Home Staging: Much More Than Aesthetics

One day, when I was talking to a client about his house for sale. He said, ”My friend told me staging can make my house more beautiful and easier to sell.” After the house walk-through, I listed some necessary repairs and renovations and handed to him. He was surprised, “Oh, I thought you would just add some throws, paintings and other décor items. That’s what I thought a stager does.”

Home staging has become an important part of the real estate industry. An increasing number of homeowners recognize the importance of staging and hire professional stagers to style their homes before putting them on the market. Even though, many people still think staging is only an aesthetic job, which is definitely a misunderstanding.

Once a home is put on the market, it becomes a commodity — a product to be sold at the best possible price. A home stager’s work creates living spaces that appeal to a broad range of potential buyers. In order to do this successfully, home stagers need to understand their target market: potential homebuyers. By tailoring homes to suit the tastes and needs of buyers, home stagers maximize the value of their clients’ products: their homes.

The scope of staging work depends on the requirements of the client. Some of the common services offered by home stagers include:

• Advising on repairs and renovations
• Managing repairs and renovations
• Helping clients declutter and depersonalize their homes
• Creating color palettes, lighting plans and furniture layouts
• Styling and accessorizing vacant or occupied homes
• Overseeing the setup and return of rental furniture
• Advising on and/or managing landscaping

In any project, the home stager’s goal is to present a home in the best possible light so that buyers notice all the assets the property offers.

In conclusion, staging is a comprehensive job. An effective home stager, of course, needs a strong knowledge of the principles of interior decorating. Furthermore, a solid understanding of marketing, psychology and the real estate industry is absolutely essential.