What is Home Staging?

 

Home Staging is a marketing tool that gives your property an edge, bringing you ahead of the competition – both online and in person.

 

94% of buyers aged 25-44 use the internet to search for homes before deciding whether or not to view a property, which means that photos are the most important determining factor when buyers and Agents make their first impression on your home.

 

By preparing your home for sale and showcasing beautifully staged rooms, you ensure your photos will stand-out amongst the competition, giving buyers a reason to want to view your home, generating more foot traffic, and once they step foot into your home the impact will be evident.

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Staging your home with personality is what's going to make a potential buyer fall in love with your home.

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It has been proven time and time again that people buy from an emotional place, with any purchase we make. It’s the convenience factor that we think about when making a purchase, and this translates into how much value we place on a product. The same goes for a home. We all want a home that makes us feel good, one that we’re excited to come home to.

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The purpose of staging a home is about making the buyer experience the joy of living in the property before they even buy.

 

When selling your home, putting a for sale sign and waiting for someone to fall in love with it may not be the best way to show someone that your property will make a great home for them. You have to do some prep work and highlight what makes your home different from the one down the street.

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Detaching from your home can be emotionally distressing; to have to emotionally separate yourself from your home and start thinking of it as a product you’re trying to sell. But remember, your main goal is to make people fall in love with your home and want to make it their own.

 

You must entice your buyers to take a good look, not hurry through. You don’t want people to feel like they’re walking through a stranger’s home. Part of detaching yourself from your home, you must depersonalize the home. Staged homes allow prospective buyers to create an emotional attachment and once a buyer falls in love, the ‘must haves’ on their list become secondary.

 

Real Estate Agents know buyers choose homes based on their emotions and not their "must have" lists. This is why REALTORS® show staged homes even when they fall short or exceed the buyers wish list.

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Where do you begin?

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Take a good look around your home and write down all the things that you find unappealing – whether that be paint colour, cleanliness, tidiness, furniture, or damage and repairs that need to be done, and finally small renovations that you’ve been putting off for as long as you can remember. Think about these, because this is what potential buyers will focus on. Recent statistics show 63% of buyers want an updated home and will pay more money for a home in turn-key condition. Write a list and get started; it’s going to take a little longer than you think to get your home in tip-top shape.

 

If you find these tasks daunting, have a Home Stager or Interior Designer assist you. They will highlight architectural features, create traffic patterns and draw attention to key areas of the room. If furniture is needed, they’ll choose the appropriate scale of furniture to maximize the space – showcasing the beauty of your home and making it stand out amongst the competition.

 

If you choose to do this yourself, just be careful distinguishing between clutter and décor. A professional will know how much to pack away and how much to keep out. De-cluttering too much will leave a home feeling sterile and lacking personality, which is almost as bad as a messy, cluttered home. I can help you out with this; ask me how.

 

When you’re preparing your home for sale, you’re preparing for your move as well. Staging a home is the first step in the moving process, forcing you to organize and de-clutter. Which means that you’re not packing at the last moment and unnecessarily bringing items that you should have sold, donated or recycled. It’s really a benefit and stress reliever. Not to mention staged homes sell on average 78% faster than a home that has not been staged.

 

Home staging is a unique marketing tool that will set your property apart from the competition. Whether you choose to do it yourself or hire a professional. You’ll be free to move forward with the purchase of your next home – and you may have picked up on some tips for your new home along the way too!