Why Staging?

Staging is an important step that many homeowners and agents skip. The reason that staging is important is twofold. First of all, living in a home and selling a home are two very different things. We would like to showcase your home in the best possible light so that a buyer can perceive themselves living in your house. That is what a good stager does. They dress up the home so that the buyer feels like they can see themselves living there.
Secondly, staging a home sets the foundation for the marketing plan. Excellent photos of a disorganized mess, is still just a disorganized mess. Staging can accentuate the essential details of your home, and allow for the photography to shine. I always prefer to have homes professionally staged to show your home in the best possible manner.
A professional stager will help you with:
Clutter control
Depersonalization
Suggestions on paint color
Suggestions on accessories
Regrouping furniture to accentuate the space
Make suggestions on lighting changes
Variations on wall hangings
Create a sense of balance
Creating a sense of belonging

Here is an example of a townhouse of before and after. In the before photo, the homeowner took their own photo to list as FSBO. In the after photo, an agent had a stager help change things and the agent hired me to photograph the home. There is quite a difference in both the quality of the space, and the quality of the photograph. Note that I received permission from the owner to use his photo, and the second photo is my own photo.

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I have some professional stagers on my resource list. These stagers are ones that I have used or friends have used on many many homes.

Vacant House

Although a vacant house can feel big and roomy, it doesn’t feel personable, or enticing. This is because most consumers can’t envision how a room looks with furniture. They just see large open spaces. Providing furniture to help them see how the room can be used is very helpful and can actually help them fall in love with the home, even if they know the furniture doesn’t stay! This is an important point. Just take a look at the photos below. This seller wanted to try to sell the home vacant. I shot the house while vacant and tried to sell it vacant. Then after 2 weeks, the seller decided to have staging done. The first impression is WOW! This home now feels like a million bucks. Remember this is the same house!

Additional Resources:
Staging Tips – REALTOR Magazine