In real estate, first impressions make or break a deal.  When potential buyers step into a well-staged home, they enter a curated atmosphere that encourages them to image living in the space.  On the other hand, if they have a bad impression within those crucial first few seconds their feelings about the entire house will be soured - no matter how much potential the listing has. 

We often see agents list homes vacant.  They want to see if they can sell it without staging and if no acceptable offers come in, maybe they will invest in staging.  This strategy almost always backfires!  For example...a home listed on Knight Drive in Carmel was listed vacant.  It sat stagnate on the market for over a month with many showings but no offers.  After taking price cuts and paying carrying costs there was still not action.  The agent called us for a staging consultation.  Once we staged the home it sold to the very next person that walked in the door, just one day after we staged and the offer was at full listing price!

When an agent takes their client house-hunting they try to squeeze in as many properties as possible in a short time.  Very quickly the listings all start to blur together, and they begin to take on nicknames like "the cat house", "the bachelor pad", "the home with the Tuscan décor". These are just a few of the nicknames you don't want your home to be remembered by.  By highlighting the most attractive key features, these features become what first pops into the mind of potential buyers after a long day of seeing way too many homes.    

Top agents know that in a sea of rea estate listings, the home with the best photos online will attract the most-in-person viewings.  In fact, 83% of buyers say photos are the most important factor when picking homes to tour, according to the National Association of Realtors®.  A whopping 99% of millennial buyers start their home search online.  Home staging ensures that a property photographs well.   When an agent hires a certified home stager, they know that any furniture, art, and accessories will be placed with the camera in mind.  Trained home stagers are experts in getting online browsers to stop the scroll with their eye-catching designs.  

Some real estate agents may feel home staging is just an extra expense but later find that it's well worth every penny.  Most sellers see a return-on-investment of over 400% when they invested in staging, according to a survey done by the Real Estate Staging Association® (RESA).  Home staging statistics show that staged homes are more likely to fetch higher prices and sell faster, padding both the seller's pockets and the realtor's reputation. 

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That's the power of home staging in a nutshell.  In a world where FIRST IMPRESSIONS are EVERYTHING, real estate agents who embrace home staging are the ones who come out on top.