About | Smyrna | Clever Girl Interiors

Can I stage my own home to sell?

After living somewhere for many years, most homeowners are not able to look at

their property objectively. Getting help from a home stager with a fresh pair of

eyes and no emotional attachment, will give you a better insight into what the

potential buyer will see.

Does home staging cost money?

There is a small initial investment when staging your home for sale,

but you’re likely to more than make it back on your final sale price.

Take a home valued at $350,000. Home staging can cost less than 1%

($3,500) of the value of the home but increase the profit by between

8 and 10% ($28k - $35k).

Can't potential home buyers use their

imagination and look past the current

décor and clutter?

Only 10% of homebuyers can visualize the potential of the home. It is

very important to have an occupied home staged – it allows the buyer

to picture themselves actually living there. This is more true with vacant

homes, buyers can not visualize size and scale – furniture helps give

them a frame of reference. Staging a vacant home also aids in the selling

of an emotion! And lets face it, when we sell a house, that is exactly

what we are selling: an emotion. People buy on emotion!

Is home staging expensive?

Not nearly as expensive as lowering your asking price by 10% to 40%.

Can I list my house and then stage it to save time?

You can only make a first impression once. In the interest of minimizing the

time your property is on the market, it is best to stage your home first, and

before photographs are taken. Ideally, you should contact Clever Girl Interiors

4 to 6 weeks before you want to put the property on the market. If your home

has been on the market with no offers for some time however, home staging

would be a very smart option to investigate

Why can't I just stage the house myself?

Most homeowners cannot objectively view the home they have lived in for

more than a year. If they can't view it objectively, they cannot stage

successfully. Our homes are very private and personal to us, it is where we

live and seek solitude. It is currently decorated (“staged”) to make us

comfortable and allow us to live in a relaxed atmosphere. You will not always

be able to identify its flaws. If you are not able to view something objectively

then you are not going to be able to package and market it effectively. Clever

Girl Interiors puts on its “Buyers' Eyes” and can effectively get your home

ready for an immediate offer. Using a certified professional home staging

company is where you will get your greatest return on investment.

The housing market is good and my house

doesn’t need to be staged to sell…

You’re right. Every house will sell…it’s a matter of when and for how much.

Even if your house sells quickly in a good market, it doesn’t mean it sold for

the amount it would have sold for had it been professionally staged.

Remember, HSR Certified professionally staged homes sell on a conservative

average for10%+ more in a good market. If your home sold for 400K unstaged

it probably would have sold for 440K staged.