The 3 Biggest Misconceptions about Home Staging
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Over the years, as the concept of home staging has evolved, I continue to see and hear a lot of misconceptions about what home staging is and can do for you.
Here are the top 3 explained. I hope this helps clarify it for you…
1. My Property is Worth More and I Can Now Increase My Asking Price. Although home staging can increase the perceived value of your property by showcasing it at its finest, the market value of the property does not change. It is still only worth what a buyer is willing to pay for it. The physical act of preparing a house to sell does not automatically grant you the right to increase your asking price if you are already asking top dollar. What it does do is it increases the desirability of your property which therefore increases the likelihood that you will sell for top dollar. Other things that attribute to the perceived value of the property are repairs and upgrades. Keep in mind that most properties don't get treated to these repairs and upgrades until it's time to sell. This is called deferred maintenance. This is stuff you should have taken care of a long time ago, but you didn't. Again, taking care of these items now DOES NOT automatically increase the market value of your property. Are there opportunities for multiple offers and above asking price offers? Absolutely, but don’t make the costly mistake of assuming that if the market value of your property is $650,000, now that you’ve staged your property, you can ask $675,000 or more. In fact, you’re better off with a lower listing price to encourage a multiple offer situation when buyers see the value your property offers, if that is in fact the case.
2. It’s About Decorating and Making it Pretty. Effective Home Staging really goes way beyond what you see at face value. It starts with knowing who your target home buyer is and designing a lifestyle to attract those specific buyers. This is where a lot of folks miss the mark – professionals and lay people alike. They think it’s about decluttering, depersonalization, and adding some pretty pillows and art. Think about this. Do you think the lifestyle of a 30 something bachelor or bachelorette is the same as that of a 30 something couple with young children or that of an empty nester couple? Vastly different right? Well then why would you generically stage a property in hopes of appealing to any of those three markets rather than designing it to speak to the one the home is most likely for? So many considerations must be factored into the process and how you showcase the property must appeal to your ideal target buyer. Don’t market to the masses, target your marketing efforts.
3. You must Depersonalize the Space. Yes, you should try to remove a lot of your personal items from the property when you’re getting ready to sell, but the problem I see most often is that houses are so depersonalized that it is void of any personality at all. This includes stripping the home of personal items to neutralizing features throughout the home so that what you end up with is a vanilla box = B-O-R-I-N-G!!! What you end up with is the white, off-white or beige walls, white cabinets, white countertops, beige floors, beige carpet, I mean how appealing is that? BLAH!! Remember, you still have to make the home memorable and somewhat appealing to buyers. The property should have some personality, just not necessarily yours. Again, it goes back to designing a lifestyle to appeal to your target buyers. If you’re appealing to a starter family, a nursery with a few stuffed toys and books and even a photo or two of the baby or the mother and child would most likely resonate with the prospective buyer.
I hope this helps you understand the psychology that’s involved in the home preparing, home staging, home selling process and help you avoid making some costly mistakes. Please share your thoughts with me by commenting below.
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