Do I Really Need to Stage My Home to Sell It or Rent It?

Spoiler Alert: Only if you want to close quickly!

I’m all too familiar with the dilemma of the home seller or rental property owner. Nobody truly enjoys spending money on a property that they are 1) preparing to sell to someone else, or 2) renting out with a narrow profit margin. It’s understandable. However, it’s also a short-sighted and outdated way of looking at your asset.

By asset, I mean the property that you want to sell or lease.

Home staging: A mindset adjustment

We’re conditioned to think of expenses as “spending,” and not “investing.” And if we’re talking about maintaining or marketing an asset to increase the value or sale price, then “investing” is the better descriptor. Investing wisely should give you a return on the investment. Home staging is a proven strategy to increase the ROI for your property.

When people ask, “Do I need to stage my home to sell it,” I ask them this question. “How does an empty home make you feel?” An empty home makes me feel sad; a home that is purposefully staged makes me feel that the home is well cared-for.

Is staging worth it? Have you stopped to think about the expense of failing to stage? A drop in asking price, as well as the mortgage, insurance, and utilities for an extra month, increases seller costs more than the cost of staging. Is staging worth it? Yes.

Reality of the property marketplace

In the past, a property may have sold or leased quickly simply because of the location, or market demand. In some real estate markets, that may still be the case. But statistics from the National Association of Realtors and the Real Estate Staging Association indicate that staged properties sell and lease more quickly than unstaged and vacant properties. In other words, only stage a home if you want to sell it!

Today’s real estate consumers have enjoyed access to HGTV and magazines that show an unrealistic view of properties. Several popular real estate shows follow potential buyers and renters as they shop for their ideal property. The standard that the shows set is an unrealistic one, but it’s what buyers anticipate.

Have you ever noticed how all of the featured properties are immaculate? No laundry lying on the floor, no bedding rumpled. No tangled power cords or overstuffed book shelves. No junk left out on the counters. And all of them appear to be move-in ready, today.

That’s what you’re up against, no matter where your property is located. Keep that in mind.

As someone who has attended showings of many properties, I can attest that HGTV is just that—TV. Entertainment. It’s not reality. Try telling that to your prospective buyers, though!

The most important thing home staging offers the seller

As the seller or rental property owner, staging offers you something important: A marketing advantage. Professional stagers are trained to look at the property objectively, as through the eyes of a prospective customer. We use principles of design and psychology to make decor recommendations that attract buyers, and we have the difficult conversations with clients that real estate agents dread.

Stagers are also trained to view a property aesthetically, understanding how the camera will capture the property. We make recommendations to tweak decor and furniture arrangements to augment the appearance of the property in photographs, your most valuable marketing tool. If a property photographs poorly, good luck getting your ideal customer through the front door. 

Seeing the things the owner looks past

Have you ever thought about how we stop noticing the details of what we are around every day? When I had a new heating unit installed, a new wall thermostat was also installed. There has been a small hole in the wall next to the new thermostat, where the old thermostat was removed. The old paint is also exposed beside the new thermostat. 

Do you know how many times I have walked past those flaws in the past six months, and have yet to fill the hole and touch up the paint?

My point is, as the owners of a property, we overlook details that other people will not. A professional stager can give you the unbiased view that you need if you are trying to market your property. Better to get that feedback ahead of time, so that it can be addressed. Because if you don’t have a stager get ahead of a problem, you will eventually get that same feedback from a potential customer who decided to walk away.

Home staging is a game changer!

Ask yourself if you really want to be stuck holding a property that isn’t gaining traction, and if you feel like enduring the stress of weeks or months more of showings that don’t yield results. Intentional staging prior to marketing your property can make the difference between a hot listing or a stagnant property.

If you are motivated to market your property effectively, Gate City Design offers home styling evaluations (in-person or virtual) for $299. That is much less expensive than lowering the asking price or holding an empty rental! Do yourself a favor and contact us for a complimentary “get-acquainted” call to discuss your needs!

Hillary McAlhany is the owner and Senior Creative Consultant of Gate City Design. She is a certified professional home stager/redesigner, E-designer & color expert. Although she is based in North Carolina, she offers remote design services outside of the central North Carolina region.