Preparing and staging homes with a client’s furniture and decor or a custom staging consultation and installation of staging furniture is an essential part of my selling process. Staging all my listings (yes, all of them) is a very important part of the high-touch, full-service offering I make to my clients, no matter the price point. Whether you’re selling a multi-million-dollar home or a small investment condo, the first part of my job is to get the best photos for online shoppers (According to Visit our Website, 99% of home buyers between the ages of 23 and 56 use the internet to search for homes in their home buying process), and the most showings and interest in coming to see the home in person. And if my ultimate job is to get the most money for you, then it makes sense that this extremely intentional approach to preparing your home for those first potential buyers is a critical part of my marketing plan and vision for each of my listings.

 

 

Staging is the art of preparing a home for sale by highlighting its best features and creating an environment that will appeal to potential buyers. It involves using furniture, artwork, and accessories to create a warm and welcoming space that will make buyers feel at home.

 

But maybe to help appreciate what staging is for real estate listings, we can better understand what staging isn’t. First, it’s not how we actually live. Even if your home is beautifully decorated for daily living and everything is in its place (you know who you are, unicorns), we can still make it even better for marketing purposes. What do we do with gorgeously decorated homes? We remove items and create some blank space. We rearrange your items to showcase the flooring and other architectural features or mountain views. We edit heavily, reducing items so they don’t look jumbled in the high-definition, wide-angled real estate photos. Remember, our daily living may be supported by cozy runner rugs and bath mats, but those items don’t look great in photos. We live with messy desks, but staged desks look minimalistic. We live with a basket of hats and mittens and a coat rack full of coats in the entryway to handle all of the Colorado weather changes. But none of this looks good in online photos; so we pare it all down when converting your 3D home to 2D. This conversion designed to create images that show every detail requires some expertise and preparation, even in the most organized and professionally decorated homes.

 

Next, it’s not personal. All of your family photos and unique art made by your cousin or all the gear for your personal hobbies aren’t for everyone. Your strong personal statement pieces or books that clarify your religious or political views or unique passions in life aren’t for everyone. We want the buyers to see themselves in your home, and not be overwhelmed by your personal tastes, which may not match their own (even if the home is a great fit). Sellers need to remember not to take this part personally; we are preparing the home for a large pool of imaginary buyers, not criticizing the Seller's tastes or beliefs.

 

 

And finally, when preparing for this imaginary buyer, we must remember their vision of their home isn’t cluttered (or even realistic). Some pre-photos and pre-showing removal of functional items that simply aren’t pretty is critical. People touring homes don’t need your TV remotes, toothpaste, vitamin bottles, this month’s bills, the three brown bananas you plan to use for banana bread, or the dishrags in your sink to remind them of reality. They want a dream, and we need to make your home fulfill that dream.

 

Basically, it’s the closest your home can come to making the enviable front cover of Architectural Digest or a high-end design magazine. So who does all this? And when? Magazines have teams of people to prepare a home for those types of photo shoots, and me and my team of experts works in very much the same way. I seek many opinions and conduct multi-hour walk-throughs with professionals from design, magazine, and the art fields to weigh in on my listings. At a minimum, I bring in our in-house stager and they provide a layout and furniture plan for a vacant home.

 

Once it feels completely ready, I’m not done yet! I also consult and share my prepared homes with my real estate colleagues prior to the sale. I conduct broker opens and seek even more feedback from outside agents. Agents preview new listings and homes all day, and our professional nature is to compare, categorize, and classify (read “judge”) the presentation of a home. I want their opinion, even if it’s hard to hear. Everyone’s opinion gets thrown in the mix because these will be the varied opinions of our potential buyers. So, we let our ego rest and allow that feedback and criticism to be voiced for the benefit of our Sellers.

 

 

Because I only provide white glove service to all of my clients along the front range at all price points, I can’t do my job without using this approach for all of my listings. I incorporate the staging consults ($250 – $1000), any additional furniture or art ($2000 – $10,000+), my time and energy re-arranging and editing your rooms ($300/hr), and managing all the people involved in this process into my marketing budget. Yes, you read that right, I paid for all of the services described above before I ever put a sign in the yard. I believe in my process, and if I consider this mission critical to my success and my client’s success, then I am willing to take on the financial commitment right alongside my clients. Many agents pass these costs on to their clients and detach their service offerings from their commission. Or worse yet, they allow multi-million dollar homes on the market without any furniture, deep cleaning, or presentation. I just can’t do that. I like to have some skin in the game and demonstrate the value of my service. So if your real estate professional isn’t providing a staging consult to an occupied or vacant home or measuring for staging furniture and having their team bring it to you from the warehouse at their expense, then consider the above discussion. Or call me and ask why I believe that the two weeks to six months prior to the listing going live is as critical as reviewing a 28-page offer and its legal implications.

 

Staging a home for sale is an important part of my real estate process. Highlighting a home’s best features, telling the home’s story, and creating an environment that will appeal to more potential buyers isn’t always easy or obvious. And it requires professionals and a financial investment. But I know it is instrumental to getting the best photos for online shoppers! And it sparks interest and provides clarity to buyers coming to see your home in person! There is a lot to my business processes, but this is just the first and very important step I take to ensure my selling clients’ success.