Staging Diva Graduate Margaret Harlos of Ontario-based Living Organized has been working for three years to secure 
her position as the expert home stager in her market.
A former Volunteer Manager and Program Coordinator for a non-profit organization, Margaret has been featured multiple times in the local media both in print and on local TV.
This savvy Barrie home stager quickly made a big splash in her area wasting no time getting to know her neighborhood real estate agents.
While on the hunt for a larger home, Margaret and her husband toured an open house that was listed by an agent familiar with Living Organized. After viewing the property’s photos and descriptions online, Margaret was expecting to see a perfect home but even from the driveway she knew that wasn’t going to be the case. Remaining optimistic, Margaret thought that as a stager, it would be easy to see past the bad curb appeal and negotiate a better price.
Once inside, however, it proved difficult to see past the home’s flaws. The agent, knowing Margaret was a home stager, told her the homeowners would be willing to paint and fix the house up a bit. When Margaret asked why she hadn’t told her clients to do those things before scheduling any showings, the agent had no answer.
Margaret was called by another real estate agent she was tightly aligned with ten days later. He had a homeowner willing to do anything Margaret asked if it meant it would get her home sold.
Through her conversations with the homeowner, Margaret learned the previous agent had just been fired after an unsuccessful 15 day trial. This client was devastated to discover that while away on an extended business trip, her home had been shown in terrible condition. The homeowner said she’d asked the agent prior to listing if the house needed to be cleaned or painted but despite asking the right questions, she was told that the house was fine just as it was.
Margaret realized at that point that she was actually speaking to the owner of the same home she had 
recently visited with her husband as a potential buyer. She didn’t have the heart to tell the homeowner that she was one of those potential buyers who had been turned off by her home.
After Margaret was hired, she gave the family a list of tasks to complete to improve the overall condition of the home.
The home was listed again after staging and it sold for just under asking in less than one week.
Margaret says, “The Staging Diva Program has helped me to market my business. The reason that I chose to train with Debra Gould was because she focused on business training. I wanted the skills and information needed to help me build a sustainable business. I learned a lot in the program but combined with her private business accelerator coaching I am well on my way.”
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