Transforming Your Home into a Buyer’s Dream: The Power of Home Staging

When selling your home, it’s crucial to make a great first impression to stand out among other options for potential buyers. Home staging can help by showcasing your property’s best features and attracting buyers.

Home staging is a valuable technique that not only helps your property stand out in online searches but also makes it more appealing during in-person showings. Additionally, it can lead to quicker and more competitive offers. Based on recent data from the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA), you have the possibility to sell your home for $40,000 over the list price if you stage your home before putting it on the market.

Home staging is more than just making your property look attractive. It can also help emphasize your home’s best features while minimizing its flaws. For example, you can draw attention away from an awkward wall in your living room and toward your property’s strengths, like a stunning view or beautiful fireplace. By strategically arranging furniture and decor, you can highlight what makes your property great and downplay any less desirable aspects, such as outdated fixtures, small bedrooms, or awkward walls. These small changes can increase your property’s value, showcase its potential, and attract potential buyers.
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According to a survey by the International Association of Home Staging Professionals, 23% of seller’s agents reported a 1% to 5% price increase on offers for staged homes compared to similar homes on the market that hadn’t been staged. RESA found that investing 1.3% in staging results in an average of 7.1% over-list returns. Data shows that: 

• Staged homes are seen as being in better condition.
• Staged homes are more visually appealing.
• Staging can result in higher offers from potential buyers.

If you’re looking to sell your home and are considering home staging, you have two options—hiring a professional stager or doing it yourself. Here at the Ginger Baxter Group, we work with several staging professionals. But, for all you DIY people out there, here are a few home staging tips from the experts at the Home Staging Institute that you can incorporate yourself. And you don’t have to be a HGTV pro to do them!
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We’ve included a few of their top tips below, but the link above contains all their home staging information for 2023.

1. Give your home some curb appeal by making simple upgrades like cleaning up the roof, siding, and gutters with a pressure washer. Give your front door a fresh coat of paint, and consider a bold color that coordinates well with the rest of the house. What about that old mailbox, house numbers, and welcome mat? Consider freshening those up with new ones to fit your budget. Spruce up flower beds, window boxes, and edging with fresh mulch and fill empty beds with greenery, seasonal flowers, and small shrubs.
2. Declutter, declutter, declutter! Too much furniture is one of the most significant contributors to a cluttered-looking home. You want people to be able to move freely around each room, so clear out some of the furnishings. Cutting back on furniture also helps make rooms look larger. While some believe a room looks larger when all the furnishings are pushed up against the walls, the opposite is true. When staging your home, you should float furniture away from the walls whenever possible.
3. With remote jobs on the rise, having a home office can appeal to prospective buyers. As a prospective seller, it is essential to remember that many buyers prioritize having a functional workspace when searching for their dream home. A well-designed home office can add functionality and productivity to a property, making it more appealing to potential buyers.
4. According to a study by the National Association of Realtors, staging the kitchen was one of the most important for buyers (30%). It’s no secret that kitchens are one of the first rooms prospective buyers will focus on, so it’s crucial to make some upgrades before you show the house. The experts at the Home Staging Institute recommend the following considerations for your kitchen before showing.

• Clear the countertops by removing all clutter and show off storage space by packing up small appliances and seldom-used dishware. Either pack or use up any dry goods you have in the pantry.
• Give the cabinets a fresh coat of paint and change outdated hardware to help elevate the kitchen look.
• Swap out an old faucet with a stylish new one, especially if the old one is caked with hard water stains or corroded.
• Check with your dishwasher manufacturer to see if you can purchase replacement panels or consider installing a new dishwasher.
• Update the backsplash by painting the existing tile, installing beadboard paneling, or using peel-and-stick faux tile.

When a home is staged with a warm and welcoming atmosphere, potential buyers are more likely to feel at ease and imagine themselves living there. This emotional connection can be a powerful tool in encouraging buyers to make an offer on the property, making staging a worthwhile investment.