Read below to see the four most common FAQ (frequently asked questions) people have about home staging.
- Can’t I stage my own home?
- Isn’t it just a matter of decluttering?
- What are the Six Steps to Successful Home Sale?
- Doesn’t staging cost a lot of money?
FAQ #1. Can’t I stage my own home?
You CAN stage your home. But the question is, can you stage your home in a way that will appeal to the largest group of buyers looking for your kind of home? There are many check lists and articles about staging but they are generic and don’t address your particular issues or things like:
- traffic flow
- highlighting architectural features
- making cost effective updates
- appealing to your target market
in the same way that a professional home stager is able to do.
The main reason that it is so hard to stage your own home is that it is very difficult to emotionally detach yourself from your home…a home that you have loved for years. Often our happy memories of events that took place in the home give us rose colored glasses. It is very difficult to see it as a piece of property that has to appeal to TODAY’S BUYERS, buyers that often have very different wants and needs than what was popular before.
And, after living in a home for years, it is normal to become somewhat blind to the small repairs, clutter, and poor furniture layout that a set of fresh eyes can see.
So, can you stage your own home …. yes, you can. You can also cut your own hair or fix your own car, but just because you can do something doesn’t mean that you will be able to get the best result!
Professional Home Staging can turn your wonderful home into a property to be SOLD FOR TOP DOLLAR!
FAQ #2. Isn’t it just a matter of decluttering?
Yes, decluttering IS a major part of staging…but only one part.
Staging with Pittsburgh Staged Home is a six step process that ensures that your home sells for top dollar!
FAQ #3. What are the Six Steps to successful home sale?
- Repair– do any small (or large) repairs. Buyers want to buy a home, not your to-do-list.
- Refresh– if your home has not been decorated or remodeled in the last 5 years, consider new paint or updating lights and cabinet hardware. These inexpensive up-dates can increase the value of your home by making it look fresh and current.
- Declutter– go through every cupboard, closet, and storage space and remove all out-of-date /unused or unneeded items. Pack up anything you will not need in the next 6 months, as well as extra furniture or decorative items. Store like items together and use baskets and boxes to create a feeling of order. Place boxes neatly in the garage or off-site if possible.
- Depersonalize – is removing anything that tells your story. It neutralizes the space and arranges it to suggest a lifestyle appealing to the greatest possible number of potential buyers. Remember you are not selling your ‘stuff’ but the house. Usually the things that you love about your home are the things that need to be removed
- Clean, Clean, Clean! – making your house sparkle and shine goes a long way to making buyers feel welcome, so clean as you have never cleaned before! If the budget allows it, think about calling in a professional cleaning company.
- Stage and style for maximize effect! – Staging is all about making every space LOOK and FEEL the very best it can be! Your home is not only competing with other homes in the area, it’s also up against the homes seen on HGTV, Houzz or Pinterest!
FAQ #4. Doesn’t staging cost a lot of money?
The biggest misconception about home staging is that it costs a lot of money.
You might be thinking “I don’t want to spend money on a home I’m moving out of. I will just skip the staging and save the money I would have spent on updating and staging my home.” While it is easy to see the cost to stage your home, there is also a cost to NOT staging. And not staging can cost you more money in the long run.
It can cost you…
- weeks and months of sitting on the market
- the stress of keeping your house ready to show
- the worry of ending up with two mortgage payments
and in the end it can cost many thousands of dollars in one or MORE price reductions
Spending money wisely on your home will bring a return on your investment. Sometimes repainting, wallpaper removal or other minor updates may be recommended. These details are important and increase the chances that your home will sell quickly.
Home staging is not redecorating or remodeling. Home staging is a successful marketing tool that prepares your home to appeal to the targeted buyers. It helps the buyers create an emotional connection and increases the perceived value of your home.
Money spent on staging is often seen anextra expense and not really necessary …so home owners don’t spend the money to stage the house. But then they will lower the price 10K or more when the home doesn’t sell.
When people ask me “isn’t staging expensive” ….I say it always costs much less than a price reduction.