That's a great question. I know we have a lot of stagers on here that can give you some advice.

In my experience staging does sell particularly if you are in a competitive neighborhood where there are many comparable properties for sale. It's also great to help the buyer see potential use fo the space. You may want to complete yoru remodeling and try the house on the market for a while. If it doesn't receive any offers quickly enough, then stage it.

Absolutely! There is a reason why model homes are professionally decorated. "Perception is reality", as one of my marketing teachers used to say!

Jamieson - 'Perception is reality" - I love it. I explain to clients staging increases the perceived value of a property - so dido!

Yes Its like a Home Beauty treatment ;) , Go for it, the $5000 you would pay comes back many fold,as Alldecor's post , plus a stager is a Professional and has Hands on experience and knows what a client wants, PLUS they are gifted by sixth sense, all the better if the stager is a Decorator as well .

Hi Claudia,

My personal experience has been that if the home is staged well, it is a worthy investment. If its staged poorly, then it can be distracting at best. As for the $5k investment in great staging: while its no panacea, that same $5k can be eaten up very quickly with mortgage payments and bills etc for a house that sits unsold, sans staging.

Hope this helps & best wishes for a speedy home sale! :)

Steve

Definitely stage BUT there may be a conflict of interest if the realtor is doing the staging or arranging for it. Interview your own stagers and get references and photos including results. Caveat emptor! :)

My question is, what does your place look like, and does it NEED staging?

Staging is often done in order to create an ambience similar to a model home. The goal of staging is to immediately give the buyers the sense that they live there already, because once they get emotionally attached to the house, it is sold!

I don't think staging is something that is required in every home, as many homeowners already have that great design sense, so they can do it themselves, much like many homeowners do their own decorating and design work!!!

When staging, eliminate all things personal. No diplomas, no family pictures, no religious symbols, nothing to identify who may live there. When it is made "beautifully generic" then people have a much easier time picturing themselves living there.

Empty half your closets, to give illusion of tons of storage, (visitors WILL open every single cupboard and cabinet, so they all must be pristine)

Remove excess furniture (imagine a realtor and a couple maneuvering through the space....can they move around, or will they bump into things?)

Repair every little oddball thing that has been on your to-do list since you moved in. These are warning signs to homeowners, when they see cracks, peeling paint, a switch that turns on nothing, etc. then warning bells go off in their heads that bigger things may be wrong with the place.

CLEAN like a demon, and stop cooking with all things smelly (fish, curry, garlic) since you never know when a potential showing may take place.

Define every room, so people aren't scratching their heads trying to figure out what to do in a space.

If you have unusual taste in furniture (ask an honest friend) then rent some, borrow some, buy some, whatever it takes. Then fluff the place so it looks like no one lives there. Ever.

If you think you can do it yourself, then heck, do it yourself!!!

Staging is not an impossible task for the DIY type!!!
There are a ton of excellent resources on-line and on bookshelves to help you.

I'd certainly question the need to spend $5000, maybe post some photos of your space before you list it, and we can all chime in again!

Grrr....just noticed the original post is 4 months old. My advice may be too little, too late!
So, what did you do, Claudia? Did you spend the money? Did you stage it yourself? And is it sold???

"Wow Great Place" is spot on. I buy and sell a lot of property and never had a staging. The last one sold in 3 days and some have sold for more than the listing price. Ppl asked "how do you do that" my answer was the same as "Wow great place". The problem is most ppl don't do what we say therfore they loose. Remember the day you list your home, you no longer own it. Give the buyer what they want.

Sometimes all you need might be some de-cluttering and perhaps renting a storage space until your house is sold. Maybe I have a trained eye, but to me staging doesn't affect what I see in potential houses.

David (dytecture) I totally agree, however, the reason staging works, is because most people CAN'T see past a bad paint colour. They don't view a space the same way as we might, which is why you have to make it so obvious in order to attract the most attention from the most number of potential buyers.

YES! Hope it worked!

An excellent buyer's rep should be able to help a buyer see a property's potential and also advise on negotiating strategy if the property is not presented well. But, many agents can be as unimaginative as many buyers. Neutralizing, staging and other marketing tactics are designed to appeal to the masses because a seller does want to reach as many potential buyers as possible.

Ever thought of "Virtual Home Staging" - using your existing photos of the interior to 'stage' the rooms using 3D software. We just started doing this after a number of requests for UK clients.

It's simply for marketing purposes & your real estate agent must make it clear to prospective buyers, but it is the faster & cheaper way to demonstrate the true potential of your property... what do you think? http://www.embraceinteriors.com/#!virtual-home-staging/rnubp