When it comes to home selling trends, home staging is red hot and getting hotter. It’s gone from an intriguing possibility before the pandemic to a mandatory necessity in some markets, and it seems like only a matter of time before “some” turns into “most” or “all.”
Not all the news about home staging is about growth, however. There are those who question whether home staging actually improves the value of a home, and it’s a valid ask. There are some intriguing answers, though, so let’s do a breakdown of the value question as it applies to home staging.
Home Staging Value By the Numbers
If you’re one of those types who likes to use numbers to answer what seems like a basic question, you’re definitely in the right place. There are plenty of numbers to quantify the value of home staging, and while they do provide a useful perspective, they can be slightly confusing.
Start with the most commonly quoted numbers about value and home staging. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), 20 percent of surveyed agents said staging adds 1-5 percent to home value. Another 14 percent said that increase was from 6-10 percent, while 5 percent said it was 11-15 percent.
Got all that? Thankfully, there’s no quiz. and no need to memorize. The bottom line is that home staging adds value to a home, but the amount will vary according to the individual home, the market and the quality of the staging itself.
Home Staging Cost vs Time on the Market
There’s more to the value of staging than straight home value numbers, however. It’s also important to weigh the cost of home staging vs the cost of keeping a home on the market for an extended period of time.
Fortunately, this one’s easier to measure. The cost of staging ranges from $800-$3,000, so that number is much easier to pin down. Weighing that number against the cost of keeping a home on the market longer than necessary is a little trickier. If you’re selling your house and you’ve already bid on another home, for instance, that cost can be exorbitant. Home staging materials cost money, and bidding on one home while continuing to pay a mortgage on another is an expensive proportion. But one thing real estate agents agree on is that staging will sell a home faster—nearly 90 percent faster, according to an NAR survey. If that speed helps cut costs in the sale to a significant degree, those savings have to be added to the final value of a home.
Perceived Value vs Actual Value of Home Staging
Finally, let’s talk about value. It’s often a subjective measurement, and that’s definitely true of home staging. In this case, value is often discussed as perceived value vs actual value. If a $600K home goes for $700K and effective staging is a vital part of the sales process that bumps up the final price, then the value of staging is much higher, even if it is harder to quantify.
Add to Your Home’s Value with Great Home Staging from Parker Staging
If you want to maximize the value of your home with great home staging, you need to use Parker Staging. We’ve completed over 600 stagings since our inception in 2009, so we know how to use design principles and other advanced tactics add value. To schedule a consult and get all your questions answered, go to ParkerStaging.com, then call us at either 866-512-7659 or 240-532-7366, and you can also email us at admin@parkerstaging.com