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Real Estate Staging

Houses that are staged sell faster and often for more money than unstaged homes.

This is no surprise, really, because staged homes showcase the best features of the property, not the furnishings and personal tastes (or lifestyle habits) of the seller. This makes it easy for potential buyers to imagine themselves living in your home -- and liking it!

Why Staged homes sell faster than unstaged homes

1. First impressions! Buyers make up their minds within seconds of driving by (curb appeal) or entering a house. Staging addresses those all-important first impressions.

2. Appeal to buyers' emotions. Buyers have all sorts of rational ideas about the perfect house, but ultimately, what will tip the scale in your favor is if they feel "at home" and can picture themselves living in it. Staging increases the cozy, inviting feel of your home.

3. Agents like to show staged homes, so your house will be seen more often than it might unstaged.

4. Buyers will find fewer reasons to ask you to lower your price. Buyers, especially in this "buyers' market" will focus on any and every flaw they can find. By downplaying flaws and highlighting features, you give them less to criticize and more to fall in love with!

Staging may be accomplished using the seller's furnishings, and/or by renting, borrowing, purchasing the necessary furniture and accessories. It's a good idea to look at comparable homes and see what you're up against; that will help make the decision to, for instance, rent some furniture pieces or work with what you already own.

We look for creative ways to work with what you have and to focus on the most critical areas of the house. It's not as important to have a 'model home' as it is to model the home! Your belongings should not get in the way of that goal (we don't want the seller recalling "the house with the lime chair"!)

To that end, a professional stager's job is to help the home seller:

· "Neutralize" the home so that it has a broader style appeal that does not reflect the personal tastes of the owner.

· Highlight the best features of the home, and downplay problem areas

· Identify areas to de-clutter, clean, repair or update in order to bring the house up to the standards buyers expect in comparable homes.

· Create emotional connections that will allow buyers to imagine themselves in this potential new home.

Bottom line . . . buyers are pickier than ever and it's a buyer's market. First impressions really do count. Sellers who do not stage their homes are competing with those who do!

Ellen Divers (919) 225-7797 Contact by email