Today’s topic is all about staging, and whether or not it makes sense.
We’ll start by discussing some industry statistics, such as:
- 81% of buyers say home staging makes it EASIER TO VISUALIZE the property as their future home
- Homes staged prior to listing sold 79% FASTER than those staged some time after being listed
- Staged homes spend 73% LESS TIME on the market than non-staged homes
- 49% of agents working with buyers have indicated that their clients PAID MORE for a home because it was staged
- NONE of the agents surveyed indicated that a staged home had a NEGATIVE impact
So clearly there are some benefits to staging. The next thing we talk about in the episode is how much staging REALLY costs.
Our team provides two levels of service – the first is a Home Enhancement Consultation, where we make specific recommendations about furniture positioning, decluttering, and a room-by-room summary of the changes you should make. Second, if clients wish to move things to another level, we offer full Smart Staging service from one of our multiple storage units.
This is all done by a professional stager, and that’s the path I usually recommend. I’m very good at giving you a sense of “return on investment” or “return on time”, but like I usually say… don’t ask me what colour to paint your bedroom, or what tile looks best in the washroom. I leave that to the designers, and in my eyes, there’s no better than Liane Robertson with RProjex.
Next – there’s a different approach you need to take with vacant homes, and there are some other options like virtual staging (here’s a sample) that can make sense for some clients who don’t want to pay the full cost of physical staging.
If you remember nothing else from this episode, please remember that there’s a reason builders have model homes.
And one more: not all staging is created equally. There are vast differences between agents who “stage”. Please seek clarification, and exact details of their plan to get your home ready. Expectations are higher than ever from buyers… and you want to make your home look its absolute BEST.
Enjoy the episode!