Are you planning to sell your home? You have probably listed in one of the local MLS websites hoping for a buyer to come your way. But in this competitive day and age, selling your home goes beyond snapping one or two pictures and listing it on an MLS website. It involves excellent marketing strategy and proper staging of your home.
If you want to sell your home fast and for the right price, staging is one of the easiest ways to make it happen. When potential buyers walk into a home for sale, they want to see it in the best possible light. They want to envisage themselves living in the house. Every buyer wants the ‘perfect’ house and staging one way to give them that impression.
In this article, we will answer the question, what is staging and why should you even bother to stage your home for sale.
What is Staging?
Home staging is the process of preparing a home for potential buyers. Typically, it involves redecorating, rearranging furniture, cleaning and other beautification strategies to present the home in the best possible light. In the world of real estate, the goal of home staging is to make the home as appealing as possible to potential buyers.
While home staging may involve redecorating, it is more than putting up decorations. For most real estate professionals, home staging is more about depersonalizing a home space so that potential buyers can picture themselves living in it. This can mean removing personal pictures, stickers, possessions, and memorabilia. According to Stagedhomes.com, a staged home can bring in 6 to 20 percent more than the same home without staging.
Benefits of Staging a Home for Sale
Let’s look at some worthy benefits of staging a home for sale:
- Helps Your Online Listing
According to 90% of home buyers start their search online and the first thing they see are the photos of your house. So, bringing your home to life in the best way possible by having it staged creates the best first impression in the mind of your potential home buyer. Creating a good impression in the mind of your potential buyer is one of the easiest ways to get them into your house.
- Increases Your Home Value
If you are still in doubt on whether to stage your home or not, then this might be the kicker. According to the National Association of Realtors 2017 Profile of Home Staging, One-quarter of buyers’ agents told the NAR that staging increased the offering price by 1% to 5% compared to homes that weren’t staged.
One of the major goals of staging your home is to get multiple people interested in it, and if there are multiple interest in your home, a bidding war can begin. Additionally, once a buyer falls in love with a home, they are more likely to present offers higher than the asking price to make sure they secure it.
- Helps Home Sell Faster
While there are still arguments on whether staging a home attracts higher offers, numerous real estate experts have proven that staged homes actually sell faster. And the faster your home sells, the quicker you get your money.
One recent study revealed that home staged prior to their listing actually sold 79% faster than non-staged homes. A professionally staged home allows your potential buyers to picture themselves living in the space, and also makes them overlook certain minor issues with the home.
- Creates the Perception of a Spacious Home
One of the goals of every home staging process is to maximize all the available spaces. No home buyer wants to purchase a cramped space. If your home space is on the small side, staging can make your room appear bigger and brighter.
Most professional stagers understand the dynamics behind creating a flow that is beneficial to your buyers. Even if you are unable to afford a professional stager, a simple decluttering, opening all the blinds, and positioning your furnitures the right way may be all you need to make your room appear bigger to a potential buyer.
How Much Does Staging a Home Cost?
On average, the cost of staging a home is around $400-$3000 depending on your choice of stager, number of rooms to be staged, and complexity of the staging process. While staging your home may cost you several hundreds of dollars, there is a high possibility of recouping these expenses if it is the done right way.
The Bottomline
Clearly, staging a home for sale offers quite a lot of benefits. It increases the value of a house, attracts potential home buyers, and help a house sell faster. These days, home staging is a common process among sellers and real estate agents because of the physical and financial benefits it offers. Before listing your home on the market, you should endeavor to discuss your home staging needs with your chosen local real estate agent.
