What Is The Point of “Staging” Your Home For Sale?

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What is the point really of staging your home when you list it for sale?

Often people hear the word “staging“ when it comes to getting your house or condo ready for sale.

But there seems to be a lot of confusion as to what the word “staging” means or what the “staging” process entails.

In simple terms “staging” a property is in essence preparing your property to be presented in the best possible way and in the most appealing way for potential buyers when they come to see it.

In fact, “staging“ is an industry and a profession all its own.

And any really good Realtor will have their own professional “Stagers” who they recommend to their clients.

Sometimes the word “staging” can be ambiguous and therefore misleading.

Sometimes if a home is very new, up-to-date, and modern in its design, then “staging” can sometimes be as simple as tidying up and removing personal pictures and putting a few things away.

Alternatively, many people think that “staging“ is only necessary if a house or condo is vacant and there is no furniture or decor whatsoever.

“Staging“ a vacant property is critical to selling it for the most money possible but NOT the only use of good “staging“.

When it comes to the professional services of “staging”, many people think (in error) that staging is just another word or term for hiring a Decorator.

And that simply isn’t true.

Although your house or condo might be beautiful and appealing to you and it might suit your tastes, “Stagers” know the current trends that are most appealing in the eyes and opinions of current buyers.

It doesn’t matter whether you like the way your home is decorated, or even if I like the way your home is currently decorated.

You and I might love it.

What is most important is knowing what is of the most interest to a potential buyer so that they will want to pay top dollar for your home.

In fact that is one key difference between a real estate Stager vs. a Decorator.

A Decorator focuses on your tastes and creating a living space that appeals to you.

A Stager focuses on creating a living space and current trends that appeal to current potential buyers in your area.

Another thing that Stagers are trained to do is create an emotion.

Emotions are the root of every decision that everybody makes when they buy anything.

When people make a decision to buy something or anything at all, whether it is electronically or fashion or real estate, 50% of the decision is based on analysis and the other 50% of the decision is based on emotion.

In fact research shows that emotion has actually become much higher of an influence than the analytical factors.

Think about yourself for a minute.
Have you ever walked into… let’s say… an Electronics store during Christmas or holiday season to get a small gift for someone else and you can’t justify spending $1000 on a new TV that you simply don’t need at the moment.

But when you see the section of TV displays there is one big beautiful TV that catches your eye and jumped right out at you and you just love the picture. And so you end up buying it.

Or, have you ever gone to walk around the mall and said to yourself or said to a friend that you were just looking around?

But then you see a great top or some really nice pants or a fabulous dress or stunning shoes in the window so you try them on?

And when you look at yourself in the mirror you love how it looks on you so you buy it!

That is emotion making you want it. Even though analytically you decided you weren’t going to spend money today on something like that.

So when Stagers are trained to use your own furniture but reposition it or re-purpose certain furniture in different rooms they are striving to create an emotion for potential buyers.

Ultimately when someone comes to see your home you want them to feel warm and fuzzy, and feel like they’re already at home.

Do you want them to start picturing them selves and their own furniture and their family members and their pets already living there, which gives them that feeling and emotion as if they are already home.

Staging can also be a strategic part of making certain rooms feel more open or larger or brighter and therefore more inviting.

In real estate bigger is often considered to be better.

So if someone is looking at two or three or more properties of the same size, but in your home the principal room feel bigger and brighter and more inviting, and more comfortable than the other properties, then that could be a key deciding factor when buyers choose which home they want to buy or make an offer on.

Especially if you consider that a buyer might look at three or four or five properties at one time, or even more, and they all might be similar sizes with similar features.

But when they get home and they discuss what they saw, they will remember your property and remember how they felt, and remember what they envisioned in your home, which is ultimately that it’s like home for them.

If they really want your property and they see themselves living there, as your Realtor and a trained negotiator myself, I can leverage that emotion to motivate them to want to pay you top dollar for your home.[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]