Why Home Staging Matters

Our real estate agents have sold enough homes to know that great staging is one of the factors that really gives you an edge. 

We've helped sell homes in dozens of Chicagoland neighborhoods, and we've learned a few things about home staging along the way! If you want to give your home a fresh new look and provide it with the best chance of selling in a competitive market, here's why home staging matters.

• Show Your Home's Full Potential
  The furniture and decor of the home you currently live in almost certainly developed over many years based on the needs and tastes of you and your family. That's just as it should be, but a prospective buyer might not share your taste. More importantly, you need them to be able to see themselves living in your home rather than just seeing the family that already lives there. This is why our agents always recommend decluttering! Home staging can give your home a much more broad appeal, showing off its future potential to the widest possible variety of buyers. 
  
  
• Get More Attention Online
  These days, the overwhelming majority of home buyers start their search online. Having a well-staged and professionally photographed home will help you stand out in the crowded online marketplace. 
  
  
• Make a Great First Impression
  You know the old saying, "You'll never get a second chance to make a great first impression?" Staging makes your home's first impression really count. Some prospective buyers might take the time to really envision the potential of the space, but many more will make a snap judgment based on the first pictures they see. If those pictures show your home beautifully staged with fresh paint and tidy, modern furnishings, they're less likely to move on to another listing. 
  
  
• Show Off the Size of the Space
  It's a common misconception that buyers want to see a home empty so that they can imagine all their own belongings in it. In reality, listing photos of an empty house can be confusing and disorienting, especially if the home has unusual features or a nontraditional layout. Being able to see the home tastefully furnished will allow potential buyers to get a sense of how big the space actually is and how the floor plan is laid out. Don't forget, you can even stage your outdoor spaces.
  
  
• Highlight Positives
  If you've lived in your house for a long time, you might not even notice some of its flaws — the chipped paint, the cracked molding or the scuffed doors. Professional home stagers know how to arrange and decorate your home so that its assets are more prominently displayed than its flaws, directing the eye of a prospective buyer toward its best features and away from its drawbacks. 
  
  
• Increase Sale Price, Decrease Time on the Market
  Study after study shows that well-staged homes sell more quickly and fetch a higher price. According to statistics from the International Association of Home Staging Professionals, staged homes tend to sell for 20% more than comparable non-staged homes and also sell 2 to 11 times faster. Staging a home also comes with a cost, especially if you hire professional home stagers, but that cost comes with a significant return on your investment. 

Let our team help you set the stage for a successful sale! Contact us today to learn more about buying or selling a home in the local area. Our real estate agents have helped connect countless families with their dream homes in Chicagoland.