What is Home Staging and How Much Does it Cost | American ...

Home staging is a relatively new practice that is likely a result of today?s flooded housing market. With so many available homes to choose from, more competitive tactics have become a necessity, with home staging topping the list. The general consensus among real estate professionals is that home staging pays off. If you are considering putting your home on the market and have been wondering what home staging entails, read on?

Whether you choose to hire a professional home stager, or go the DIY route, there are plenty of things you can do before the actual staging process begins. The most important detail to address when readying your home for sale is to get it squeaky clean from top to bottom. That means everything, including outside areas of your property. In addition to scrubbing and mopping, get outside and mow, rake, prune, and mulch! Leave no stone unturned in the interest of curb appeal. While you?re at it, use this opportunity to declutter and remove as many personal items from the home as possible. Removing 90% of the home?s contents is often suggested in home staging discussions. Rent a storage unit or make several trips to donation sites, but get rid of all the extra tchotchkes, magazines, family photos, off-season clothing, extra toys, tools, and anything that could cloud a potential buyer?s view of the property.

Next, conduct a walk-through of your own and ask yourself the following questions:

• Does the home itself, and its components, such as fixtures, cabinetry, hardware, countertops, and appliances, look dated and rundown?
• Are all aspects of the home in good repair?
• Are the windows in need of a professional cleaning?
• Do you have textured ceilings and paint colors that will be hard to work with?

Be honest and objective and perhaps review a few online sites for suggestions on how to make your home more current. A few good places to start are: Betterhomesandgardens.com, the design studio at PotteryBarn.com?and BenjaminMoore.com.

Now it?s time to call in a professional. You can choose to hire a home stager or decorator for a one-time consulting fee, which may average between $200 to $400 dollars (depending upon your home and market). They will assess the situation and provide you with an action plan. Some real estate listing agents have also begun to offer this as part of their services. Another option is to hand over the entire process to a home staging firm. According to www.StagedHomes.com, ?statistics show an average of a minimum increase of 3% in the final sale price of homes that have been staged as opposed to those who had not. On a $300,000 home, that?s a $9,000 increase-and well worth the home staging fees.?

But how much does it really cost? The cost involved in a total home staging often range from $2000 to $5000 dollars. The homeowner typically determine the budget and decide which areas are most in need. Kitchens and bathrooms are often the primary focus. This is not about renovating the home, but ensuring that everything is updated and in good repair. Some items may need to be purchased such as, mirrors, window treatments, plants, rugs, fresh bathroom towels and outdoor furniture. Some home stagers keep an inventory of items such as these and charge a fee to use them in the home staging process.

If you are asking yourself if home staging is really worth it, have a look at this excerpt from www.Stagedhomes.com :

?Professionally staged homes sell in an average of 35 days (compared to 175 days for non-staged homes). Most homeowners who are selling their home reduce the price of their home after about a month on the market, and the first price reduction is on the order of ten percent. So on a $200,000 home, the first price reduction is $20,000. If the home had been professionally staged for five thousand dollars and sold within its first month on the market, the homeowner would have been $15,000 in the black.?

Regardless on your budget, it seems that whether you do it yourself or bring in the pros, home staging is definitely an effective way to sell your home!

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