Home Staging-Does it really work or is it a waste of $$
As a REALTOR® I get asked by my clients all the time, do we need to stage the house? Can you offer us suggestions on how to fix the place up? Can you or are you willing to bring in a stager? I typically answer those questions like this, Depends, De-Clutter, We will see.
Now don't get me wrong, I do not discredit home stagers, in fact my sister in law in Edmonton has a company called Designer Junkies Inc., she is not only a home stager but also REALTOR®. So obviously she believes in the value of home staging to sell properties, I personally have never used the services of a home stager but I am now open to the idea if the home warrants it.
The idea behind home staging is to help the potential home buyer be able to visualize where all of the furniture will go and how things will look inside the home. In my experience most buyers do not have what I call the "minds eye" when it comes to visualizing the look of the home with furnishings. Being a tradesperson for 10 years you develop this mind’s eye and I will say it certainly comes in handy in selling real estate, but I digress.
The following is an excerpt from designerjunkies.ca on the goals and benefits of staging a home:
"Interior "Curb Appeal" is extremely important when selling a home. A clean, decluttered and air fresh home are simple steps in preparing for a sale. Selectively placing your furnishings with warm colors allows a house to feel inviting and comfortable to that prospective purchaser.
They start to imagine their family and friends over for dinner, holiday gatherings and so on. When traditional tones are showcased the atmosphere can be completely transpired. Make sure the most eye catching part of the home is the one the prospective purchaser sees’s first."
As I am sure you have heard before, you never get a second chance to make a first impression! You need to create the "WOW" factor as soon as the prospective client walks through the door, or you will never convince them that this is the property for them.
The home stagers that I have contacted here in Calgary were willing to charge on a room by room basis or on staging of the whole house. One thing you should ask yourself when selling your home is, “What can I do to make my house stand out from my competition?" I think if your home needs a little TLC in terms of decoration or paint, then the relatively small investment when considering the return, may be of huge benefit.
I hope you got some useful information off this blog post, if you want more information on home staging and you are looking at selling your home in the Edmonton area please do not hesitate to drop Taryn Berndt an email taryn@tarynberndt.com
Kelley Skar-REALTOR®
Sutton Partners Realty Group
