Staging in the Market Place
Something that is becoming a very attractive resource in helping to sell houses quicker and for more money is ‘Property Showcasing’ or ‘Staging’ as it is commonly known. More and more vendors are hiring Stagers because it has proven results no matter what the market is like. In a buyers market it is helping to sell houses faster and in a sellers market it is helping to sell houses for more money. In either case, it can help to do both.
Why is it important You Ask?
Cozy up by the fire and share stories to loved ones…
Simply put… it drives traffic to your listing! When your online photos show a house that is beautifully featured, it stands out against your competition! When you are in the business of selling your house, this is exactly what you want!
90% of buyers start their shopping online, viewing photos. If they like what they see there, they will put it on their ‘Must See List‘ and book an appointment. The more traffic…the larger your ‘potential buyers list‘ becomes!! How many of you have hosted a deserted open house? Or had a few tire kickers come through but no real offers? If this is your story, I’d say you need to take this seriously and take action to make a positive change!
First Impressions
A warm inviting space to entertain family and friends...
Did you know that a buyer will make a decision within 7 – 10 seconds upon entering you house? That is the amount of time you have to make a lasting impression. Scary isn’t it? Realtors will say that they can tell immediately from the look on a buyers face whether or not their buyer is impressed. From there, because you haven’t gotten them from the get go… most often they are not sold!
Statistics say that 90% of buyers cannot visualize past what they see. Staggering isn’t it! If you are not effectively showcasing your property for sale, lets hope that you get the 10% of buyers who can visualize. After all, your buyer is buying a lifestyle and will have to mentally move into your house, before they will make it their HOME.
The Pesky Cost of it All
Enjoying a meal is one of life’s greatest pleasures…
It all comes down to cost for most people. From that vantage point, most vendors feel that they are out of pocket on a house that they are selling and that they are spending money on a house they will no longer own.
Instead, our vendors should be looking at what staging ‘Buys Them‘! They have a house that stands out against the competition, it is featured well on their online photos which will drive more traffic to their open house. It will help to receive better offers closer to their asking price or for more money. It will help to sell the house quicker and in turn save on all of those carrying costs, such as utilities, taxes, mortgage payment and upkeep. It reduces stress from the ‘time on market’ standpoint of having to maintain the house the entire time it sits on the market.
A House That Sits
A spacious room for your growing family…
Take a look at the house that sits on the market for a minute… while a house sits, it is potentially depreciating in value. Why? Because when a house sits, people start asking the ‘what’s wrong with it‘ questions. Those questions look like this… Is the price too high? Is there something seriously wrong with it? Does it require too many upgrades? On and on it goes… It sets a negative tone right from the get go and that can drastically affect your success.
Buyers who see a house sitting on the market will be more likely to consider you desperate to sell and will then feel they have more leverage to barter on your price and will potentially low ball you.
What Does Your Price Mean?
A cozy place to unwind from it all…
It is a starting point, to which your buyer starts negotiating you down. If your house is not featured well to attract your ‘Target Buyer’ and ‘wow’ the buyers who walk through your door, your house has the potential to sit on the market for a while. If this happens, you will start to have the ‘Price Drop Conversation‘ with your Realtor.
The price drop… what does that look like? Well it is a new lower price, to which you buyer starts to negotiate you down! How low will you go in your price reduction to make a sale, 5, 10, 20, 30 thousand dollars? On average a vendor will drop their price the first time between 5 – 10 K and sometimes even more. So now, your listing it is costing you money. Typically, staging costs less than you first price reduction!
When You are Selling You are Also Buying
Plenty of space for that special guest…
It would stand to reason that if you are selling your house you are on the market for a new one right? So what are your expectations when you are looking for your dream home? Would you be attracted to a house that looks beautiful within your price range? Would you feel like you are getting value for your money if you walk into a house that is well presented vs. one that looks like every other house on the market? Would you not get a sense of urgency if you saw this beautiful house, that meets most of your criteria and is in your price range? I know I would! I would see this house and think, wow, this is a beautiful home and it won’t last long…perhaps we better put an offer on it, or we may loose it.
When you feature your house… you create that sense of urgency because your buyer will know that a house this great won’t last long! By showcasing… you have added value over your competition. That is what staging is buying you… a valuable product that you are selling!! This is after all the most expensive purchase most of us will ever make in a lifetime. And in a lot of cases, it will take us a lifetime to pay it off.
A house that represents itself as well maintained, is one that I would want to make my HOME.
What are your thoughts or experience(s) with selling your house? I would love to hear from you!
As always, helping you in caring for your Total Home…
Best Regards,
Cindy
Written and created by Cindy Charbonneau. All photos demonstrate our own unique works of art!
