In home staging your purpose is to highlight the features and focal points of a property for sale.
When you list a house, you really want to premept objections by showing the property in its best light.
Take a look at these before and after shots and see if you can pick out the features that should be shown to buyers to get the most money in the least amount of time.
In this example are you selling yellow florals in a vase and stacks of firewood or a living room with a beautiful working fireplace?
Staging allows the fireplace to become the focal point in the room.
In this example are you selling toys to buyers or an inviting living room for entertaining guests? Remember, this is not the family room. Living rooms tend to look more formal and family rooms more relaxed.
In this example are you selling a cramped, dark kitchen to buyers or a bright cheery room in which to start the day? Light and space sell homes. Give buyers what they are looking for and they will make an offer.
As you can see, the results of staging highlight the features of your property.
Each room must be clearly marketed so that buyers see what they are looking for when they visit your listing photos. You have to get your house on the buyers must see list and staging gives you every opportunity to make a great first impression. Sellers need to know that a professional stager will give them a marketing plan for their home that outlines the work that needs to be done and how to make it happen.
Investment, minimal.
Impact, priceless.
Advantage Staging Serving Vaguhan, Woodbridge and surrounding area.
Voted Trailblazer Company of the Year 2009.
Great changes in all of the above and good information. I think staging is the best we can do for our sellers.
Michele - Great photo examples of the points you are making. Light and space DO sell homes. Great post!
Great before and afters. It shows how little things can make a huge difference.
Michelle it is priceless advice. ANYBODY listening?
HI Kim, it really is striking what a few simple changes can achieve in the look of a room. I was with a client today and showing her how just by moving her artwork around in the home to different locations would bring out the features and focal points in the rooms. She was really impressed with how good her home looked with 30 minutes of staging. She is a believer in staging now!
Hi Shelley, I think most people really don't "SEE" their own homes after awhile. They really don't see that their rooms are dark and claustrophobic to others.
HI Shar, we are masters at the little things with our staging. Your work is truly great.
HI Ginger, I think more people are listening than last year and the year before. You and I both know staging still has a way to go before it is the norm when listing a house for sale. It will be something that most people do within a couple of years. I find that more home owners are asking their listing agents who their home stager is and if they say they don't use one they find an agent who does. EVeryone wants top dollar for their home as every seller thinks his house is the best one on the street.
Michelle, great post! The photos say it all ;).
great before and after photos! Love how the red dining room changed so dramatically. Your service was well worth the money these buyers paid.
Is it not just simply amazing what removing clutter will do for a home! Brilliant pictures and a true testament to cleaning up, de-cluttering and staging!
Michelle, great post. I really love the concept you've brought to our attention here. I'm suggesting this post for a feature.
I'm glad I stopped by.
Donna
Michelle - these are great examples of why a home should be staged. I can't get over how overpowering those yellow flowers are in the first photo! Yes, putting them behind the chair really helps to lead the eye to the beautiful fireplace.
The stacks of firewood were ridiculous, what a great example!
Good job Michelle. Great information too. Thanks for sharing.
Hi Janice, photos really do tell the tale. That's why I encourage the agents that I work with to hire professionals for the finished product photos for their listings. They make my work look even better.
Hi Linda, the sellers were listed for 5months with no offers, not even low ball ones. After painting, the house sold in 2 weeks for 97% of list. You can bet the farm that they thought the staging was worth it.
Hi Leesa, ah the power of decluttering. Truly remarkable in every instance.
Hi Donna, thanks for stopping by to see these before and afters. I appreciate your suggestion for a feature. It really helps agents to see why staging is important. It is not just "fluffing" and placing a few old left over objects from storage here and there. It has to do with composition, scale and colour.
Hi Sally, the home owner loved her yellow flowers but after I asked her if she was selling them to the buyers she realized it was the fireplace that she was selling to them not the flowers. That is why they were moved to the rear corner. Sometimes it takes physically moving them during the consult and then taking a picture to show the client why things have to be moved. Once they see these before and afters they buy into the what the stager is suggesting and voila, the features of the home become the focal point in the room.
