My Divine Concierge offers a number of home-based services to our clients throughout the New York area. One of those services is professional home staging prior to showing a home for sale. Staging prepares a house to offer potential buyers the best possible presentation – it is like your house putting its best foot forward when being shown.
The business of professional house staging may be relatively new, but the concept itself is not. It goes back decades. If you are planning to sell your house in the future, here are five reasons to stage it before you begin showings:
1. Faster Sale and Higher Price
According to the National Association of Realtors, staging a home usually means a faster sale and a higher price. A staged home sells faster because it is more visually appealing to buyers. It sells for a higher price for two reasons. First, a visually attractive house is worth more to buyers than a house that looks like it needs renovations and upgrades. Second, houses tend to lose value the longer they remain on the market. By selling more quickly, a higher price is achieved.
2. Homeowners Have Difficulty Being Objective
Emotional connections and familiarity prevent homeowners from viewing their houses objectively. They are typically unable to see the weaknesses, or the strengths for that matter, making it difficult for them to present their homes in the best possible light. Professional staging addresses that by offering a fresh, third-party perspective.
3. Buyers Have Difficulty Visualizing Potential
As any real estate agent will tell you, potential buyers go through a home and try to visualize themselves living there. That is why they talk about how furniture will fit in the living room or whether the smaller bedroom is suitable for a child. However, buyers sometimes have difficulty with visualization if a home is cluttered or looks too lived-in. Staging helps by decluttering and creating an environment that looks more like an open canvas waiting for buyers to add their own brush strokes.
4. Staging Improves Online Marketing Efforts
Professionally staging a home improves online marketing efforts by generating more opportunities for great pictures and creating descriptions that can actually be backed up by those pictures. Again, the National Association of Realtors says buyers are more willing to participate in an on-site walk-through if they can first view a home online. If their online perceptions are good, they will arrive at the walk-through already in a positive state of mind.
5. Not Staging Your Home Helps the Competition
Homeowners trying to sell are competing with others for a limited audience of buyers. The competition can be more fierce depending on the time of year and the current real estate market. In short, not staging your home gives your competition a leg up. Think of it in terms of a run-down, roadside motel versus a clean, well-maintained chain property. Which hotel would you rather stay in?
Professionally staging your property can mean the difference between a quick and profitable sale and allowing your home to languish on the market as it loses value. We believe it’s well worth the minimal investment in staging to make your house more attractive to the market. A typical staging involves:
- Cleaning and decluttering
- Better furniture arrangements
- Adding accents here and there
- Making small, cosmetic repairs
- Presenting a livable atmosphere without a lived-in feel.
How much staging a given home needs depends on its current condition. In most cases, sellers enjoy excellent returns for a minimal investment of time and money. Contact us here at My Divine Concierge if you would like to know more.