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On average, staging a home is Los Angeles is about 100% more expensive than the national average but national home prices are more than 50% lower than homes that sell in Los Angeles.
According to 82% of buyers’ agents, home staging is a must-have for sellers and professionals in real estate. It helps potential buyers envision the property as their future home.
You want potential buyers to see your house as a place they can call home – and that’s where home staging comes in.
Staged homes were more popular than non-staged homes and sold for higher prices. In this article, we’ll talk about everything you need to know about home staging. But let’s start with the meaning of home staging and its benefits. We’ll also talk about the cost of staging a home and how it can be worth it for many sellers.
What is Home Staging?
Home staging is a marketing strategy that attracts potential buyers. It involves the addition and/or rearranging of furniture and decor to make your property look appealing to potential buyers.
The idea is that potential buyers can envision themselves living in your home as home staging highlights the most attractive features of your home.
It’s improving curb appeal and perceived value. Basically, it’s doing everything you can to make a house sell quickly and at the highest possible profit.
You are “packaging” your home in the most attractive way possible. This will increase interest, attract more offers, and help you sell faster. Home staging creates a relaxing and inviting environment, which is essential to convert prospective buyers.
Why Is Home Staging Important?
Here are some reasons home staging might be a good investment to help sell your home:
- Buyers want to see an arranged living room, bedrooms, and kitchen. They may have difficulty envisioning the property as a home if the home is empty.
- When compared with other properties on the market, 23 percent said staging a house increased the monetary value by one to five percent.
- Since the pandemic, it has been more important for buyers’ agents to have staged images and videos available for their listings.
Home Staging Benefits
Home staging is often sought by sellers for many reasons. Staging allows potential buyers to visualize themselves living in the home. Staging allows potential buyers to see and visualize their homes in a variety of settings, including bedrooms and dining rooms.
Staging companies have a large variety of staging furniture on hand which ensures that the property appears warm, clean, and professional.
Your house must look amazing when listed online. A professional staging and photography service can help create a stunning virtual tour that attract buyers without them having to visit the actual home in person.
Another reason staging homes is beneficial is that it’s often more appealing to buyers because it shows that the property is ready to be moved into.
Staging our home might also help minimize some of the flaws in your home and allow it to appear to be less in need of repairs or maintenance.
Home Staging Costs
The cost of staging your home will vary depending on where you live and what the market is like. Staging costs can also fluctuate depending on when businesses are most in demand, such as during peak selling seasons. Because demand is higher, you might have to pay more for staging furniture.
According to HomeAdvisor, the national median cost for home staging is roughly $1,728. The average home staging cost is between $741 to $2,644, with furniture rentals for longer periods of time exceeding $6,000 per month.
The Real Estate Staging Association has a stage savings calculator. This allows you to estimate how much time and money (mortgage payments or carrying costs) you’ll save if you are staging your house before it is listed.
The average time that homes remained on the market is 143 days if they were not staged prior to listing. These homes are typically sold within 40 days of being staged.
Properties that had been staged prior to listing lasted an average of 23 days. Staging a property increases its chances of selling quicker, even though every property and market is unique.
What Does it Cost to Hire a Home Staging Agency in Los Angeles, California?
Most stagers charge between $300 and $600 for an initial consultation, $500 to $600 per month for each staged room, and $300 to $600 per month. On average, staging a home measuring 2,000 square feet would cost between $3,000 and $6,500 per month.
We wanted to get a more accurate price on what home staging costs in Los Angeles, so we reached out to Julien at Mid Modern Designs, a Los Angeles home staging company. He told us that the price can vary significantly based on how much furniture is required, how many square feet the property is and how long the staging furniture is needed. “While we offer free quotes and we don’t charge a consultation fee, on average, most home staging jobs will cost between $3,500-$6,500 for a mid-sized home or condo. Some larger homes that you’ll find in places like Beverly Hills can go up to $8,000 with some of the very large jobs costing over $12,000 for a 90-day staging.”
Compared to the national average of roughly $1,728, Los Angeles homes can cost almost 100% more to stage for the 90-day staging period. While this might sound like a lot, according to Zillow, the average home value in Los Angeles is $991,551 while the average home value nationally is $428,700 (fool.com). That means that LA home staging costs are roughly in line on a percentage of sale basis with what you’ll find elsewhere in the US.
What is the best way to stage your home?
If you are looking to save money and have the time and energy to make your home shine, DIY is the way to go. You will need to do a lot of cleaning, including rearranging furniture and decluttering.
You may also have to add new drapes, repaint, dispose pillows, retouch the walls, and remove personal décor and photos.
To make your home smell wonderful, you can add personal touches such as cut flowers and houseplants. Don’t forget the outside!
Why Should You Hire a Professional Home Stager?
Consider hiring an expert stager if you can afford it and would prefer to have someone else do the work.
They have the interior design and decoration expertise to make your home stand out. They will inspect the property from all sides, evaluate its marketability, then give you advice on how to make it more appealing to potential buyers.
Professional home stagers will often have a large inventory of decor, artwork, and furniture, which they can use to stage your home.
They can also help you organize and tidy up your furniture as necessary. They will maximize your space and bring out its potential. Some staging companies also help with furniture removal and painting exterior surfaces. Be sure to check to see if that is included in your contract.
If your current home furnishings are already in good condition and will look good to most buyers, a home stager may use “soft-staging” to bring home a personal touch to the space and fill any gaps you might have missed. This involves incorporating neutral, approachable details like artwork, flowers, decor, and throw blankets.
There are also many cheap and easy options for exterior decorating, including painting the front door and adding flowers to the window boxes.
Is it possible to request my agent to stage my house?
Your agent is not responsible for professionally staging your home but they want it to sell quickly and profitably. Because of that, they may offer advice or help you locate a professional home stager to deliver the service or conduct a consultation; others might do more to refresh the property.
There are no specific rules for hiring a professional to stage your house and there is no guarantee that you will not end up paying the bill. It all depends on your situation, your budget, and the amount of work required to stage your home.
What are the Downsides of Home Staging?
Home staging has one major drawback: the cost. Remember that home staging is an optional expense and is not required to sell your house.
While preparing your property for staging, you might need to store some of your personal belongings if you have not yet removed them from your home. Many staging companies require that you remove your belongings before they bring in their furniture. You may have to rush packing if you’re not in the process yet of moving into a new place.
Staging can mask or hide certain flaws in your home, but it cannot fix them. Depending on your home set up, flaws may be highlighted. Many staging companies use a minimalist approach that may not cover all the flaws you have previously hidden.
Is home staging worth it?
Many people find that home staging can increase their selling price and speed up their home sales. While there are some disadvantages to staging your homes, such as the need to do more work before you list and additional costs like storage, these are often outweighed by the many benefits.
Home staging is one of the most effective ways to make your home more appealing to potential buyers. This could help you and your agents sell your house quicker and more receive the highest offers.