Does Staging really work? How does it work? Really, Staging done right is actually subliminal.I remember a house that a client I was working with at the time fell in love with. It was a 2 family and one of the tenants had her unit set up so well that she had staged her apartment without knowing it. It was Christmas time and quite frankly, Christmas decorations are not what I would define as an essential element of Staging. But she had done such a perfect job, that a feeling of warmth just overcame my client, and myseld as well.
As far as furniture placement, she had her beds set up kitty korner so that they were the focal point of the otherwise bland room allo making them seem more spacious than they were. My client was hooked and bought the house without hesitation. Unfortunately, the seller had a figure in mind much higher than her ideal price but did meet their price demands. When asked later by another agent who was comping out similar properties about the price, her comment was that the sellers "got all of the money" and they did. That was because it was Staged and we were all set up.
When I tool my Staging certification course, we were told that buyers know that they are being set up but go along with it. Perhaps that is the case some of the time but I like to think of it as more subtle than that. Not every Staging job is going to be pulled off with such skill and that is the point. It doesn't really take skill, just to adhere to the principles of Staging in every room. In this slowing market, getting more than you asking price is no longer the goal, just getting what you are asking is. A properly Staged house will help you achieve this goal.
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elise@elisevetri.com to receive a list of this Staging criteria to help you STAGE your own property.
Elise Vetri