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If you are thinking of selling your home, you will want to ensure that you “stage” your home to showcase its true potential, both for yourself and potential buyers. Whether you decide to hire a professional home stager or do it yourself, home staging is a crucial step in the home selling process. Professionally staged homes present and show better than competing houses for sale, including new construction homes and higher-priced houses.
What is Home Staging?
Home staging is the act of preparing and showcasing a property for sale. It is a systematic and coordinated methodology in which knowledge of real estate, home renovations, and creative design principles are applied to attract buyers. Preparing property involves all or part of cleaning, de-cluttering, updating, and repairing, while showcasing is the process of arranging furniture, accessories, art, and light.
Professional stagers recommend repairs and upgrades that are needed to get the property in market-ready condition. Buyers often do not have the funds to purchase a home and pay more money to address repairs, painting, etc. Buyers realize and appreciate the benefits of purchasing a professionally staged property.
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In most cases, staged properties sell faster when compared with houses that have not been staged. From the date of listing until the day of closing, home staging shortens this time frame, even in a slow real estate market. You will want to have photos of your staged home taken before putting it on the market, because photos of professionally staged listings look better on the MLS, as well as in print. There is no doubt that these listings will stand out in prospective buyers’ minds. You can expect more showings, because buyers’ agents recognize that professionally staged listings are “move-in ready” and are inclined to show staged properties. At showings, buyers view professionally staged listings as newer and well-maintained. Staged properties can increase the number of offers and selling price in hot markets…you may even find yourself with competing offers in today’s market!
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But don’t take our word for it! The Real Estate Staging Association (RESA) has done the research. RESA studied 63 homes that were previously on the market not staged. These 63 homes sat on the market, on average, for 143 days before the homeowners gave up and called in a professional home stager. Those same homes were staged and received their first offer, on average, 40 days after being professionally staged. This is 72% less time on the market! RESA studied 481 homes that were staged before they went on the market. These homes, on average, received their first offer in 23 days after being professionally staged. Bottom line—sellers are better off staging first and then having their home listed as they will sell 87% faster than they would if they listed first and then staged.
To hear firsthand from our clients about the power of staging your home, click here. For more information about preparing to sell your home and more tips and insight into staging, contact us anytime at 919-813-6449 or [email protected]. Visit us online at realestateexperts.net.