Hi Cindy, the stacks of firewood were not the only problem there. They had stuffed tons of newspaper behind and up the flue. Mice had then made many nests in the newspaper. It was really a mess! Can you imagine the home inspector finding all that and reporting it to buyers. Another good reason to have your professional stage in to give advice.
Hi Adam, glad to share with everyone. We all learn here in the rain. I read as many differing blogs as I can to learn info I might never have otherwise. Thanks for stopping in.
You're at it again, Michelle. Your home staging truly made a difference!
Congratulations. Your home staging is being featured in the group Staging Before and After Pictures.
Kathy
Michelle -- These are fabulous clear examples of how powerful just a few changes can be. Now instead of focusing on the things that are odd (a fireplace full of wood) or univiting (toys all over the floor), buyers can focus on the real features of the home! Great work!
Hi Kathy, thanks again for the feature! thats awesome! I do what I do and keep taking pictures. It is one of your best marketing tools you have at your disposal to convince sellers and agents to stage.
Hi Margaret, Simple and effective is how most people comment on my work. I do design work as well but staging is all about highlighting the selling features of a home as you well know. You are awesome, love seeing your work and reading your posts here on AR.
Michelle, really nicely done with what appears to be very minimal expense. Makes a huge difference.
Michelle, I totally agree that it is often the small changes that can make a huge difference. Changing a paint colour might seem like too much work to sellers but it pays off in the long run. There still seems to be a challenge in some areas to convince both sellers and agents of the value of staging but hopefully with photos like the ones above and ongoing education this will change!
Hi Gabe, you've got it Gabe. It was very minimal investment in every photo. Zero cost in the first one, a few rental pieces in the second one, approximately $50, and the last one was a paint job for a kitchen on the upper half of the wall only. As I always say, investment minimal, impact priceless.
Hi Karen, the challenge is for professional stagers to keep educating the agents and the home owners that it takes a keen eye and a practical stager to make simple and effective changes to stage a home. Photos accomplish that more than words ever can. Thanks for stopping in.
Michelle: Terrific post highlighting the necessity and importance of home staging. A good home stager is worth their weight in gold as you so aptly demonstrated.
Good morning Michelle,
Great photo's on the before and after! Staging is paramount in getting not only the photo's you want but for the buyers when they come to see your listing. The homes I list are always staged and what a difference it makes! You can actually see the features of the home..it's the first impression that counts.
HI Michelle, stagers can and do make a difference with simple, effective staging solutions. I have a dream that all agents use a stager and their clients become their biggest fans. The properties sell quickly cutting down on how much time buyers were wandering through their homes and their lives.
Hi Dorrie, glad to hear you are an agent that uses a stager. I know of a few good ones here on AR. I am sure your sellers are extremely pleased when their properties sell and the feedback is good from the agents. Home owners always think their home is the best one on the street and a good home stager will definitely make sure it appears that way to buyers. Thanks for stopping in to see this post. I appreciate hearing from the agent side of the selling transaction.
Hey Michelle,
Minimal investment but what an oustanding return, As always, you've caputured the dramatic chages in the before and after photos. It's all about giving the buyer a sense that they found what they're looking for....
Nice post..
I agree Sergio, buyers in the current market want to see the items on their personal checklist for their new home. If you give them more check marks than crosses then you get an offer. With most people having such busy lives these days, this aspect of marketing a home for sale has become more important.
Michelle ~ it's amazing how a few, seemingly-simple changes can so dramatically transform a space! All of these rooms now read as move-in ready ... buyers will notice the home's features, not the distracting clutter and collections. P.S. that "before" fireplace is a riot!
Wonderful, colorful, clear examples of what a stager should be doing for a Realtor and homeowner! When a homeowner says they like the way their home is decorated, and do not want to change it, your top photo could be used as an example of what simple changes will do for the sale, without changing the look and feel of the room from a decor perspective. Change is good...really!