It’s time to sell your home. You have a friend that is good at decorating, so you think you’ll have them help you with staging your home. Good idea or bad? First of all there is a difference between staging your home for sale, and decorating your home to live in it. What does a home stager bring to the table that your friend can’t? Lots! Although we do both at Staged for Upsell, decorating is very different from helping a home owner prepare their home for sale. A home stager is trained to know exactly how much furniture a room should have amply show its space to the fullest. Space is money when selling your home. A home stager also knows how to arrange furniture to optimize flow and functionality in a home. Oftentimes home owners are using their home in the best way that ‘functionally’ suits their personal needs. Unfortunately when selling your home, it’s no longer about you, it’s about the buyers. Therefore, sometimes there is some adjustments that need to be made. A home stager can quickly access a room to determine the level of de-cluttering and exactly what needs to be de-cluttered, grouped, sorted, re-arranged, etc. to show the room at its best. Less is always more when selling your home. Whereas with decorating we’re often adding accessories and filling the space. I’m always telling clients if it’s not adding value to the room, take it away.
A home stager knows what’s important to buyers and what’s crucial to modify. An example? I often find clients using a spare closet in a room outside the kitchen as storage for some of their food. This is a red flag to buyers! They’re immediately thinking “there’s not enough kitchen cupboard space!” and they’re immediately back in the kitchen fretting over this. This could be a deal breaker for many buyers. This is just one example of the value a home stager brings in their training that a friend that is good at decorating doesn’t bring to the table.
Hiring a home stager for a consultation when selling your home isn’t expensive. Most home stagers are charging approximately $150 for a two hour consultation. My clients are always amazed at the difference that the two hour consultation can make.
A home staging consultation is an invaluable step when selling your home. Even if you don’t need ‘full’ staging services consider the consultation. Having your friend help may save you money, but it may cost you a hefty price reduction. Are you willing to take the chance?
