About Home Staging

Do you really need to stage your home before selling?  Is it just a gimmick?

You’ve probably heard of Home Staging, after all, if you’re like most people I know you’ve watched a lot of home improvement shows over the years. (In the real estate we jokingly refer to this as the “HGTV generation”)

What exactly is Home Staging?

While you may think of home staging as just bringing in some pretty pillows, I consider home staging all the steps we take to get a home (or condo) ready to sell.  It is the art of having your property appeal to the most buyers as possible to help you achieve a great price & a faster sale.  

Home staging helps you stand out from the competition, or may even be an expectation from today’s sophisticated buyer.  It really does help buyers imagine themselves living in the home.

Things you should consider when Staging your home

Stepping into the shoes of todays buyers will put you in the right frame of mind.  Homes are expensive & most buyers are looking for homes as move-in ready as possible within their budget.  In broad strokes they are looking for: 

• an abundance of natural light
• good storage 
• spacious rooms
• a clean home in good repair 

Any updates to sell should reflect todays tastes.  Decluttering, arranging furniture to highlight room sizes, and repainting in light neutral colours to reflect and enhance natural light are all important.    

What does a Home Stager do?

While home staging is a process, a Home Stager is a professional that decorates to sell. When we’re ready to go to market, the stagers will bring in decor to highlight the features of your home. They have a warehouse of art, pillows and small furnishings to choose from to show your home off to it’s best. They usually consult with you & your realtor and come up with a comprehensive plan - it’s like your own personal interior designer!

Before and after transformations: 

I work with a lot of 1970's homes with dark paneling in the basement.  A little paint and replacing dated broadloom refreshed this Scarborough home with pub-style decor on a budget! 

Even homes that are modest benefit from home staging.  Using the clients own furniture and my own inventory this home was prepared for market.  The biggest changes most often come from decluttering, deep cleaning & repurposing furniture to create intentional spaces.  These three examples come from the same home: