Staging Your Home
If you’re selling your property, you should have two objectives in mind. The first goal is to get top dollar for your home. The second goal is to sell your home as quickly as possible— especially if you’re planning on using the funds from the sale of your current home toward the purchase of your new one. As your REALTOR®, it’s my job to provide an unbiased review of your property’s strongest and weakest selling points. From there, I’ll recommend a plan of action to prepare your home for sale that will ultimately increase the selling price and decrease the selling time. That’s where staging comes into play.
There are different levels of staging, and depending on the condition of your home, may require more or less effort in this area. In all cases, you will want to clean, declutter and remove personal items. The goal here is to ‘depersonalize’ your home so that potential buyers can better visualize themselves living there and putting their own personal touch on the property. Beyond the basic cleaning and repair, there are times when homeowners may need to take extra steps. In some cases, purchasing new carpet, appliances, painting and decorating may be recommended.
You may wonder, is it worth it put money into the property just to sell it. RESA (Real Estate Staging Association) reports that on average staged homes who have taken these extra steps generally sell for 6% more. 6% on a $500,000 home is $30,000. That far exceeds the cost of most recommended upgrades.
In any case, I can work with you to determine what steps to take based on your budget and motivation to sell so that the whole process is a smooth transition that yield the greatest return on investment.
It’s important to note that not all REALTORS® offer staging services. If you think you may benefit from a consultation, and your REALTOR® does not offer this service, feel free to call. I do offer staging services independently. Maybe you just have questions about staging in general to determine if its right for you. I can be reached at 707-889-3390 or email me at loriboatright@sbcglobal.net.