We are thrilled with the positive response to our first blog (Design Trends for Spring/Summer 2017) and thank you for your feedback and suggestions. Our next topic delves into the concept of home staging and the benefits. As the housing market heats up this summer it certainly helps to have the cards stacked in your favor if you are putting your house on the market, and here’s the secret…Stage Your Home!
What is Home Staging?
For buyers looking for the perfect home, walking through an empty, unfurnished house is like looking at a blank canvas. What they need is a complete story to stimulate their senses and get them excited. They need to be able to envision themselves living in the home. A professionally staged home helps bring a blank canvas to life and provides the insight and imagination clients require to help them through the process and turn them into buyers. If brain space indicates the importance of a sense, then vision is the most important. Roughly 30 percent of neurons in the brain's cortex are devoted to vision, compared with 8 percent for touch, and 2 percent for hearing. Of all the five senses, the sense of sight is most important – humans are visual creatures. Here are a few before and after photos, and as you can see, the “after” photos paint a very clear picture of the lifestyle a buyer could be living, thanks to staging.
Before and Afters
Before
After
Before
After
Pictures
Statistics Don't Lie!
Simply put, statistics don’t lie, and while they can be a little dry and boring, the source information boils down to this...
STAGING YOUR HOME =
90% LESS TIME ON THE MARKET!
Infographic by: www.realestatestagingassociation.com
Source: http://www.realestatestagingassociation.com/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=304550&module_id=164548
As you can see by the example in the infographic, un-staged homes spend an average of 184 days on the market.
After Staging, these same homes sold in 41 days.
Homes staged prior to going on the market sell in 23 days.
Where the impact is truly felt is in the carrying costs. Carrying costs include the mortgage, utilities, water, yard maintenance costs etc. If you have an average carrying cost of $3400.00 per month, and you have an un-staged home on the market, you risk 184 days/8 months of carrying costs. That equates to roughly 10 times the cost of staging the property prior to listing.
So the choice is yours, potentially 8 months on the market or 23 days on the market?
The key is STAGING!
Does Staging Really Work?
The answer to that question is a definitive “YES”! We see it every day! Not only does staging improve your chances of selling your home it helps maximize the price you can sell for and minimize the days on market. In many cases, previously listed homes that have sat on the market unsold for months end up selling within 2-4 weeks after the Dezin team swoops in and creates magic in the space.
Staging and the Internet
Facts - We live in a digital world.
1. 85% - 96% of buyers use the Internet to search for homes
Demographics: 96% of buyers under 47 years of age, 89% of buyers aged 48 to 57, and 85% of buyers aged 58 – 66 use the Internet to search for homes. - 2013 National Association of Realtors
2. 90% of buyers use the Internet to source information about a specific property
87% of potential homebuyers rely upon real estate professionals for the same purpose. 53% of buyers get information on a specific property from yard signs, and 45% get Information from open houses. - 2013 National Association of Realtors
3. 84 % of all home buyers ranked photographs as the most useful feature when viewing homes online
76% drove by/viewed the home as a result of an online search.
(Source 2013 National Association of Realtors)
4. The traditional buyer spends almost 6 weeks working with a real estate professional to find their home whereas the average Internet buyer spends only 2.2 weeks.
(Source: Californoa Association of Realtors)Conclusions
Today’s homebuyers are educated and discerning and rely upon the Internet as a primary source of information during their home buying search. Based on what they find online, they make judgments and follow up with decisive actions.
If potential buyers are attracted by what they see online, they act: they drive by and/or attend open houses and call agents to arrange viewings
Buyers typically make up their minds within minutes of viewing a home. If they aren’t immediately engaged by what they see, they move on. There are no second chances.
So what does this all really mean? The photos on your MLS Listing REALLY MATTER! Ensure your staged home is photographed to its fullest advantage!
Are there different "types" of staging?
Fundamentally, there are 2 types of home staging related to real estate sales – staging an empty space and staging an occupied space. Dezin Group works with realtors, developers and customers to stage many new builds and unoccupied homes. In this case, we typically stage the living room, dining room, kitchen, master bedroom and ensuite, but we offer a full range of staging levels for unoccupied spaces, and we are glad to work with our clients to find something that works with their budget and also supports a quick house sale.
We also offer partial staging for currently occupied homes. One of our design consultants would typically spend one to two hours walking through the home with the client and their realtor, noting suggestions such as editing/decluttering, furniture placement and art/décor adjustments. We then present a written report for the customer with suggestions to increase the salability of their home. We often do a partial stage where we bring in premier furniture, artwork, and décor that highlight the home's selling features. This blend of homeowner furnishings plus Dezin Group inventory is an excellent way to increase salability of your home.
A Great Deal For Our Valued Clients and Social Media Followers!
Speaking of our Dezin Group inventory, our professional furniture curator, Dawn Aitken, has an amazing offer for you! She has selected two timelessly elegant Sofa Set Series to offer you at Designer Industry Pricing - 50% Off!
Dori Sofa Series
Della Sofa Series
Visit our web store here: www.dezingroup.com/shop and use the promo code: SPRING17 during checkout! or come into our showroom to check these two beauties out!
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Event ends June 9th
That concludes the Dezin blog for May! Enjoy the blooming flowers and budding trees. Calgary is a breath-taking place in the summer!
If you wish to schedule a free consultation about your next home project please click the button below!
About the Author
Liane Medwick
Dezin Group Interior Decorator and Home Staging Professional
After many years working for a commercial interior design firm in Vancouver, Liane relocated to her hometown of Calgary to continue pursuing her passion for design in residential interior decor and home staging. She specializes in paint selection and lighting as well as interior decor.