Why should I Stage my home for sale?
To maximize your equity. You know how much equity you have in your home, but you can’t see the home the way the buyers do. You need to earn your equity by showing your home’s best features.
I have a Realtor, so why do I need a Stager?
Your Realtor is in charge of marketing your home to prospective buyers. Realtors do not know how to direct you to reshape your home to its best advantage. Your Realtor’s time is better spent bringing in buyers; the Stager can help you present your home to its best advantage.
Do Realtors like working with Stagers?
Yes. Staged Homes® are recognized by Realtors as properties ready to sell, so they will be more likely to show your home to potential buyers. Realtors like the way Stagers take a house and turn it into a product that will sell quickly and for more money.
I’ve lived comfortably in my home for years. Won’t buyers recognize its potential?
The short answer is no. Buyers will notice your family photos and the pile of DVD’s you left on the table, not the beautiful crown molding or a great window view. Just as you would detail a car you were selling to maximize its beauty and minimize its flaws, you need to detail your home to prepare it for a quick and profitable sale. Staging helps buyers visualize themselves living in your home.
So what if the carpet is dirty or my guest room filled with stuff. Why should I paint and fix before showing? Won’t the buyers want to paint it their own colors?
While the buyers might want to paint the walls later, when they visit your home they only know what they see. In addition, if a home has too much or too little in it, it is difficult for most buyers to visualize how their own things will look in the home. You need to fix it all now for a quicker and more profitable sale. Remember, you never get a second chance to make a first impression. Buyers rarely come back for a second look.
I’m on a tight budget. How can I afford to stage?
Don't underestimate the price of not Staging. The cost to Stage your home is less than the first price reduction you will make if your house is not selling. Remember that each month your home remains on the market, you are paying an additional mortgage payment.
What if I am not in a hurry to sell my home? A few extra months in my home won’t hurt.
Homes that languish on the market earn a reputation as being either overpriced or hard to sell. You should prepare your home to sell quickly, and then do everything you can to maximize traffic in the first 30 days before the listing becomes stale.
The less time your house is on the market, the more you will get for it. According to the National Association of Realtors, homes which sold in the first 4 weeks average only 1.9% less than list price, vs. homes sold after 24 weeks, which will average up to 8.9% less than the original asking price.
What does the professional stager actually do?
The job of a stager is to get buyers to fall in love with a property. Buyers today can see almost everything about a house online in virtual tours. What’s missing in those photos? The visceral ‘feel’ of the house. Buyers want the emotional connection that Stagers specialize in providing.
A decorator “did” my house and everyone compliments it, so why do I need a Stager?
Decorating is design for living. Staging is not decorating; it is marketing. While the decorator designs for one client, you, the stager designs for many. A successful Staging is one where several buyers can walk in and imagine themselves living your home.
