Marin Home Staging | Should You Stage Your Home?

One of the decisions that home sellers in Marin face is whether or not to stage their home when they sell it. Home staging is definitely something I urge my sellers to consider. Studies show that 65% of us are visual learners — meaning we learn by seeing. I used to have a college professor that would write “show don’t tell” on my essays — meaning paint a picture for your reader and they will understand. When it comes to home buyers, show them what the house can look like and create a space they can envision calling home.

Why should I stage a home in a seller’s market?” you may be wondering. My answer is that a home that is well-prepared for sale is going to command top dollar and in some cases establish a new pricing benchmark (or “comparative sale”) for an entire neighborhood.

95% of home buyers are searching for Marin homes online. The photography and video are critical in driving traffic to the property and 46% of them are more likely to want to see a home in person when it is staged, according to a recent National Association of Realtors Study. Staging can make all the difference for homes that are empty or have dated furnishings or have a cluttered appearance.

I’ll give you a real-life example: In 2015, I sold a beautiful home on 180 Altura Way in Greenbrae. The home had it all: single-level, great school district, wonderful floor plan and even views of Mt. Tamalpais. The seller and I discussed how to best present the home for sale and she decided to paint it, re-landscape the front, install a new roof and a new sewer lateral. We knew the target market for that home – a young couple with small children – would not want a “fixer” but instead would want a home ready to live in. The home sold in a week for $400,000 over asking and established a new benchmark for that entire neighborhood. Other top agents who had helped me price the home were shocked — we felt the original asking price was fair based on recent market activity. However, this home resonated with buyers and a bidding war ensued. In industry parlance, it “showed well.”

I can state with certainty, if that home had not been prepared for sale the way it was, including the home staging, it would not have gone for $400,000 over asking. The homeowner made a small investment that really paid off. Will this always happen? No – but I think this example illustrates what can happen when a home is properly prepared for market and the seller invests his or her time and money in presenting their home in the best light possible. Even though there were some dated aspects of the home, the preparation and staging helped overcome this.

How Good Are You At Visualizing?

In my experience selling luxury homes in Marin, most buyers cannot look at an empty room and visualize what it will look like. In the future, we may all be wearing virtual reality glasses that will help us see different types of furniture and wall colors in a home for sale, but for now, the talents of a quality home stager are often essential. Prospective home buyers need to be able to imagine themselves living in the home — that means eliminating clutter, minimizing personal items like family photos, and home staging that helps them envision a lifestyle. For example, when I sell a luxury home with a swimming pool, I make sure high-quality towels and Pellegrino Italian sparkling water are on the chaise lounges — subtle visual cues that this particular feature of the home is like a luxury boutique hotel.

Don’t Take It Personally

At the time you decide to sell your home in Marin, I suggest that sellers begin to let go of the emotion that may surround their home — the wonderful memories, the sentimental keepsakes — and try to see the home as an investment they are about to sell. Once the canvas is cleared of clutter and personal items, the home staging can begin in earnest. I once had a dear friend and client in the midst of a meeting with a home stager say “If they don’t buy the house because there is a large Buddha head over the fireplace, that’s just fine with me.” Home staging is an art and a science, and smart home sellers listen to their trusted advisors who do this for a living. (For those wondering, the house sold the first week for full price, and the Buddha went into storage, reappearing in her next home where it looks great and reminds her of a wonderful trip she took to Thailand.)

Effective Home Staging Helps Minimize Weak Points

The right home staging can help minimize weak points in a home, potentially yielding a higher sales price or a quicker sale. They may be more willing to ignore a slightly dated kitchen if they are excited about their modern home office that looks out over the gardens. In some cases, homes have too many rooms and I’ve heard buyers exclaim “What am I going to do with all these rooms?!?” Effective home staging can answer that question with home gyms, home offices, media rooms — you name it.

Home Staging: Hire The Right Stager

When it comes to home staging, not all home stagers are created equal. Most home stagers have a warehouse of furniture that they rotate through their clients’ homes. Like all of us, they have limited resources and may specialize in areas where they have more expertise. Some specialize in mid-century modern furniture, as an example, while others may have a whole barn full of French country antiques. I have great contacts and can work with you to interview the right home stager(s) for your specific property. I normally have a vision for a home when I see it and am already thinking of how I will market the home, and the home staging is a vital component.

When Home Staging May Not Make Sense

Home staging may not make a lot of financial sense if a home is being sold as a distressed home, ripe for a home remodeler to purchase and potentially turn around and sell again (“flipping.”)   If there is a lot of deferred maintenance and the seller does not have the time or resources to prepare the home for sale, the home may be sold at a discount to what it would have sold had it been updated / remodeled. In cases like this, the additional cost to stage a home may not make a lot of sense.

Another situation where home staging may not be called for is when the furnishings and decor already elevate the home and convey the lifestyle that buyers are seeking. Sometimes all that’s needed is a refresh, some editing of items, perhaps paint and fresh towels in the bathrooms. That’s where my strong background in design comes in handy and I am happy to advise my clients on preparing their homes for sale.

Remember, staging can take many forms. Sometimes bringing in all new furnishings and accessories is not needed. Often I recommend only staging key rooms (see infographic above). Sometimes stagers can work with a home seller’s furnishings and it is just a matter of editing and perhaps adding a few accessories.

As a top real estate agent in Marin and experienced Realtor^®, I can help home sellers make the right decisions and also can provide various pricing scenarios based on renovations. If you have questions about Marin home staging, I am happy to help — just call or text me at 415/847-5584 or fill out the contact form below and I’ll be happy to discuss your particular situation and make a recommendation. Remember, a home is one of your most important assets — make it work for you.

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