3 Myths About Home Staging

There’s been a lot of talk about staging a home to sell these days. Making the most money on the sale of the house is the name of the game, and the real estate agents who can do that for their clients become the agent of choice.

Unfortunately, there are quite a few myths about home staging that need to be corrected:

Myth #1 – Staging is mostly “decluttering.”

FALSE! Staging is about “styling for the photo shoot.”

While removing the extraneous in a home in order to give the seller a view of the architectural details is a part of staging, completely clearing off the kitchen counters, dining tables, and coffee tables is most definitely NOT what a good home stager recommends.

Listing photos online often show kitchens, for example, with completely cleared countertops and that are overall lifeless.

But an expert home stager works with the home’s integrity to capitalize and merchandise the space into something that will resonate with the buyer online first — so they’ll then want to see the home in-person.

Myth #2 – Staging is mostly for vacant homes.

FALSE! Staging is more critical in occupied homes because it costs a lot less and has a huge impact.

Myth #3 – Staging is about neutralizing and painting all the walls beige.

FALSE! Staging is about working with what the seller has, so that the more expensive cosmetic changes don’t need to done.

The challenge is finding the kind of home stager who understands that staging is an art form in merchandising. Stagers create a space the buyer will fall in love with. When this happens, the demand for the product goes up and thus the price too.

Courtesy: Audra Slinkey, Home Staging Resource