Professional home staging is a specialised skill which involves creating the perfect atmosphere in your home using furniture and accessories, plants and lighting, in the hopes of garnering buyer interest for your property and potentially sell it faster, for the best price. Home staging is still a fairly new concept, but this doesn’t diminish the value of it on today’s housing market, here’s why:
The research
As suggested in research by the Home Staging Association UK, staged properties sell on average, twice as fast and for up to 10% more than properties without staging. Therefore, it appears if you had a property valued at £300K before staging, it could sell for between £24,000 and £30,000 more once staged.*
Visual appeal matters
Some prospective buyers may not be able to imagine living in a home that’s empty or, on the flip side, cluttered. If a property is vacant of furniture, or is not looking at its best, potential buyers could struggle to envision its full potential or imagine making the home their own. If buyers can’t picture themselves living in the property, they are unlikely to commit to buying it.
Selling more than just the property
When looking for their next potential home, prospective buyers will seek out a place that reflects the lifestyle they aspire to, rather than the lifestyle they currently have. The type of property people choose to buy and how much they are willing to pay is directly related to how good the property makes them feel when they browse through images and step inside. If the property represents a lifestyle that a buyer aspires to, then they are likely to be willing to pay more for it.
Playing to its strengths
Every property has its setbacks, which is why it’s important to highlight its key selling points. Staging focuses the eye and attention of the home’s strengths and can subtly detract from anything that could be deemed unsightly. If a potential buyer falls in love with your home, they are likely to not be disheartened by any minor repairs and improvements they’ll need to make once they move in. In an empty property, everything is on display and even minor defects can become a major sticking point.
Get ahead of competition
In today’s market, for every attractive home there’s another one right around the corner and staging could be the thing that sets yours apart from the rest. The first thing buyers do when looking for a home is browse properties online and the listings with the most attractive images will be the ones that garner the most clicks. If other properties in your area are on board with the concept of property staging and your listing photos haven’t been staged, your home could fall behind in the ranks as your property’s pictures may not match up to the same standard.
Hiring a property staging specialist will cost you short term but the profits could prove abundant when your house is sold. Staging specialists can offer useful tips and advice on how best to prepare your home for sale and can also help with other important details from clearing and decluttering, to moving furniture, and finishing with those all-important final touches for a viewing. However, if you are unsure about how to stage your property, please contact us. We are happy to help!
Looking for advice on selling your home? Get in touch today and let us help you.
*Home Staging Association
