EP 463: From Home Staging To Apartment Renting Michele Steele Does It All

What makes Michele Steele with Michele Nicole Designs a good neighbor?

Mortgage rates have a way of turning confident people into cautious overthinkers—especially if you’re relocating to Frisco, North Dallas, or anywhere in Collin County. We sit down with Michele Steele of Michele Nicole Designs, a realtor and home staging expert who blends strategy with design to help buyers and sellers make clear, confident decisions without the panic.

Michele shares her path into real estate, from marketing to Airbnb design to staging homes, and how her creative eye became a real advantage in a competitive market. We unpack one of the biggest misconceptions she hears every day—that today’s interest rates are automatically “bad.” Michele explains why the ultra-low COVID-era rates were the exception, how low rates can actually drive overpaying, and why today’s market can create real negotiating power for buyers who come in prepared.

We also talk about what buyers are truly looking for right now, why “turnkey” homes matter more than ever, and what sellers need to adjust now that homes aren’t selling overnight. Michele also shares her heart for the clients she serves most—especially those relocating and single moms navigating major life transitions—and how she uses social media to connect and educate in a real, relatable way.

If you’re thinking about buying, selling, staging, or relocating to the Frisco area, this conversation will help you move forward with clarity and confidence. Subscribe, share it with a friend who’s stuck in decision mode, and leave a review with the question you want answered next.

To learn more about Michele Nicole Designs go to:
 https://micheeleismyhomegirl.com

 Michele Nicole Designs
📞 (469) 545-3177

Transcript

Welcome To Good Neighbor Podcast

SPEAKER_01 0:00

This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Sophia Yuvel.

Meet Michelle Steele And Her Services

SPEAKER_02 0:10

Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast. Are you in need of a realtor and a home staging expert? Well, one may be closer than you think. Today, I have the pleasure of introducing your good neighbor, Michelle Steele, with Michelle Nicole Designs. Michelle, it is lovely having you on today. Now we are so excited to learn all about you and your business. Please start off by telling our listeners just a little bit more about your company.

SPEAKER_00 0:36

Hi, thank you so much for having me on. As she mentioned, my name is Michelle Steele. I am a realtor out here in the Frisco area, but I do serve Collin County in North Dallas. And I do home staging and also real estate. So for anyone who's looking to buy, sell, even apartment locating, uh renting, I also assist those clients as well. And then for sellers who are looking to get their homes listed on the market and have it show to our buyers in a great way. I also do staging, um, interior styling for those who've purchased their homes and they don't know what to do with the space. I decorate it for them as well. So I'm just kind of, I don't know, artsy fartsy when it comes to the design stuff, but it just goes hand in hand with real estate as well.

SPEAKER_02 1:25

So, Michelle, how did you originally get into this industry?

SPEAKER_00 1:29

Oh, that is a loaded question. That is such a loaded question. I actually ran away from this industry for years. It was always calling me. Um, fun fact, I wanted to be a realtor when I was like 18, 19, but I had just had my kids, I had my um my children extremely young. I had my oldest when I was 18, my twins when I was 19, and I wanted to do real estate, but I was like, there's no way I can do it with three kids and a single mom. There was just no way. Um but I always had in the back of my mind that I wanted to be a realtor, but I was just like, I don't know how I'm gonna do it because I don't have time and I have all these kids. Um fast forwarding and to make a long story short, I got into marketing. I then eventually got into Airbnbs and I started doing Airbnb design. I also owned my own here at BB's as well. And then from there I had a party planning business. The party planning business turned into event, not event design, sorry, interior designs and interior styling and home staging, and home staging turned into real estate. So that's a long story short of how I got into real estate and the home staging really drug me into real estate because people would always ask me things as if I was a realtor, and I'm like, I'm not your realtor, like I'm not a realtor, I don't know anything about real estate. Um, and it just naturally I just progressed and went ahead and got my license.

The Truth About Interest Rates

SPEAKER_02 2:46

Wow, what a wonderful story! Thanks for sharing that with us today. Now, being in your industry today and having so much diverse experience, what is that number one misconception you'd like to put to rest for our listeners?

SPEAKER_00 3:00

In regards to what? Because there's a lot of misconceptions about real estate.

SPEAKER_02 3:05

I would say your favorite one.

