“A good hockey player plays where the puck is; a great hockey player plays where the puck is going to be”. Wayne Gretsky

So, what does trend mean? It is defined in the dictionary as a general tendency, a movement or direction which is an indicator of prevailing styles for fashion, lifestyles, products and services.

Managing your business based on trends projected to affect your industry is a smart way to build your brand, business, and marketing plans. It helps ensure you are always where the business is going to be- ahead of the curve, leading edge, early adoption, trend setter and certainly not a follower. THAT will make a good business great!

At CSP International™ we work diligently to stay ahead of real estate market & living trends; we do that so when you sit down with a well educated CSP® to plan your marketing strategy, it is a smart move. A good stager knows where the furniture goes but a great stager knows why and who will be using the furniture – the target buyer.  They know which trends affect how people react to a space and are able to translate that to a feeling in every staging project they work on.

Since the pandemic, there has been a distinctive shift in the way people want to live in their home. Memories of lockdown have changed perspectives and lifestyles. Homes are more multi-functional as well as multi-generational. The high cost of long-term residential healthcare is resulting in more people installing a granny Pod Granny Pods 101: What Are They & How Much Do They Cost? (metalbuildinghomes.org) or a tiny house for short term rental income is just one example. Inside the house we are seeing theaters, spas, mini gyms and home offices.

In 2023 where the puck is going will need understanding and knowledge of how sustainability and energy efficiency affects your business and your client’s bottom line.  The Biophilic trend affects every facet of life now; a stager who knows how to interpret that plus provide solid statistics for you to use in your marketing – is key.  Knowing the impact this $800 billion dollar growth industry- green building and greening of our homes has on the way real estate is sold, knowing how to discuss the fact that energy costs are projected to rise 50% by 2025 and helping the home seller understand energy efficiency affects not just the saleability of this property but the ability of the buyer to afford the intrinsic costs of home ownership in addition to the mortgage. 92% of buyers surveyed said energy efficiencies are important to them, knowing how to conduct a CSP EcoAssessment™ in support of selling a property is a CSP® differentiator.

A study by HomeGain shows in the opinion of real estate agents, green staging (EcoStaging®) brings 199% ROI.  One of the simplest improvements is the planting of trees. You could plant a tree every listing in 2023 which will make a difference in your community, on the world and for your clients.  While homeowners can take low-cost steps to make the inside of their homes better insulated and therefore more energy efficient, the landscape isn’t often seen as a part of the problem… or the solution. Basic green technologies like smart tree placement can be used to dramatically reduce energy usage inside homes. When placed strategically, trees can reduce summertime cooling energy need by 7-47 percent and wintertime heating costs by 2-8 percent.

Through their leaves, trees also provide evaporative cooling, which increases air humidity. Shaded surfaces may be 20-45 degrees cooler, and evapotranspiration can reduce peak summer temperatures up to 10 degrees. (Source:“Heat Island Mitigation: Trees and Vegetation  Urban forests reduce energy use by providing shade in the summer and wind breaks in the winter, reduce storm water runoff, remediate soils, and provide animal and plant habitat. Trees have economic benefits: they increase property value. Lastly, trees have positive cognitive effects and may even help improve moods.

(Sources: The Washington Post and Reducing Urban Heat Islands: Compendium of Strategies. Trees and Vegetation, U.S. E.P.A.)   “Sustaining America’s Trees and Forests,”David J. Nowak, Susan M. Stein, Paula B. Randler, Eric J. Greenfield, Sara J. Comas, Mary A. Carr, and Ralph

Wellness real estate is another projected $500b industry; traditionally we look to architects and interior designers working in commercial, hospitality and high-end luxury properties to integrate biophilic & improved wellness elements. Stagers are transitioning their services to include this aspect of service to their work. The CSP® training has taught biophilic concepts for over a decade now and recently formed an affiliation with Oliver Heath (author and educator) to bring his biophilic course to North America. Now stagers, decorators, homeowners, and real estate agents can learn how to design a healthy home.

Make Spring 2023, the start of a new way of doing your business; provide high service levels, don’t leave people waiting for a response, provide information before they find it themselves and up the anty with exceptional service levels, commit to referring staging to an expert and maintain high standards. People will always favour high end services in times of crisis if they understand the value they are buying.

Regardless of the clamour for “cheap pricing” the rise in middle class wealth has put upward pressure for premium goods and services. Houzz studies support massive upswing on searches for luxury items. People want quick status fixes from luxury items – hence “champagne bars, luxury hybrids, premium chocolates, coffee and the ultimate in air travel now is a personal suite with finger snap cabin service.  Don’t lower your commission, put your thinking cap on and brainstorm with a CSP how trends will affect your market – then lead where others will follow! Make it happen!

There is no better time than right now to take the plunge if you are interested in starting a home staging business or training a team member to be your in-house stager at your brokerage.  Contact me, Christine Rae today to learn more! Or request our information booklet to become a home stager and start your real estate staging business with staging certification from CSP International™!