Property staging and furnishing is a strategy used to make a property which is either for sale or for rent, more appealing and desirable to potential buyers and tenants. This helps to sell or rent the property. It is the process of dressing a property to create a stylish look, which maximises its appearance and increases its appeal to potential buyers or tenants.
Property staging allows a prospective buyer or tenant to see a property looking its best. It enables them to better visualise themselves living in the property as their future home. By creating this vision, staging has a powerful psychological impact on prospective buyers or tenants, increasing the chance they’ll want to either purchase or rent the property!
Who is property staging/furnishing for?
This strategy is currently primarily used by developers to sell new builds in the UK, but it is not limited to developers and new builds. It can be used to help sell or rent any property. This strategy is suitable for anyone who is either looking to sell or rent their property. It is especially suitable for individuals who have been struggling to sell their property (or rent their property). Before lowering the asking price, try staging the property.
This strategy can also be used to help design the interior of any property and isn’t only exclusive to properties for sale/rent. If you’d like help making your home more “show room” a property stager will be able to help you create the look you’re going for.
How does property staging/furnishing work?
Staging is about maximising the appearance of a property and styling rooms to make the property appeal to as many people as possible. The goal is to create a “show home” look, fit for a magazine. To achieve this, it doesn’t necessarily mean a full refurbishment is required; it can be achieved by doing as little as decluttering and tidying a property. Typically, it includes presenting the property in a neutral, non-personalised way with clever interior design of furnishings to make it stand out and more appealing than the rest on the market, for as little cost as possible.
It works in a similar way to property refurbishment or renovation and will typically involve the following steps (but the steps may vary depending on the IPA and your project).
Benefits of property staging/furnishing
Staging makes a property more appealing; they appear bigger, brighter, warmer and most importantly more homely. These factors increase a property’s desirability and help make a property sell/rent faster and at a higher price.
There are several benefits of staging a property, including:
Ads stand out: a staged property has a certain “Wow Factor” about it. This “Wow Factor” helps it stand out from other properties on the market.
Increase in viewings: a staged property is designed to be more appealing to prospective buyers/tenants. As a result of its increased appeal, it receives more attention and a greater number of viewings
Increase in offers: a staged property helps potential buyers/tenants visualize their future lives in the property and makes viewers want to buy/rent it. This leads to an increased number of offers.
Reduced time on the market: a staged property has an increased appeal. As a result, a staged property spends less time on the market compared to an un-staged property.
Make more money: although staging a property requires an additional investment into your property, a staged property can justify a higher asking price. It gives a property a greater perceived value. On average staged properties sell for ~10% more than market value.
Where can I find someone who offers property staging/furnishing?
If you are considering selling/renting your property and would like take advantage of the benefits of staging, you can use Doormarked to find an independent property advisor (IPA). Find an IPA who offers a property staging service local to your property and who will work with you to increase the desirability of your property!
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