The thought of staging your home might feel foreign, intimidating and a bit overwhelming but the truth is, it is so worth it!

In my experience, I’ve identified 4 key reasons that people might not consider staging their home.   I’m hoping I can convince you otherwise.

1. You think you can’t afford it or have no idea how much it costs.

If you’ve never had experience with home staging or a home stager before, you might assume it’s probably expensive. The truth is, it is a fraction of the cost of the first price reduction on your home if it doesn’t sell. Its less expensive than you think and you don’t need to jump right in.  Give us a call at Nest, we will be happy to discuss the process with you and determine your budget.

Start with the consultation.  The consultation is a small investment with a huge return.  It provides you with specific recommendations to make your home more sellable.  It takes less than 2 hours and gives you an opportunity to learn more about the process and what needs to get done.  If at that point, you feel you can do the work on your own, you’ve invested less than $200 and have taken away a TON of value.    If you are in a situation that you need a little more work and require full or partial staging, I can put together a staging proposal for your review.  I am here to help.  I’ve also worked with budgets of all sizes.  You should also talk to your realtor- they might be able to help with costs.  It is in their best interest to get the property sold faster too! Don’t let the fear of the unknown hold you back.  Give us a call. We can discuss your budget and the needs of your home and prepare a plan together.

2. You think you don’t need it- your house looks great already.

You might think to yourself, “I love my personal items and my house is beautiful”.  All of that may be true but once you decide that you are selling your home, your mindset needs to shift from ours to theirs.  With this in mind, your own personal taste might not appeal to the broader audience of potential buyers so adjustments need to be made.  You might have a personal attachment to that large dresser that has been passed down from your grandmother but the truth is, it’s too big for your master bedroom and it blocks the door. Or that pistachio green wall in your living room is your favourite colour and it goes with your décor but in it makes your room look small and the colour is not what potential homebuyers are looking for in today’s market.

In addition, we all get comfortable with our things and how we use them.  So you might have forgotten that the toilet leaks or the door creeks and you never open that window because it jams.  All of these deferred maintenance items will detract potential buyers from seeing your house as their future home because there is too much work to be done or they will be looking for deep discounts on the selling price to compensate for it.

With all that said, I know it’s hard to think that people won’t like your personal style or appreciate those items in your home you treasure most but remember once they come to have a look at your house, they want to picture it as theirs, not yours.  You’ve made your house a home over the years, now its time for others to envision it for themselves.

3. You think it won’t make a difference.

In a 2018 survey of over 4200 homes, 85 % of the staged homes sold for 6-25% more than unstaged homes.* This is especially important if the property is vacant.   People have a difficult time visualizing empty spaces especially when they are seeing them for the first time in their online search.  Don’t get overlooked!   If that first statistic isn’t convincing, how about this one, in another study conducted by the National Association of Realtors, over 77% of buyers find it “easier to visualize the property as their future home” when it is staged.  That is the point of home staging.  To attract buyers so they can see it for themselves and ultimately make you an amazing offer!  So can home staging make a difference?  The answer is yes! Setting your property apart from the competition by showing potential buyers how much your property has to offer.

4. I’m already overwhelmed. Home staging feels like a lot of work.  I don’t need any more stress.

The thought of preparing your property for sale feels overwhelming and stressful and the truth is, it can be. However, hiring a home stager can take some of that that extra pressure off.  If you weren’t a plumber would you necessarily know how to fix a broken pipe? So why would you feel like you have to go about this on your own?

As the homeowner, you will have your set responsibilities this is true, but the work needs to get done eventually so why not get a head start?   You’ll thank us later when you have less to pack up!

Once you’ve de-cluttered and cleaned, you’ll feel so good and excited to pass that baton over to us at Nest! We will then come in and transform your home to become its best self! You might even question why you are moving!

So if any of these barriers are holding you back, I hope I’ve convinced you that Home Staging is an attainable and in many circumstances necessary to get the most value out of your home.   Give us a call at Nest, would love to discuss your property’s potential and how we can help.

*www.homestagingresource.com

**Statistics source National Association of Realtors 2017 Profile of Home Staging Report