FAQs

It is OK and very common. One misconception about home staging is that you need to decorate every room. Home staging is not about coming up with home decorating ideas to fill every room. The goal of home staging is to show off the home, not the home decor.

Studies show that the key rooms that have the biggest impact on buyers are: living room, family room, kitchen, dining room, master bedroom and main bathroom.

When you sign a contract with us, you are indeed responsible for any damage that occurs to rented items while they are in your space. However, we will do a thorough preliminary examination with you when the items are first brought in and note any existing marks or scratches for which you aren’t responsible.

We strive to find a happy balance between a perfectly staged home and allowing you to be comfortable in your home during the listing process. We may change what a homeowner uses a particular space for (e.g., if your dining room is set up for sewing or arts and crafts creation, we will most likely change it back to a regular dining room) but we’ll ensure that you’re not too terribly inconvenienced in the short time it will take for your professionally staged home to sell!

The initial In-Home Consultation includes a complete tour of the home and then providing a list of recommendations ranging from de-cluttering to furniture selections/placement to paint colors to physical home improvement changes such as replacing countertops. You can take it all from there, or you can hire us to handle specific parts or the whole thing (with the exception of contracted physical improvements such as changing light fixtures, painting, etc).

Depending on your budget, we can work with only what you currently own and have in the house, or we can bring in new furniture and/or accessories for which you pay a rental fee.

Our goal isn’t to decorate a home; it’s to create a neutral, tasteful environment that highlights the home’s strengths, diminishes its flaws, and helps it appeal to a wide audience of prospects. The homeowner is far too invested to be able to “step back” and view the property not as their home, but as a place that fits the vision and needs of a completely different family. How a home is decorated and used for living is far different than how it is presented for sale.

Buyers need to be able to visualize how they will live and fit into a home, so you need a balance of inviting but neutral elements. When you show your home to prospective buyers as you typically live in it, there are usually too many distractions that keep them from imagining it as their home. Some buyers are able to see beyond the obvious, but the vast majority can’t.

Buyers need to be able to visualize how they will live and fit into a home, so you need a balance of inviting but neutral elements. When you show your home to prospective buyers as you typically live in it, there are usually too many distractions that keep them from imagining it as their home. Some buyers are able to see beyond the obvious, but the vast majority can’t.

Staging typically has an 8 to 10 percent return on investment. And agents have reported buyers paying anywhere from 1 to 15 percent more than the asking price. We’d say that staging is definitely worth the expense just for that. But that’s not all.

• If you invest in home staging before listing, the home will sell 87 percent faster, on average.
• A National Association of Realtors® survey showed that 81 percent of buyers surveyed said it is easier to visualize the property as their home if it has been professionally staged. And 28 percent also said they are more willing to overlook other property faults.
• Also, 90 percent of buyers will view a home online before visiting it in person, so it’s imperative to have it professionally staged before taking the pictures and listing.

Staging is not just for upscale houses! The average cost of staging is 1-3 percent of the home asking price. And the return on investment is 8-10 percent, according to an NAR survey. So, while you will spend a bit of money upfront, you more than make back that investment. And remember, professionally staged houses sell faster.

The process starts with an In-Home Consultation, which involves us going through your house to get a sense of its history and style and discuss your needs. We evaluate each room with the eye of a prospective buyer and make notes of what needs to be changed, updated, or improved. At the end of the evaluation, we provide recommendations that range from basic showcasing (e.g., de-cluttering, bringing in accessories, swapping out furniture or other decor) to major changes (e.g., painting, new flooring or window treatments). You’ll receive a written report with our recommendations after the consultation.

We can leave things at this initial consultation, or you can hire Staging That Sells to do the actual showcasing. We’ll do most everything involved, including making recommendations for colors, flooring, and other improvements that require the work of an outside contractor. Hiring and contracting with outside labor will be the responsibility of the owner/seller.

If we decide that you need furnishings and accessories to supplement what you have, you can rent from us or we can go shopping for the needed items (always taking your budget into consideration). You get to keep the purchased items.

If the home is vacant and unoccupied, we will provide and arrange all furnishings and accessories.