Home staging
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Home staging (British English: House doctoring, after the Five programme House Doctor) is the act of preparing a private residence prior to going up for sale in the real estate marketplace. The goal of staging is to sell a home quickly, and for the most money possible. Staging focuses on improving a property to make it welcoming, appealing, and attractive to the largest generic audience of potential homebuyers. Staging often raises the value of a property by way of repairs, re-decorating, renovations, and landscaping. For vacant homes, rental furniture will accent very nicely. Properly executed staging leads the eye to attractive features while minimizing flaws.
[edit] History
Real estate agents have practiced staging since the 1970s, but it was not until the 1990s that staging became a separate endeavor adopted by professional designers and decorators. More recently, the trend of do-it-yourself home staging has become widely popular. Staging is viewed by some as a necessary step taken prior to selling a home, and statistics show that it makes a dramatic difference on the amount of days a property is on the market and how much it sells for.
[edit] Techniques
Many techniques are used to stage a property. De-cluttering, depersonalizing, updating old or unattractive fixtures, painting, furniture rearrangement, rental furniture and accessorizing are just some of the changes used to make a home more inviting to potential buyers.
Since a typical home buyer decides if they are attracted to a home or not in the first 8 seconds of seeing it, curb appeal is generally viewed as a vital aspect of the staging process. Therefore, curb appeal, the practice of improving a home’s exterior appeal, is used alongside interior improvements.
It has been shown[citation needed] that homes containing furniture and accessories sell more quickly than vacant homes, because the potential buyers realize what can actually be done with the place. They may realize that the room is actually a lot larger than it would look without furnishings. Rental of furniture and decorative accessories is a common solution when selling brand new properties that have never been occupied, or those where homeowners have already vacated the property.
Spaciousness and light often determine the success of a staged home. Typically, the larger a room appears, the better it will seem to homebuyers. Dark, tight spaces create a poor impression and may prevent the home from selling. Furniture layouts should create an impression of openness and comfort. Non-essential items should be removed to minimize crowding and clutter. Opening curtains and blinds to let in natural light and turning on interior and exterior lights at nighttime are also common staging techniques.
One school of thought suggests that wall treatments and flooring are most appealing when presented in neutral colors and subtle patterns. Paint colors should be neutral whenever possible, as bright or bold colors and strong patterns detract from the universal appeal of a space. This rule, however, does not always hold true, particularly in the luxury home market, where unique fixtures and bold finishes — such as stained concrete flooring, deeply colored textured paints and artisan fixtures — are often considered highly desirable. [1]
Religious items, personal photos, awards, certificates and cultural items are often removed to downplay the presence of current homeowners. This helps potential homebuyers to not only feel more at ease during viewings, but allows them to focus on the property itself while also imagining their own belongings in the space.
