 Staging can cut down on the amount of time that your home sits on the market—staged homes sell about 87% faster on average compared to unstaged homes. This is just one of the amazing benefits of staging, and one that can help you get your ideal sale terms. But it can also lead to some common misconceptions about how long you need to keep your home staged. While many people naturally assume that as soon as you get a contract and your home goes off the market, it’s time to take down the staging, this isn’t the case. In fact, it’s recommended to leave your home staged until closing—and definitely through many of the major milestones that occur between getting that purchase contract you and your real estate professional worked so hard to acquire and the final sale. How long do you need to leave your home staged, then? That depends on the timeframe of your sale, and how quickly some events—like the inspection, appraisal, and final walk through—occur. Here, we’ll break down the importance of leaving your home staged through the duration of these events, and let you know how Heidi Ross Design can help. #1 – The Home Inspection and Appraisal After your real estate professional presents you with a sale offer on your home, it might feel like the most important part of the sale process is done—but this isn’t always the case. A home appraisal and final inspection help solidify and confirm the sale. While timelines will vary, it’s common for an inspection to occur within seven to ten days of accepting a buyer's offer, and it’s important to leave staging in place. That’s because staging helps to support the value of your home. Staging is a great way to show off your home’s best features—so when staging a small house, you won’t be able to let anyone think the house is smaller than really it is, but will be able to highlight beautiful windows, show off its best virtues like maybe a modern kitchen, a stunning view, or any other feature that adds value to your home and makes it look and feel spacious. Emphasizing these can help you to get an appraisal that represents the best value that you know is there and just waiting to be captured, and help reinforce to the buyer the true value they’re getting. #2 – The Contract and Financial Approval As banks or other sources work out lending paperwork with the buyer, it’s important to remember that things can go wrong. If money fails to be sourced or approved for the buyer or something in the inspection report or appraisal makes it impossible for you or the buyer to continue on with the sale, you can find yourself with your home back on the market. This means that if you’ve taken your staging materials down during this period, which often takes a few weeks, you can find that you either have to sell an unstaged home—which takes longer to do—or pay to have your home re-staged, which can slow the process even more. While you might worry about staging prices and the hassle of leaving staging in place, it’s cheaper than having to re-stage your home...it's best practice and a better idea to leave it in place until closer to closing. #3 – The Final Walkthrough Buying a home is an emotional decision. While it might feel frustrating to leave your home staged for the whole duration of the sale contingencies—which sometimes run 30 – 45 days – this is an important measure to take. When buyers tour your home, they feel a connection and make the decision to make an offer—and buyers’ remorse, or cold feet, can occur if buyers lose their connection to a home. This is something that can happen if staging is removed and the buyers have another home tour with additional family or their decorator and find themselves walking through a bare room and can no longer envision their lives in the space—which might lead to backing out of the sale and you’re left scrambling to find a new buyer and re-staging the home. Even photos or virtual staging available for the buyers to see doesn’t replace the home they can see in-person as they take that final walk-through. Leaving staging in place can help them to maintain their feelings and connection to the space, and help you retain your ideal terms throughout the sale process. Where can I find professional staging for sale near me? If you’re looking for local home stagers in Memphis and the Greater Mid-South area—including Germantown, Collierville, Olive Branch, and Hernando— Heidi Ross Design is here to help. Our professionals have the experience and know-how to guide you through the home staging process—whether you’re wondering where to start or debating how long to leave your home staged. Best of all? We have a commitment-free FREE quote that can help you understand the staging process as you and your real estate professional get ready to sell your vacant or occupied home. For answers to common questions about home staging check our FAQ page. Give us a call at (901) 361-7419 to get started today! **Disclaimer** Please be advised that all content, including Blog articles, on the website https://www.heidirossdesign.com is for INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. THE INFORMATION INCLUDED IN OR AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE MAY INCLUDE INACCURACIES OR TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS. No guarantees are made and the use of the website, content, and any information provided is to be used at your own risk.
