We have all done some staging over the years and it is now considered a profession. It is also a service many individual Realtors are offering as an area of specialty in their real estate career. You are seeing it in 2 ways either as a service they provide or a skill they have trained themselves in. There are several new designations Real Estate agents can acquire in the area of staging. Two t that I am aware of are the AHS Designation ( Accredited Home Staging Specialist) and the ASP Designation ( Accredited Home Staging Specialist). Both classes have recently been offered in Northern Wisconsin to both Vilas and Oneida County Realtors. I am certain there are more or will be because this seems to be becoming a valueable part of the entire real estate marketing package. At least it has become for me. Honesty in pricing and honesty in home presentation are very important in a tight pricing market when really separating your home from the competition is vital.
It is a proven fact and there are NAR statistics that prove that staging helps sell houses quicker and at higher prices. It can often be a far better suggestion to have a home staged than to do a price reduction and , better yet, staging does not necessarily mean spending a lot of money. I believe that staging is increasing the perceived value of a property by showcasing the properties positive points. On the National association of Realtors website the site states that staged homes can bring in an average of 6.9% more money than homes that have not been staged.
The key behind staging is allowing the potential Buyers to mentally move in to a home by opening up the space. It often involves some creativity and some muscle. When a home is staged, all clutter is removed. An environment of neutrality is the goal and there should be a focal point in every room that is clear and visible for the eye to see. Generally, the rooms best feature. The muscle comes in because you need to spruce it up and showcase it in its best light. I think of it like detailing a car. You wouldn’t try to sell a car without washing, waxing, and vacuuming it, would you?
The environment of neutrality is achieved by de-personalizing the home:
1. De-personalizing is basically removing family pictures, personal effects, grand art collections and etc… buyers must be able to picture themselves living in the home and that is difficult to do when the home is full of family photos. It also is an obvious distraction when showing the home because buyers tend to be looking to see if they know anyone in the pictures rather than actually viewing themselves in the home.
2. Going hand in hand with De-personalization is making the home appear in it’s best light. Clean and ready for new owners. Basically, you want it to have neutral or pleasing colors and you want all the holes patched and the doorknobs to be clean and shiny. Everything should look like it is in move-in condition on day one.
her is a list of helpful staging suggestions:
Painting front and back doors
Fixing screens and broken windows
Painting basement floors and walls – grey epoxy works best
Remove clutter
Take to the dump
Have a garage sale
Donate to church or youth group
Rent a storage garage
Remove all items that are not absolutely necessary
Use the phrase “you’re going to be moving anyway so you may as
well start boxing things up.”
Create more open space to make the property look larger
Remove all nails and screws and patch holes.
Paint entry halls a light neutral color
Paint living room and dining room a light neutral color
Paint kitchen and baths a light neutral color
For vacant homes, Sellers may want to consider renting some furniture
Garages
Grey epoxy floors
Hang garden tools
Hang shop tools
Make sure all lights and switches are working
Turn all light on prior to a showing and off when you are done.
Remember, in the dead of winter in Northern Wisconsin driveways and walkways should be shoveled off and you can always use fresh evergreens or branches to add a little color to the front of your home for curb appeal.
For vacant land Sellers: ”Can you stage a lot?” … Yes you can, clean up the debris & brush. and cwalking trails in so that potential buyers can see what they are purchasing.
For additional info. on real estate in the Northern Wi. counties of Vilas and Oneida please contact www.eagleriverhomefinder.com.
Remember ”Greater Service equals Greater Results” !!
Julie Paez