SPEAKER_00 3:08

Ooh, um, I think right now people think that the interest rates are horrible. And honestly, that it's it's really not too bad compared to if you look at the interest rates um back in the 80s, um, they were extremely high. Um, right now we're actually in like a normal rate situation. Um, but people think they're extremely high because of what we dealt with with COVID, um, when everybody was seeing the two and three percent interest rates. That was like a once-in-a-lifetime type of thing, or like we're in a um world um disaster type of situation, which was what we were having, you know, during a pandemic. And that's when though you see those lower rates. So when you see those rates like that, it it's not a good thing, to be quite honest, because that means you're gonna, as a buyer, it's not a good thing, because that means you're going to overpay. As a seller, it's good for you all day because you can list your house for whatever you want to list it for. And there's gonna be people who are gonna be knocking down your door overpaying for your home. But right now, I'm seeing a lot of people who have bought homes like during that time period, and the prices were way overinflated. And unfortunately, like when they're trying to sell their homes right now, it's not even worth what they paid for. So they're gonna have to sit to really get that equity. So that's a loaded question or a loaded answer right there to tell you like what I'm seeing. But low rate, uh, low rates does not always mean it's gonna be good for the buyers. Really right now is a good time to buy. Um, you have the most advantage, the most leverage, um, and you can really get a good deal. Um, negotiate a good deal. If you have a good realtor like me, you can negotiate a really good deal.

SPEAKER_02 4:42

Michelle, let's go ahead and switch gears for a second. Now, we do know that marketing is the heart of every business. So today, some of the who are some of those ideal customers that you'd like to be helping find a home, and how are you attracting them?

SPEAKER_00 4:58

Ooh, okay. So I um I actually help a lot of people who are relocating. Um, they just find me off of social media. Um, that's probably my biggest marketing strategy is social media. Um, I have a okay presence there. Um, and people find me and reach out to me, and it's somehow we become best friends and they become my client. So um that's how I get my clients, but I also do help um single mothers, um, mothers who are going through divorce um and who are looking to uh transition into their new life. Um, that's also something that I'm dealing with personally as well. So I have a heart for those moms and um I help them as well.

Why Podcasting Is Hard With Kids

SPEAKER_02 5:41

Amazing. Now, have you ever thought about having your own podcast for the business before?

SPEAKER_00 5:47

Actually, I have had one, but I just girl, the consistency with it is too hard with three kids and where they take me every every couple seconds and then the bit like running the business itself. I just haven't had the time. But yes, I have had one before.

Advice For Buyers And Sellers

SPEAKER_02 6:02

No, I completely understand. Um, let's go ahead and switch gears again for a second. You know, if you could leave our listeners with one little piece of advice today. Um, you know, when it comes to real estate and home staging, what would that advice be?

SPEAKER_00 6:18

Oh, I'm sorry, my email's holding up. Um, for real estate, um, for buyers, uh, don't be scared. I think they're they're scared of the interest rate, they're scared of like what's going on in the economy, they're scared of everything and they really just don't know what they don't know. Don't be afraid to ask questions. Um, you are not wasting a realtor's time by asking questions. Um, ask questions and create a plan. That's going to be the easiest way for you to get into a home. If you don't have a plan, you'll be renting, you know, for the rest of your life. And there's nothing wrong with renting, but if you know that you want to be a homeowner, you have to have a plan. Um, for sellers, um step your cookies up. You definitely have to um come with your A game because buyers are extra picky right now. Um, homes that were flying off the shelves like they were before years ago, they're not doing that right now. Buyers want uh turnkey homes, they don't want something that's going to be costly when it comes to fixing it up. Um, I mean, it's great. And there are some buyers who will, but it's great if, you know, there is a buyer for that. But for the most part, most buyers these days they want something that's turnkey. So that would be my biggest advice to them.

SPEAKER_02 7:32

Wow. Now for our listeners who are gonna go and find you after listening to this podcast, you know, where can they go to learn more about Michelle Nicole designs?

SPEAKER_00 7:41

Yes, so you can find me on Instagram. Um, I am Michelle Nicole on Instagram and it pretty much links to all my pages. So I have a real estate page and a um design page, so it'll link to both. But if you follow me there, you'll find my other pages there as well. Or you can visit me on my website, which is Michelle Nicole. I'm sorry, Michelle is myhomegirl.com.

SPEAKER_02 8:02

So well, Michelle, I really appreciate you being on the show today. We wish you and your business the best moving forward.

SPEAKER_00 8:10

Thank you.

SPEAKER_01 8:12

Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to gmpfrisco.com. That's gmpfrisco.com or call four six nine two two two one nine three four four four four four five.