IS HOME STAGING REAL?
Home staging is a practice that professional real estate agents have employed as a marketing tool to obtain the best results possible from each sale since the 1970's. Additionally, it has been used as a way of helping the seller set the scene, with the goal of selling properties for top dollar in as efficient of a manner as possible. Home staging is more than cleaning up the house or putting on a fresh coat of paint. Rather, the objective is to make the property more desirable for the buyer, allowing the buyer to picture him or herself living in the house, assisting in making a final decision on which house to purchase.
The purpose of this service is to solve the needs of wary consumers, afraid of not bringing in the best value for their home. These individuals are concerned about the status of the real estate market: therefore, the resulting objective is to alleviate this fear with industry experience. From a Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs perspective, home staging helps to verify the necessity for shelter. The target of this service is to eliminate the doubt and uncertainly of selling a house and providing security to sellers that they will be able to sell their home for a higher price and in less time than if they do not hire the service. Home staging service also appeals to the basic need for self-esteem, in that it will positively impact levels of confidence in the presentation fo one's home.
It was not until the l990's that the real estate trend of home staging became a separate practice adopted by professional designers, decorators, and real estate agents. Recently this practice has become very popular due to the stagnant conditions in the real estate market. The opportunity for home staging is "real" because property values have gone down and competition has gone up due to these terrible market conditions.
Currently, more individuals are willing to pay for home staging than ever before. The demand for this service is real - opportunity for this area in business to continue to grow is conditionally advantageous. After all, who doesn't want to sell their home faster and for a better price? In this economy, efficiency is nothing short of a "God Term".
If the sellers were only to clean and de-clutter (stage) their house, it would cost them between $190 to $300. Reciprocally, the selling price of the house could increase as much as $1937. In contrast, if repairing a home, electrical or plumbing repairs by the seller would cost between $436-$621 and the selling price of the house would only increase by $1590 on the high end. In this instance, the seller would spend more money repairing his or her home and receive less money from the sale of the house than if he or she had staged the house.
Home staging is a practice that requires the seller to separate their preferences and to consider what the potential buyer is seeking. Due to the much publicized housing market crisis, much emphasis is being placed on home sale efficiency practices. Courses and seminars educating real estate professionals about the home staging process are quickly emerging.
Home staging is the new market trend in selling houses and is frankly becoming a necessity. As this is a new practice and it is currently developing and growing rapidly, it is a good place to start a business. Additionally, there is not a strong presence of certified competition. I am a certified home stager, which I feel gives me more credibility.
Just a couple of facts. Staged homes sell faster...an average of seven days compared to 45 for an unstaged home.
YOUR HOME IN BLOOM