Thinking of selling a home in the Tampa Bay area and curious as to what a Professional Home Stager really does?
It’s fairly common knowledge that when selling your home, you need to “sanitize” the house. Personal and family pictures need to be removed, clutter needs to be reduced, and any stylized decor needs to be adjusted to a more “general” taste.
Given that most real estate agents will educate homeowners about this, then what exactly is the purpose of a professional home stager? Well, the short answer is that they make your home appealing to buyers.
A home stager is much more than a person who puts up a center piece to make a room look pretty. A professional home stager has the design latent, knowledge of local trends, and resources to ensure all areas of the home are presented in a manner that showcases the greatest value and appeal.
According to a 2017 study and report by the National Association of Realtors, staging a home was found to increase the value of offers by up to 10%. In addition, it was found that in most cases, homes that have been professionally staged sold faster than those that were not. Finally, staged homes had better pictures posted online and that increased interest from buyers.
How Home Stagers Deliver Value
Professional home stagers understand current and local trends so they can decorate your home to appeal to buyers in your specific market. A neighborhood that is popular with families will need different home features accented than a condo in a high-rise building that tends to attract singles.
Similarly, home stagers do a great job of showing the usability of the space within a home. How you have your couch arranged may be super comfy for your family, but may be a poor choice in terms of the “flow” of the room. Not all buyers can clearly imagine how to use the space efficiently and professional home stagers excel in this. They ensure that everything from how you enter the home, walk through living spaces, and function in the kitchen feels natural and comfortable to prospective buyers.
Empty properties can be especially challenging as home buyers may struggle to picture where to place furniture. Home stagers typically have access to an abundance of furniture and homewares that can warm up those cold, empty rooms.
Staging is also valuable when it comes time to post pictures for online listings. Empty rooms can come across two-dimensional or flat. Conversely, cluttered spaces are likely to discourage prospective buyers from requesting a showing.
How Do You Hire A Home Stager?
Your real estate agent will often have recommendations for trusted home stagers in your area. If not, you can check Google, just be sure to read customer reviews carefully and ask about the scope of their services. Please note that home stagers begin to give you useful tips and insight from the moment they show up at your door, so be prepared to pay a consultation fee.
While real estate agents may hire and pay for home staging on very high-end properties, it is typically the home seller who pays for the staging. Cost can vary from a couple hundred dollars to several thousands of dollars depending on the scope of the project. Naturally, a consultation for DIY plan is going to be a lot more affordable that renting furniture and housewares for a 3 bedroom, 2 bath house for several months.
While there are no guarantees, having a home staged for sale is usually a great investment for the home sellers. They are likely to sell the home faster and receive better offers than a similar home that is not staged. Best of all, is that the home stager, not you, gets to figure it all out and do the work to make your home a stunning place to live.
At Flagship Title we care about helping you stay informed throughout your real estate transaction. Have questions? Give us a call at 813.875.1200.
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