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Home staging (British English: House doctoring) is the act of preparing a private residence prior to going up for sale in the real estate marketplace. The goal of staging is to sell a home quickly, and for the most money possible by attracting the highest amount of potential buyers. Staging focuses on improving a property to make it appeal to the largest number of buyers by transforming it into a welcoming, appealing, and attractive product for sale. Staging often raises the value of a property by way of reducing the home's flaws, depersonalizing, decluttering, cleaning, improving condition items, and landscaping. For vacant homes, rental furniture is used to create a living space the buyer could "see" themselves in. Properly executed staging leads the eye to attractive features while minimizing flaws.

History

U.S.

Since the 1970s, real estate agents professionals have used staging as a marketing tool in the US and Canada. Not until the 1990s did this real estate trend become a separate endeavor adopted by professional designers and decorators, real estate agents and home based career seekers. More recently, the trend of do-it-yourself home staging has become widely popular, as many books have been published on the subject.

Home staged for resale - Family room, kitchen

Staging is increasingly viewed by some as a necessary step taken prior to selling a home, and many home sellers use the services of a professional home stager or a real estate agent with staging expertise to assist them to stage their homes prior to sale.

US Research has shown that home staging can reduce a listing's time on the market by half and could fetch as much as 10-15% more versus an empty home or a home not properly staged.

The popularity of home staging has led to the creation of various home staging courses that educate real estate professionals about the home staging process.

UK

In Britain Home Staging had been a relatively new concept but the techniques have been televised by Californian home stylist Ann Maurice in the popular television show House Doctor on Five.

Techniques

Many techniques are used to stage a property. De-cluttering, depersonalizing, updating old or unattractive fixtures, painting, furniture rearrangement, rental furniture and accessorizing are just some of the changes used to make a home more inviting to potential buyers.

Since a typical home buyer decides if they are attracted to a home or not in the first 8 seconds of seeing it^{[citation needed]}, curb appeal is generally viewed as a vital aspect of the staging process. Therefore, curb appeal, the practice of improving a home’s exterior appeal, is used alongside interior improvements.

It has been shown^{[citation needed]} that homes containing furniture and accessories sell more quickly than vacant homes, because the potential buyers realize what can actually be done with the place. They may realize that the room is actually a lot larger than it would look without furnishings. Rental of furniture and decorative accessories is a common solution when selling brand new properties that have never been occupied, or those where homeowners have already vacated the property.

Spaciousness and light often determine the success of a staged home. Typically, the larger a room appears, the better it will seem to homebuyers. Dark, tight spaces create a poor impression and may prevent the home from selling. Furniture layouts should create an impression of openness and comfort. Non-essential items should be removed to minimize crowding and clutter. Opening curtains and blinds to let in natural light and turning on interior and exterior lights at nighttime are also common staging techniques.

One school of thought suggests that wall treatments and flooring are most appealing when presented in neutral colors and subtle patterns. Paint colors should be neutral whenever possible, as bright or bold colors and strong patterns detract from the universal appeal of a space. This rule, however, does not always hold true, particularly in the luxury home market, where unique fixtures and bold finishes—such as stained concrete flooring, deeply colored textured paints and artisan fixtures—are often considered highly desirable. [1]

Religious items, personal photos, awards, certificates and cultural items are often removed to downplay the presence of current homeowners. This helps potential homebuyers to not only feel more at ease during viewings, but allows them to focus on the property itself while also imagining their own belongings in the space.

External links

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 The popularity of home staging has led to the creation of various home staging courses that educate real estate professionals about the home staging process.
-However home staging is an unregulated field. There are no industry standards or official boards to give accreditation to the instructors or the schools. Abbreviations such as ASP, CSS or HSE are popular, but not official.
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