The fall home-sales season is upon us, and it is time for real estate agents and sellers to prepare properties for sale.
If you are in the market to sell your home, you probably already realize that your property needs to be as clean, clutter-free and in as good repair as possible, inside and out. We often refer to these basics as the 3-Ds: de-clutter, de-personalize and deep-clean.
But you can further distinguish your home from the competition by having your house staged for a faster and more profitable sale.
WHAT IS HOME STAGING?
Home staging is the art and science of preparing your home for market. Just as you'd detail you car before you tried to sell it, you'll need to detail your home.
When you place your home on the market, think of it as any other commodity, something that will need to be merchandised to appeal to potential buyers.
Working with a home-staging professional, you'll get a second pair of eyes that can help you pinpoint the weaknesses of your home while highlighting its strengths. Professional stagers can see your house as buyers will. Believe it or not, most buyers are looking for reasons not to buy your house.
Home stagers can help you get an objective assessment of your property. In addition, many home stagers carry an inventory of accessories and furnishings that can further help your home appeal to the widest possible buying audience.
WHAT WILL A HOME STAGER DO?
Professional home stagers will set the scene so that buyers can imagine living in the home. Stagers are likely to remove or reposition furniture in a room for better traffic flow and to enhance its spaciousness. They may neutralize a too-personal color scheme or add touches of color or accessories where needed.
In vacant homes that feel cold and lack visual landmarks, stagers often bring in rental furniture and create "vignettes," such as a seating area in front of the fireplace.
Barb Schwarz, president of StagedHomes.com and founder of The International Association of Home Staging Professionals, says that staging helps exhausted buyers "mentally move in" and feel that when they move in for real, they'll be able to kick back for a while and relax.
HOW MUCH DOES STAGING COST?
Consider staging an investment. The money spent immediately before putting a home on the market is often the home investment that creates the most return for the seller. This includes lightening and brightening with paint and new carpet, as well as staging.
And remember, regardless of the cost of staging, it is still less than your first price reduction.
Homeowners typically pay from $250 to $350 for a staging consultation and $2,000 to $8,000 for a full staging, depending on the size of the home and level of service required. But the pay-off - in time saved and higher sales price - can be rewarding to say the least.
The best statistics to date of the return on investment of home staging were collected by StagedHomes.com. In a nationwide survey of 2,000 sold homes, properties that were not staged were on the market an average of 30 days. Properties that had been staged sold in less than 16 days!
Additionally, staged homes sold an average of 6 percent over asking price, whereas homes that were not staged sold an average of 1 percent over list price (reference available from www.stagedhomes.com).
MAXIMIZING AN INVESTMENT
As home stagers, we receive a tremendous amount of feedback from our clients, and the No. 1 quote we hear is, "Why didn't I do this before?" Indeed, even if you have no intention to sell, you can still benefit from staging!
For home stagers in the Seattle area, you can find one easily by going to seattlechapter.iahsp.com, or ask your real estate agent for a referral for a home stager in your area.
Regardless of your intention to sell your home or market conditions, staging can be an easy way to maximize your real estate investment.
Stage Right Now's Susan Gold and Leah Stahlsmith and Lake Realty's Erica Bauermiester are team-teaching a class on home staging through the Phinney Neighborhood Center; for more information, call 783-2244.
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