February 22, 2018
Why stage?
When listing your home for sale, the purpose of staging is to make your home the most appealing for photos and for potential buyers. Essentially, the goal in mind is to make your house a crowd-pleaser. From curb appeal to the flow of furniture placement, staging highlights the best qualities of the house and the uses for each space. Professionally staged homes read as well maintained homes through and through.
Have you ever looked at photos of a listing that was vacant and empty? No furniture, nothing hanging on the walls… sometimes prospective buyers look at these pictures and with a photo of an empty room it can be hard to gauge the size or to even identify the room itself. Is that a photo of a dining room or a bedroom? Often times if the picture doesn’t clearly show the purpose of the space, guess what. That potential buyer usually moves on to looking at another listing.
Let’s look at another instance. Sellers who are getting ready to list their home and are still residing there have usually lived in that house for a period of time. The house is comfortable, functional and lived-in. Imagine snapping pictures of your house exactly how it looks right now and using those pictures for your listing. The space works for you. We know this because you’re living in it. We leave things on the counters in the kitchen and bathrooms that we want to access easily. Of course, not everyone does this but a lot of people do. We have the big comfy recliner chair positioned perfectly to watch TV but it may not be in a position that works with the flow of traffic or it may be sitting in front of a window and interferes with the natural lighting. It’s hard for the home owners or the occupants of the home to see this because this is how they are used to seeing the house every day. It helps to have someone with fresh eyes to come in and advise.
A key in staging is “LESS IS MORE” so start minimizing. We always suggest beginning with packing anything you won’t use between now and your move. Your old family photo albums, suitcases, etc. Most of the time when people start packing, they also purge. They say “Why am I packing this thing I haven’t used in 5 years?” Thus, the donate pile is born! Start stacking boxes neatly in the garage and haul away any trash and donations. If you don’t have a garage, ONE spare bedroom can absolutely be used for storage.
Another key in staging is “BIGGER IS BETTER” Think about a luxury hotel. Big lamp on the nightstand, big chair in the corner, big art piece on the wall. It fills the space but feels luxurious instead of cluttered.
Most Realtors offer light staging tips of things you can do to get your house ready to sell and your Realtor can also refer or provide a Professional Stager and photographer in your area.
RESA (Real Estate Staging Association) certified staging instructor June Carter is a professional stager, organizer and owner of GYST Solutions - “Get Your Stuff Together” and she says that when clients say they can’t afford to stage, she tells them they can’t afford NOT to. Here is why:
In a recent RESA study of 1,081 homes, unstaged homes spent an average of 184 days on market before staging. After staging, these homes sold on average in 41 days. Homes that were staged prior to going on the market, sold on average in just 23 days! This means that homes that were staged first, spent 90% less time on the market! Homes that are staged also sell for 15% MORE than unstaged home, on average.
You can download “Consumers Guide To Real Estate Staging” from the RESA website that is full of checklists, pictures, and tips to support your staging journey!
Now these photos are of one of our local listings that went under contract in just SIX days and closed at the end of last year. Here, we want to point out things done right! Thank you to our Savvy Sellers for letting us use these <3 
This photo of the front of the house shows pride in ownership. The white of the trim and garage door is bright and clean, there’s no debris on the roof, sidewalk or driveway, the yellow of the door POPS, the plants under the window are centered and symmetrical and the rocks around them are white and clean, the grass is green and manicured so the edge where the driveway meets the grass brings your eye right up to the front door. When prospective buyers see this photo on the listing, it is safe to assume that the inside is as well maintained as the front of the house. Now let’s take a peek inside.
Here we have a photo of the inside of the house from back to front. The house is light and bright with shots of colors and texture and the purpose of each room is clearly defined. Colorful art above the television draws the attention of the viewer’s eye to the height of the ceiling and the crown molding, showing off the upgraded features of the house.
The master bedroom looks clean and elegant with lots of natural light, soft white bedding and nightstands that are free of bedside clutter. The table lamps and round mirrors draw the eye up to the windows and then to the tray ceiling - again, boasting the upgraded features of this room.
Often times when buyers come to look at a house, the first thing they want to see is the kitchen. This kitchen looks clean and big and bright- the counters are occupied by minimal kitchen necessities so it looks alive with purpose and ready to use but while showing off the gorgeous granite surface that is highly sought after. The stainless steel is polished and shines and the faces of the cabinets are clean.
These rooms are known as “key rooms”. Living room, Master bedroom, and Kitchen. Even if you don’t stage every single room, it is recommended that these three rooms get attention as well as the front of the house. Here are some quick tips for getting started:
If nothing else, have the house be immaculately clean!
Staging in a nutshell: Key rooms- Living Room, Kitchen, Master. Less is more. Bigger is better. Simplify. Shots of color and texture. Odd numbers. 90% less days on market and 15% more for sales price.
Give us a call for more tips and tricks about staging and selling or for references of professional stagers in the area!
