5 Reasons Real Estate Investors Should Use A Home Stager
The real estate market is HOT HOT HOT right now. There is limited inventory and newly renovated homes are selling within days. It is easy to believe that home staging isn’t necessary. Why spend the money when the house will sell fast without it? Before you discount this service, consider this:
5 Reasons Why Real Estate Investors should use a home stager
The first concept that real estate investors need to overcome is the idea that home staging is an expense. Just as with everything else they spend money on, when flipping a home, investors should see home staging as an investment. Investments have a return and home staging is no different.
1. Home staging looks amazing online.
Floors, windows, and walls are not that interesting in photos. While home buyers love newly renovated homes, they simply aren’t as interesting in photos when they sit empty. Home Staging generates more interest in properties because they look amazing online. Buyers will spend more time looking at the listing online, flipping through photos. This will lead to more showings, and buyers will be more excited about visiting the house.
2. Home Staging creates an emotional connection to the property.
Maximum number of people will be interested in the home because it looks amazing online. They will be more excited when they are on the way to see it. Once in the property, home buyers will fall in love with the house. There will be an emotional call to action to purchase. Buyers will have an instant fear that someone else will also want the property. This will lead to immediate offers.
3.Home Staging will create higher offers.
More interest, more showings, and an emotional connection are the perfect cocktail for multiple offers. Even without multiple offers, the fear of multiple offers, competing against someone else, in a low inventory environment, will cause home buyers to put in stronger offers. Buyers are less likely to “see what the seller will take”, fearing that someone else will come along and scoop it up from underneath them.
4. Staged Homes will appraise at higher values.
I can already hear you thinking that higher offers are great, but they still must appraise. The funny thing is that appraisers are human too. Appraisers are based on comparables from the community AND condition of the subject. Home staging creates the perception that a home is in better condition and tends to appraise at a higher value than non-staged properties.
5. Fully staged homes tend to be broken into less frequently.
The important part of this equation is that the home must be fully staged. When homes are fully staged, meaning all interior spaces, including all bedrooms, not only does the home look better, create an emotional connection to buyers, generate higher offers, and then appraise at higher values, but it also tends to look ‘lived in’ online. Thieves who look online for vacant homes to steal appliances from, aren’t sure if a fully staged home is lived in or if it is just staged. This means they are more likely to skip the fully staged property for an ‘easier target’. This deterrent may be enough to pay for the staging when you consider not only the cost of appliances, but also the damage that thieves often do when removing them.
Home Staging has the highest rate of return in any part of your flip.
What kind of return to you anticipate getting on the installment of granite counters, tile backsplash, or stainless-steel appliances? If I told you that spending $2500 on an improvement would average a $10,000 return at closing, would you make that improvement? This is what home staging typically offers. Most customers tell us that they expect to receive 3-5 times what they spent in higher offers.
The cost of staging is typically around 1-1.5% of the list price of the home. Home staging should be calculated into the equation every time, when planning the purchase. In most areas, it’s better to do slightly less improvement than to skip out on staging. Home staging will create more perceived value than almost any single upgrade.
If you are interested in learning more about home staging, or becoming a home stager, contact Rave Home Staging at [email protected]