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 At Heidi Ross Design, we help clients to understand how home staging has a lot of power in shaping how potential buyers perceive space within your home. When a buyer walks into a home crowded with personal effects, with the clutter of everyday life—like keys, shoes, and coats—spread around, they might feel that the space is small, dim, and not a place they can envision themselves living. But the same space with a light paint color, a few thoughtfully chosen accessories, and a careful paring down and clearing away of those everyday items can seem airy, bright, and inviting—and can let the potential buyer envision their own life being lived in the home.
Home staging is also a powerful tool to sell your home—but that doesn’t mean it’s a cure-all. Here, we’ll break down what home staging can’t do, and what is best to take care of or think through before trying to stage and sell your home. 1. Home staging cannot replace thorough cleaning. When you’re trying to sell your home, one of the most important things you can do is ensure that every inch is spotlessly clean. Buyers want to see a space that looks well-cared for and new (or as close to new as possible) —and cat/dog fur or dust can make even the cleanest house look worn out. This is something that no amount of new paint or carefully selected décor can change. Before staging, ensure that you get the home extremely clean, and keep this up while the home is being sold. Removing odors can be an important step, too—clean up any pet smell, and try light, refreshing, natural scents, or even an open window to help the potential buyer feel clean and clear. 2. Home staging cannot change location or make an unrealistic price tag possible. While it seems self-evident, this is something big to keep in mind. Home staging can help to increase a home's value, but it can’t help you to achieve an unrealistic price for your home. A too-high price tag can scare buyers off—and a price that drops as the house sits on the market can continue to scare them away as well. And the target market for your house depends on location. For example, trendy areas near nightlife might appeal to younger professionals—neighborhoods made up of young families in good school districts will attract a different potential buyer. Staging won’t be able to change someone’s mind if the area doesn’t meet their needs—but it can help you to appeal to your target market through design choices. Modern kitchen staging, with light walls and a bar area, might appeal to younger couples, while a traditional style with an eat-in kitchen area might appeal to an older or extended family. 3. Home staging cannot hide or disguise major flaws, and can’t replace necessary updates and repairs. Home staging helps a buyer to see the best features of your home. Staging a small kitchen can help them to envision how the space could best be put to use, and staging a small house can help them envision how good features—like large windows or a beautiful fireplace—would make the home right for their family. But home staging is not meant to cover up, disguise, or hide major flaws—and it can’t make buyers forget about big deal-breaking issues like significant deferred maintenance or holes in walls. Big issues—like problems with the wiring, roof, plumbing, or HVAC—need to be fixed before the home is listed or staged, or presented to the buyer as issues that are folded into the sale. The buyer who wants to take on home projects is different from the buyer who wants to move into a move-in home, and home staging won’t be able to make a buyer forget about dated rooms or major mechanical problems. Before you get ready to sell, do your best to complete renovations and updates that are recommended by your professional stager. Paint, updated lighting, and new hardware can go a long way towards helping your potential buyer see your home’s best value, and doing larger-value renovations—like bathroom renovations, basement finishing, new flooring, or a new roof, if you expect these to be issues during the sale—can help you and your real estate agent/professional get your best sale terms. Where can I find home staging near me? At Heidi Ross Design, we help clients in Memphis, Germantown, Olive Branch, and the Greater Memphis area get their best terms when selling their luxury homes. Our expertise and experience mean we can help you throughout the process when you need the best in-person viewing and best virtual staging support. Want to learn more? Use our online form for a FREE quote, or give us a call at (901) 361-7419. **Disclaimer** Please be advised that all content, including Blog articles, on the website https://www.heidirossdesign.com is for INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. THE INFORMATION INCLUDED IN OR AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SITE MAY INCLUDE INACCURACIES OR TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS. No guarantees are made and the use of the website, content, and any information provided is to be used at your own risk. |
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Website designed by Bailee Ross.