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Kitchen staged for home showing

Why Staging Your Home Is Absolutely Worth It​

Is home staging worth it? Though the effectiveness of staging a home can vary from market to market, the resounding answer is “yes.” In this guide, we dive into how staging your home can benefit you when selling your home.

Why Home Staging Works

The statistics below from the National Association of Realtors show the impact staging your home can have on potential buyers (from the perspective of realtors who primarily represent buyers).

  • 96% of realtors said home staging has an impact on the buyer.
  • 81% said buyers find it easier to visualize the property as a future home.
  • 46% said buyers are more willing to walk through a staged home viewed online.
  • 45% said staging to buyers’ tastes positively impacts home value (compared to only 10% who said it has a negative impact).
  • 28% said staging could lead to buyers overlooking property faults.
  • Of realtors surveyed, 52% said home staging has a positive impact on the dollar value of the home.

It’s clear that most real estate agents believe staging your home to sell has significant impact on potential buyers, from making buyers more likely to visit a home after viewing online listings to impacting the experience prospective buyers have when walking through a home during a showing.

Benefits of Home Staging

Open space dining room and living room. Photo by Instagram user @indigozhome

Photo via @indigozhome

Though home staging required time, money, and effort upfront, staging your home to sell has great benefits on the backend. That is, home staging can help your home sell faster and for more money.

Staged Homes Sell Faster

How quickly can staged homes sell? Betsy Wilbur, a professional home stager based in Glendale, CA, says that properties she stages sell in 12 days. For reference, the Glendale area average is 56 days on the market.

According to the Real Estate Staging Association‘s national report, staged homes sold much faster than non-staged homes:

  • Non-staged homes spent an average of 184 days on the market.
  • After staging, previously non-staged homes sold on average in 41 days.
  • Homes that were staged prior to going on the market sold on average in 23 days.

Simply put, homes staged before being listed for sale spend 90% less time on the market.

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Staged Homes Sell for More Money

According to realtors who primarily represent sellers, 71% believe home staging increases the dollar value of a home. The majority of realtors felt it increased the dollar value between 1% and 10%, but some said it increased the value as much as 20%.

Wilbur has experienced this first-hand. Her clients’ homes sell on average for 6.3% above list price in an area where 97% of asking prices are in line with the market average.

When asked if staged homes were more likely to sell for asking price or above, Shell Brodnax, CEO at Real Estate Staging Association said, “Absolutely. It’s Marketing 101. If you’re in a grocery store, and you see an apple with a bite taken out of it right next to a shiny new apple, it’s clear which one is better. A house is a product, so it’s important to market it well to sell it.”

What Does Home Staging Include?

Modern Living Room with Open Seating Plan. Photo by Instagram user @stylewithsanaz

Photo via @stylewithsanaz

Home staging typically starts with a staging consultation. A professional home stager will come to your home to evaluate your living space and get an idea of what features should be highlighted for prospective buyers who will be looking at listing photos or walking through your home with a real estate agent.

After the consultation, the home staging process can include professional cleaning, painting and staining, furniture rearrangement, clutter removal, home decorating, and more. The level of staging involvement will depend on what the professional stager determines is necessary for buyer interest.

Is Home Staging Worth the Cost?

Home staging in bathroom. Photo by Instagram user @claudialp

Photo via @claudialp

Even if staging helps sell your home quickly and for more money, that doesn’t mean sellers should expect to see a positive return on investment. It’s always possible that you could pay more for staging than what you’ll get in return.

Fortunately, that’s rarely the case. According to the National Association of Realtors, the median dollar amount spent on staging a home to sell is $675. When you compare that against the fact that staged homes sell for up to 20% more than non-staged homes—or that the return on investment for staging a home is around 586%—it’s pretty clear that home staging is worth the money.

“Another main benefit [of home staging] is reducing your carrying costs,” Brodnax adds. “If you go by current averages, you’re likely to sit on market for a while—eight months is the current average—and you’ll incur a lot of carrying costs. However, if you stage your home right away, it’ll sell in an average of 23 days.”

Is Home Staging Worth It For Everyone?

There are specific instances where staging isn’t worth it, such as selling a fixer-upper home to an investor who will flip it. But, in most cases, staging your home can be helpful for everyone—even in situations of seller’s markets and buyer’s markets.

“When everything is flying off the shelf, it’s very important to have your home staged,” Brodnax explained. “When it’s staged, you’ll be able to get multiple offers and potentially better offers. If you don’t stage your home, you’ll be leaving some serious money on the table. [And] in a slow market, a staged home will be able to sell while other houses don’t get as much attention.”

If you’re thinking of selling your home, it’s a good idea to stage it. From selling faster to getting better offers, home staging is worth the investment. Want tips on how to stage a home? Whether you’re looking for the best paint colors or how to set up specific rooms, check out this complete guide to home staging!

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With one of the most critical aspects of home staging being decluttering your home, Extra Space Storage is here to provide affordable, secure storage space during the staging process and throughout the moving transition. Find a storage rental near you!

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