The Psychology of Staging a Home

When the time comes to sell your home, your Realtor may recommend staging the property before putting it on the market. Like us, they may work regularly with a staging service staffed by professional interior designers whose sole job it is to make your property look its best. 

Staging can intimidate some sellers, though. It’s a lot of work to make your home look like it’s ready for a magazine photo shoot. The rewards are worth all that hard work, though, and we’ll tell you why.

A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words

These days, almost all potential buyers will view your home online before seeing it in person. The photos of your listing need to make the best possible impression, or potential buyers will just click the next property without ever booking a showing at yours. When you stage a home to look its best, you attract the people whose first impression comes from a photograph on a screen.

Spaciousness sells

Two houses with identical floor plans could be on the market at the same time, but the one that feels bigger is more likely to attract a buyer and command a better price — buyers like the feeling of getting the best value for their money.

During showings, the idea is to let buyers to see the full potential of what the house has to offer in terms of space. Sellers can maximize the impression of space by emptying rooms of all clutter and arranging the furniture in a way that optimizes the flow of the floor plan.

A Blank Canvas

It’s typical for professional stagers to recommend “neutralizing” a home. This can mean repainting the walls in light neutral tones, temporarily replacing statement pieces of decor with neutral counterparts, and taking down family photos and mementos.

By depersonalizing a home, sellers set the stage for potential buyers to imagine the home as their own. Without the distractions of bold colours and patterns, or someone else’s personal photos, it’s easier for buyers to imagine how their family would use the space to its best advantage. Neutral decor also allows the permanent fixtures of the home, such as countertops or finishings, to take centre stage.

The Human Dimension

Staging can be particularly impactful for a vacant property, a truly blank slate. By adding just a few pieces of rented furniture, potential buyers can get a better idea of the human dimensions of the space. Instead of asking themselves, "Will our dining set fit here?" and leaving with feelings of uncertainty, they can say, "Oh, our table is about that size. Our stuff could work here." 

Selling a Lifestyle

Think of any luxury car commercial: it’s not about the car, it’s about the decadent lifestyle that comes with owning a luxury vehicle. Staging a home appeals to the same desires as those car commercials — the desire to elevate your lifestyle. We as people love the idea of living in a space that is stylish, tidy, and elegant, because such spaces feel like a reflection of our ideal selves. When you show your home at its best, it appeals to buyers’ desire to live their best lives.

Working with professional stagers is a regular part of what our team does to prepare listings for the marketplace. Serving our clients' best interests is our number one priority, which is why we recommend maximizing the properties' potential through staging services. Though it is a lot of work, the results are worthwhile when a seller receives the price they want— or more.