So, it’s time to sell your property, and you’re wondering whether the benefits of home staging are worth the investment.
Naturally, you want to maximize your home’s sales price, but handling the sale quickly is also essential.
It can be tricky to decide whether to put it on the market as-is, with do-it-yourself staging(DIY), or if professional home staging is worth the investment, in which you spend the additional time and money to ensure you get the best-asking price.
In this post, we’ll give you a comprehensive rundown of home staging benefits so you can make an informed, confident decision about how to effectively approach your real estate efforts.
Let’s get moving, shall we?
What is home staging?
Home staging is the art of preparing a property to appeal to more potential buyers. It involves making strategic adjustments to enhance a home’s visual appeal and functionality.
The end goal of home staging is for the potential buyer to imagine themselves living in the property because if they can picture themselves living in it, there is a greater likelihood they will make an offer.
There are several components to effective home staging operations, such as:
Decluttering
A crucial part of home staging, the focus of decluttering, is to minimize the amount of objects in the house. Removing personal, religious, and political themes helps to give your home a neutral feeling. This makes the property look spacious, reduces the potential buyer from becoming distracted, and the buyer can visualize themselves living in the house.
Cleaning
Performing a thorough cleaning of the entire house, with the kitchen, bathroom, and master bedrooms as areas of extra importance. Everyone loves a clean home.
Repairing
When buyers want to purchase a property, they want to move in as is. Home staging works to address many repairs that often go unnoticed.
Optimize Furnishing
This may include removing old furnishings like furniture, curtains, and tapestries and replacing them with new furnishings that accentuate the strengths of your property and give them a more neutral color.
Decorations
Adding touches such as house plants, flowers, artwork, and throw blankets, all go a long way to making the property look warm and welcoming.
3 Game-Changing Benefits of Home Staging
In the competitive world of real estate, sellers are constantly searching for ways to make their homes stand out and attract potential buyers. Home staging is a powerful tool that can separate your property from the pack. Here are three game-changing benefits of home staging:
Commanding Higher Offers with Strategic Staging
When a home is staged correctly, it showcases its full potential and highlights its best features. Buyers are more likely to see the value of a staged property and be willing to pay a premium for it.
Creating a desirable and visually appealing space can command a higher asking price and attract serious buyers willing to pay top dollar.
According to the National Association of Realtors(NAR) most recent study on home staging, about 44% of sellers’ agents reported that home staging aided in increased offer prices, ranging from 1% to 20%.
This finding highlights the crucial role that home staging plays in helping buyers connect emotionally with a property, leading to a higher likelihood of more significant offers.
Accelerating Sales Through Effective Staging
Time is of the essence in real estate. The goal for the seller is to be able to sell the property within 90 days. The longer the property is on the market, the harder it will be to sell.
Buyers subconsciously associate time on the market with flaws in the property. By making your home look fantastic, home staging gives your property an edge over the competition, leaves a lasting impression on potential buyers, and increases the likelihood of a sale.
According to the NAR statistics, 21% of sellers’ agents reported that home staging significantly reduced the time a property was on the market, followed by 27% who said that it reduced the time the property was on the market slightly, so nearly 48% of sellers agents stated that home staging had a positive impact in lowering selling time.
Enhancing Digital Listings with Stellar Visuals
In the past, the “for sale” sign was king when it came to listings; now, those days are over. While technology usage has increased steadily throughout the years, the COVID-19 pandemic forced real estate to depend on digital listings to generate interest.
The NAR estimates that 97% of all homebuyers use the Internet in their home search. Home staging provides high-quality visuals that leave a lasting first impression through the digital listings medium. We know the famous saying that a picture is worth a thousand words; effective home staging through digital listings can potentially lead to thousands of additional dollars.
Is staging a home worth it: Unpacking Home Staging Costs
Now that we have seen that home staging provides tangible benefits let’s weigh if the investment is worth the cost. An initial consultation will be helpful to determine the extent of the work that needs to be done, regardless of whether you choose to home stage or not, and the consultation price ranges from $150 to $600.
Home Advisor says average home staging costs range between $784 to $2,812. However, the actual cost may vary based on factors like:
1. Size of home
The bigger the home, the greater the chance home staging may cost more.
