It can be expensive to stage a home, especially after a pricey renovation.  The market is hot right now and homes are selling faster than ever, so why is staging important? Staging does more than help the home sell faster, studies have shown for every $100 invested, there is an average return of $400.  A staged home will sell for 17% more than a non-staged home according to the National Association of Realtors.

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Staged homes on average sell for 17% more than non-staged.

WORTH THE INVESTMENT, FOR BIGGER RETURNS

It is hard to imagine a house sitting on the market for 30 days however, it does happen to some homes.  95% Of staged homes sell in approximately 11 days, 87% faster than non-staged homes.

55 Percent of buyers say that the living room is the most important room to stage,  51 percent say the master bedroom, followed by the kitchen at 41 percent.

Staging is not cheap and if you are already over-budget on your remodel staging might seem like an unnecessary expense. Staging a home strategically can cut costs on staging and add value to the home.  Every room in the house does not need to be furnished.  Buyers were asked in a study which spaces of the house they thought needed to be staged.  55 Percent of buyers voted the living room as most important, 51 percent voted the master bedroom followed by the kitchen at 41 percent.

If you’re on a tight budget, look to stage a home strategically.  Stage certain rooms based on the design strengths and appeal to the widest range of buyer interest.

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Staging, home buyers, Heaton Dainard, real estate

Staging rooms with unusual angles can inspire buyers on the potential for space instead of scaring them away.

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Rooms without staging can appear smaller because your eye does not have any other element to compare for scale.

WHY DO BUYERS RESPOND SO WELL TO STAGING?

Spaces appear bigger.  Furnished spaces look much larger than unfurnished spaces, especially bedrooms.  Furniture and accent pieces give the eye a scale to compare and put the room into perspective.  It is difficult for your eye to gauge size without a scale piece, the same concept that applies to photos.  When you look at a photo of a brownie your mind has a general idea of how large an average brownie is.  Now when you see someone holding the brownie and it completely covers their palm and fingers, you understand that it’s a larger than normal brownie. The same scale concept applies to an empty room.

Buyers tend to notice fewer flaws and see them as less extreme.  Furniture attracts the eye to certain aspects of the room and gives buyers something dynamic to look at.  Without furniture, buyers are more likely to find small imperfections and assume they are bigger fixes than they are.  For example, a chip in wall paint next to a chair just looks like a small chip that only needs a small touch-up.  Without the chair, buyers will notice the chip, assume it’s larger than it is, and then inspect for similar flaws expecting to repaint the entire wall. Immediately buyers are turned off on the idea of maintenance on their new home.

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