Does staging really work? According to a new survey from the National Association of Realtors® (NAR), yes!
Eighty two percent of buyers’ agents said home staging made it easier for a buyer to visualize the property as a future home. Staging also appears to increase how much buyers were willing to spend for a property. Twenty-three percent of buyers’ agents said that home staging raised the dollar value offered between 1 percent and 5 percent compared to similar homes on the market that hadn’t been staged.
The response from sellers’ agents was nearly identical, with 23 percent reporting a 1 percent to 5 percent price increase on offers for staged homes and 18 percent of sellers’ agents putting the increase between 6 percent and 10 percent. None of the agents for sellers reported that home staging had a negative impact on the property’s dollar value and 31 percent said that home staging greatly decreased the amount of time a home spent on the market.
“Staging a home helps consumers see the full potential of a given space or property,” said Jessica Lautz, NAR’s vice president of demographics and behavioral insights. “It features the home in its best light and helps would-be buyers envision its various possibilities.”
The changed selling methods necessitated by the pandemic such as video tours may have increased the importance of staging. Eighty-three percent of buyers’ agents said having photographs for their listings was more important since the beginning of the pandemic. Seventy-four percent of buyers’ agents said the same about videos, and 73 percent said having virtual tours available for their listings was more important in the wake of COVID-19.
Opinions on the parts of a home to stage vary, although living rooms (90 percent) and kitchens (80 percent) proved to be the most common, followed closely by master bedrooms (78 percent) and dining rooms (69 percent). As many workers were forced to work from home due to the pandemic, 39 percent staged a home office or office space.
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Read more: https://housingbrief.com/article/606c85089273a12c6813d26b/54d0ef96becf1e0b0cbd5c7b
