By Ashley Tapley, owner of House Candy Home
Home staging is an investment in your largest investment. It's a cost that actually MAKES YOU MONEY.
Are you moving? Considering staging your occupied or vacant home? Wondering if it is a wise decision to spend your precious dollars and time on staging? I hope some of the information below will help you understand why staging costs what it does and why it will save you time by selling your home FASTER and why it will SELL FOR TOP DOLLAR. If you choose to sell as is, it's my opinion and the statistics agree, you will be leaving money on the table. Don't pass up the VALUE that professional stagers bring to the sale of your property. Stagers are truly here to help YOU earn the highest sale price possible.
Some Impressive Statistics
In 2022 The Average List to Sale Ratio in Santa Cruz County was 102.2%. House Candy Staged Homes sold at an average of 108% OVER list price. That is a 6% higher than all homes sold in Santa Cruz County. 6% of a million dollar home is $60,000, so sellers can cover their staging costs and they still come out WAY ahead!
Hobbyists/bargain stagers can actually COST YOU MONEY in the end by more days on market and a lower sale price. Great staging motivates buyers and creates "have to have it" homes. Choose your stager wisely. Make sure they are trained.
Staged homes sell 6%-10% faster (NARS) than their unstaged counterparts. You also need to consider the mortgage payments you'll also be saving when factoring in the cost/rewards of home staging.
A professionally staged home spends 73% less time on the market compared to those without staging. (Professional Staging)
Staged homes on the market sold for 25% more than homes without staging. (Realtor Magazine)
82% of buyers’ agents said staging a home made it easier for a buyer to visualize the property as a future home. (National Association of Realtors)
Why does home staging cost as much as it does?
There are a lot of things that cost time and money that you may not think of when hiring a home stager. Think about how labor intensive it is to move. Stagers move in and out and also design and style the home.
Labor that goes into a home stage: office administration, professional insured movers, designers, home staging assistants/stylists, warehouse organization, product assembly, product sourcing of curated items, and more...
Time of stagers and assistants to plan, shop, source, stage and de-stage the property
Moving costs by experienced and insured movers
Inventory -Furniture, art, and accessories that are on trend and curated are expensive to buy, source, build, store and repair. Upwards of $20,000 of inventory will go into a three bedroom home.
Storage costs
Professional liability insurance
Business expenses: office space, marketing, contracts, paperwork, computers, software etc.
Taxes
Professional training and development, certifications and associations to produce the best home staging RESULTS
Transportation
& more…
Don't forget that home staging is not just for vacant homes
All homes benefit from the services of a professional home stager prior to sell. We pick up on how to showcase the positives and minimize the negatives. A presale consultation can do wonders for a home about to hit the market. Photo Ready Styling Sessions for Occupied homes are a must to put the best foot forward in photos. We have trained for styling for the camera to help get you those extremely valuable listing photos looking their best. Click here to read more about our services.
Ashley Tapley is the owner and founder of House Candy Home. An international award winning home staging and interior design company and also named as the Best Home Staging Company on the West Coast by Apartment Therapy