2. Location
Where the property is located can affect staging costs, with big cities and upscale neighborhoods a common place for increased prices. A location like Atlanta, Georgia, could cost $150 on the low end while up to $3,000 on the high end, compared to Miami, Florida, which can cost $1,031 on the low end with $7,500 on the high end.
3. Maintenance and repairs
These may be additional projects that are recommended on your staging consultation.
4. Furniture rental
If the home still needs to be fully furnished, you may need to rent furniture from the home staging company. Professional home stagers tend to charge by the month, which can cost between $500 to $600 per room(per month), but this applies to vacant houses with no furniture.
A good rule of thumb for home staging pricing is about 1% to 1.5% of your total list price.
The DIY Route: Pros, Cons, and practical staging tips
Professional home staging is a tremendous option; however, it is not the only option. Depending on the condition of your house, a valid option is to do it yourself. Here are some of the pros of DIY home staging:
Work with a limited budget
DIY home staging is beneficial if you have limited resources. Instead of hiring a professional, you can save money by researching the market and making the necessary changes. With some vision, creativity, and elbow grease, you can make noticeable changes without breaking the bank.
Control over the decision-making process
Working with a professional home stager can often require you to work according to their vision, and it can present a challenge for many people who have attachments to the home or don’t agree with the plan of action the stager wants to take. When doing the home staging yourself, you can set your own pace and decide what changes you want to make for your home.
The Cons of DIY Home Staging
Lack of experience
Home staging is not just cleaning, moving things around, or attempting to look stylish; it’s science, it’s psychology. If a DIY stager is not privy to the tricks of the trade, their effort may not increase interest but rather decrease it.
Time-Consuming
Generally, the home staging company bears most of the burden and groundwork, but DIY home stagers are 100% responsible for the time and labor needed for effective home staging. A DIY home stager must be weighed if the extra time and effort are worth it.
Practical Home Staging Tips for DIY Home Stagers
Home staging is more complex than you may think, with many nuances. Here are a few home staging tips to get you started:
1. Declutter and depersonalize
When DIY staging your house, remember that less is more. When there is too much clutter, it distracts the buyers, but in an empty house, it’s a challenge for buyers to picture themselves in it; a few choice show pieces will create a clean, organized, and neutral canvas that allows buyers to imagine themselves living in the space
2. Maximize curb appeal
Curb appeal is the visual attractiveness of a house as seen from the street. First, Impressions matter, so Boosting curb appeal should be a high DIY staging priority. Ensure the front yard is well-maintained, the entrance is inviting, and the exterior is clean and well-painted. Add potted plants, fresh flowers, and a welcoming doormat to create an inviting atmosphere.
3. Highlight the best features
Every house has features/accessories that make it unique. Pick out the exceptional features of your home and make them your main attractions. Whether it’s a scenic view, marble tile, or a fantastic poolside area, position these elements in a way that they stand out and minimize the need for improvement features.
4. Add Light, Light, and More Light
Making sure your property is well-lit is pivotal. Adequate lighting makes the house appear spacious and welcoming. Clean the window sills on both sides of the window to make sure dust is not blocking the light. You can also use the opportunity to look for stylish lamps and fixtures to add to your staging decor.
5. Neutralize colors and styles
When staging a home, it’s essential to appeal to a wide range of potential buyers. Opt for neutral colors and styles that are timeless and universally appealing. This allows buyers to envision their furniture and personal style in the space. Paint walls in neutral tones, replace outdated fixtures and choose furniture and accessories that have broad appeal.
Leveraging Expertise: Benefits of Professional Stagers
Just as many sellers reach out to realtors because they are aware of their lack of expertise in real estate, professional home stages generally have a level of expertise that DIY stages have. Professional home stagers incorporate the science used for interior design, the psychology of what resonates with people, and the art of photography to maximize your chances of selling.
Though professional staging may cost more initially, considering the time you will save from having professionals doing the majority of the work, the maximum exposure they will generate for your property, and the higher probability of better offers, it’s worth it.
Home stage your way to the best offer
Whether you decide to DIY home stage or hire a professional company, home staging is the way to go. Forking over extra money is never easy, but home staging is worth the investment. The data supports that the benefits of home staging include commanding higher offers, assisting in selling houses faster and enhancing digital listings. Have time next week to contemplate which type of home staging is more suitable for you. In no time, your property will be a hot commodity and ready to get the best sale.