Simply put, staging your home makes it stand out from others. The goal is to strike the balance between highlighting your home’s best qualities in a way that’s depersonalized so prospective buyers can envision themselves (and their lives) in that space. It is one of the easiest things you can do and, as you’ll see, has lots of meaningful benefits!
Some Simple Stats
With regards to millennial homebuyers, 99% start their search online (and the majority of most demographics these days). Having your home staged in its photos can be the difference between someone choosing to even visit the property, let alone submit an offer. When it comes to time spent on the market, a survey done by the International Association of Home Staging Professionals showed that staged homes sell anywhere from three to thirty times faster than non-staged ones.
Another study done by the Real Estate Staging Association reported that 85% of the staged homes included sold for 5-25% above their asking price. Staging also afforded this increase without the sellers taking on the burden of an entire renovation. With an average investment of 1% of the home’s sale price put into staging, about three-quarters of sellers saw a 5-15% bump to their asking prices.
Buyer Benefits
So we’ve established that staging helps sellers’ homes look their best and sell quicker. What about the buyers though? Staging helps buyers get what they want. Since most people have a good idea of what they’re looking for before starting their search, staged homes speed up this process. A staged home is easier to investigate, allows the buyer to visualize what it could be for them, and assess whether it meets their expectations quicker, saving them time as well! Which spaces are most important to stage from the buyer’s perspective?
Most buyers agree that the most important space to stage is a living room. The reason for this is that people prioritize the spaces they’ll spend the most time in. For this reason, it makes sense that the next most important rooms for staging are the master bedroom, kitchen, and dining room. Remember, the key to a well-staged space is to highlight the potential by leaving enough room for buyers to imagine themselves in the space. Unless your life and belongings perfectly capture your prospective buyers, an inviting but depersonalized space is what they are looking for.
Helpful Hints
If you’re planning on selling, start planning for staging! You want to go through the rooms, think about them from the buyer’s perspective, and then present them accordingly. In addition to more obvious considerations like repairs and ‘unfinished projects’, you can use this as a time to declutter, donate or maybe even host a yard sale. You’ll want to give your place a good cleaning, rearrange furniture to optimize the space and maximize each room’s flow, highlighting the best features.
Clean the hardwood floors so you can show them off, that makes sense right? Depending on your budget, and when it was done last, you may consider painting walls that have blemishes or a very bold and dated colour. Neutrals and pastels tend to be safer bets in this department. Try taking some extra clothes or linens from your closets, smaller appliances on counters, and more personal décor items and storing them elsewhere. This way, buyers focus on the space itself… as opposed to your stuff!
New Door’s Staging Services
With little to lose and so much more to gain, staging is an essential and often overlooked part of the process. New Door provides guidance and access to professionals, helping put your home’s best foot forward so it spends less time on the market. We’ll make your home stand out from the competition, appeal to more buyers, and get better offers with our staging services that include:
- Consultation and assessment
- Furniture for showings
- Painting changes or touch-ups
- Identifying needed upgrade areas
- Access to trusted contractors
Are you looking to sell? Contact New Door Ottawa Real Estate Team today so we can make your home look its best for buyers!