traditional route that was just described. The first reason is because most people will always contact a realtor or two in the beginning stages of trying to sell a property....and in this type of case that is where the first misstep can take place. The problem with houses that need major updating and repair (besides the obvious) is that realtors generally have no clue what they are really worth, so quite often they will throw out a number that sounds great in theory but will never come to fruition. I like to call this buying the listing and some realtors will do it intentionally to help secure a future paycheck while others will do it out of pure ignorance because they just don't know any better. The 2nd major stumbling block that you will hit going this route is that you run a large risk of having multiple sale fails. This is because your home will be on display for every inexperienced rehabber in your market to make an offer on, and after they have wasted 10-15 days of your time most of them will finally realize that they are paying too much for the house and back out of the deal. My house buying company buys a number of houses every year from unhappy sellers who have been highly irritated by the process of listing at one price, having multiple sale fails and ultimately selling at a much lower price. Now don't get me wrong, there are many houses that should be listed at higher prices and will eventually sell at close to that, but if you know your home is in need of some major renovation and repair you might want to think twice about listing the property with a realtor if you want to see it sell anytime in the near future.

So what is your alternative you ask? Well that is where the "We Buy Houses" companies come into play.....You see some of those companies are seasoned real estate rehabbers who have a very educated eye when it comes to buying houses that are in need of major renovation and repair. So now think about the process I described above and compare that to receiving a cash offer with a quick closing from an educated individual who will absolutely honor the contract and close the deal on time. Now you may not always like the cash price that some of these companies will offer if you have already spoken with a realtor, but you have to remember that the property is only worth what it will sell for and not what a realtor or Zillow thinks its worth. When people buy houses in need of major renovation and repair they are taking a risk by basically paying you to take on a major project. So in return for that risk and the work that goes along with it there must be a reward; otherwise nobody would ever buy houses that need repairs. To make it very simple to understand nobody is going to buy a house for $150,000 that needs $50,000 in repairs for it to then be worth $200,000. They may look to purchase the property for between $100,000-$120,000 but probably no more than that, and if they are looking to buy it for more you can be pretty sure that the sale will fall through at some point. This is a major reason why some people believe that the "We Buy Houses" companies are just trying to rip you off, when in actuality they are just trying to purchase your property at a price that will adequately compensate them for all of the risk and effort they will be putting into it.

So how do you know which "We Buy Houses" company to call to get the best deal? This is a great question and one that I'm sure you have asked yourself at some point. Make sure to do some research on the company ahead of time to see if they have a website, vanity phone number and anything else that makes them look like they are running a real organized business. Also make sure to ask if you can see pictures of some of there previous renovation projects, that way you know you are dealing with an actual rehabber and not just a real estate wholesaler who will be looking to sell the property to a rehabber for a profit. For my house buying company we actually built an entire website around showcasing all of our renovation projects, and I always share it with every seller that we meet with so that they can check it out in order to see what we are capable of. If you are able to find a quality "We Buy Houses" company in your area I would absolutely suggest selling your fixer property to them if you feel that the price they offer you is fair based on the amount of repairs that are needed. Just remember that there will need to be a profit in the deal for whoever buys your property, otherwise it will just sit on the market until you lower the price to a point where it makes sense to take the risk of purchasing it. I hope you enjoyed this article and found the information useful when it comes to selling a house in need of renovation and repair.

Tucker Merrihew is the owner of TTM Cash HouseBuyers, a real estate redevelopment company that specializes in buying property in need to minor TLC and updating to major renovation and repair in Portland oregon.

TTM Cash HouseBuyers was founded in 2008 in order to provide homeowners a fair and reliable way to sell challenging property even in a depressed real estate market. TTM Cash HouseBuyers is a licensed residential contractor in the State of Oregon that specializes in buying houses for cash in "as is" condition. We are a growing company looking to renovate houses and improve neighborhoods.

If you need to sell your house fast and in "as is" condition contact TTM Cash HouseBuyers today at http://www.ttmcash.com/ or 503.850.4233

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Taking Home Staging to the Next Level: Lifestyle Merchandising

Did you know that home staging is all about "lifestyle merchandising"? Yes, when you are selling your home, you are actually merchandising a lifestyle to potential buyers.

Recently I graduated from an advanced staging course given by Matthew Finlason, host of HGTV's "The Stagers". It was an intense, two-day course attended by only a handful of New York City area home stagers.

These are the principles that were taught during the course:

• Casting a "wide net" with staging in order to attract the broad range of buyers is a thing of the past.

• Crafting a "perfect lure" to attract the right buyer with staging represents a paradigm shift.

• While it's fine to neutralize a home of its occupant's personality, don't sterilize it.

• Home staging is now known as Target Staging. Target staging involves learning about who the specific buyer or buyers might be, and creating a design plan to appeal to that buyer or buyers.

• Before a home stager stages, it's important for her/him to first learn the demographics of the most likely potential buyer (age, income, gender, marital status, education, etc.).

• It's also important to focus on the psychographics of the buyer (the industry they're in, their leisure time activities and interests, their home style or aesthetic preferences, the profile of retailers in the area which will be an indicator of the profile of the residents,).

• One should stage this buyer's dream house with colors, shapes, textures, objects and artwork that will make them emotionally connect with the space. For example, if the profile of the buyer is a single male who works on Wall Street, then the space should be staged to reflect the lifestyle and interests of that buyer profile.

• One should stage in order to "tell stories" based upon the buyer's profile. For example, if the likely buyer is a female working in the fashion district, then set up a desk with books on fashion and sketches of clothing.

• Staging is "lifestyle merchandising" and "dialing in the buyer".

• One should stage to create a life that buyers can aspire to and relate to. Most people want to buy a home to up their lifestyle, so you need to create a lifestyle that these buyers want.

• One should stage so that your company aesthetic shines through but that not every staging looks like every other staging one does or other stagers do.

© Copyright 2011 Designed to Appeal, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Donna Dazzo is a home stager and interior redesigner serving New York City and the Hamptons. She founded Designed to Appeal ( http://designedtoappeal.com/ ) in 2007 after a successful career in the financial services industry. Her experience in project management and marketing, combined with her lifelong passion for interior decorating and design, makes her a unique professional to help both realtors and home sellers sell homes faster and for top dollar.

To contact Designed to Appeal, subscribe to its monthly newsletter or to request these three free checklists: Holding a Successful Open House, Organizing Closets and Moving, click on http://www.designedtoappeal.com/form.asp?i=1.

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