It Pays to Stage

Professional staging of homes before listing for sale can take a variety of forms. It can mean decluttering and rearranging your existing furniture to make your home more neutral and inviting to prospective buyers, or it can mean taking out all or most of your furnishings and replacing them with the look that sells in today's market. Staging can include painting … interior walls or kitchen cabinets, for example.

Today's Housing Wire Update reports that in a recent study, 359 homes underwent staging before hitting the market, and the homes received a first offer within 26 days after the staging. Of these homes, 69 received multiple offers. When a seller invests in staging before they list their home, the home will sell 87% faster, RESA studies proved.

When you read the article, note that they mention the average staging fees to be 1-3% of the list price. That would mean $5,000-$15,000 on a $500,000 home. The largest staging investment my clients have worked with cost $4200, and that was to completely furnish a 3500 sq. ft. house that sold in the $600,000 range.

Once staged, you still have to price it right and advertise it well. But I agree that Sellers often leave big money on the table by not taking the time to do it right.