How Much Does Home Staging Cost?
By: Luellen Kirchner
Key Associates
Okay, as a staging professional, I’d like to set the record straight: Professional staging doesn’t cost you money unless you don’t do it or you overprice your home! That’s right. If you price your home properly, staging actually makes you money.
Consider the fact that most of us don’t live in perfectly neat, perfectly furnished, perfectly maintained and not-to-specifically-styled home. We live. We make messes, we collect things, we get used to the paint that needs sprucing up, the door that sticks, the faucet that leaks and the wallpaper that dates our home back to the 80’s or earlier. It’s our home and we’re comfortable.
The problem comes when it’s time to stop thinking of our home as our home. When you decide to sell your home, it’s time to start thinking of it as the important asset it is. If you’re serious about selling in today’s market, it’s important to shift your mindset and start thinking about maximizing that asset. Step back and really assess your home with an unbiased eye. Why would a buyer want your house and not the house down the street?
In today’s market of limited buyers and excessive numbers of homes for sale, the homes that are selling are those that stand out - - those that compete favorably in the market. Buyers are sophisticated and they are looking for the best possible home at the best possible price. Is that your home? If it isn’t, then you must make it so!
Now, you ask, “How does staging actually make you money instead of costing you money?” Well, first let’s consider the following statistics:
- “A staged house sells, on average, 17% higher than an un-staged home.”
(Source: U.S. Dept. of Housing & Urban Development {HUD])
NOTE: On a $300,000 house, that’s a whopping $51,000!
- Staged homes: 83% less time on market
(Source: May 2010 Stats from IAHSP)
- Staged homes: 78% less time on market
(Source: Feb/2010 Stats from RESA)
Add to these statistics the fact that many homeowners have had to significantly decrease the listing price of their homes, often several times, and you have a situation where the advantages of staging with its associated costs become quite obvious. While listing prices are often decreased by $10,000, $20,000, and even $100,000 at a time, staging costs (depending on the condition of a house) generally range from a couple hundred dollars and a Saturday afternoon’s work to a few thousand dollars.
To sweeten the pot, preparing and staging your house prior to placing it on the market can significantly increase its listing price. Bottom line: If you spend a few thousand on staging and you make the 17% higher selling price that HUD states is average ($51,000 on a $300,000) home - - has it cost you anything? That’s a resounding “no.” It’s actually made you a tidy little sum.
In conclusion, to sell your home in today’s market it is vital to invest time and effort in making your house compete favorably in your marketplace. It must be priced right. It must be clean, neat and fresh, and it must appeal to the highest possible number of buyers. A home staging professional can help you accomplish this goal - - generally for a tiny fraction of what the increased value of your home will be due to the staging. In other words, a modest investment upfront will likely earn you a significant return when your home is sold. The greatest way to maximize your profits and minimize market time in today’s economy is through effective staging practices.
Lue Kirchner is Executive Director of Key Associates, a service company located in Flat Rock, NC. Key Associates provides home management , move management, home staging and interior decorating services for residents of the Asheville & Greenville areas of the Carolinas. They specialize in working with seniors and those with special needs.
October/2010
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