Home Staging

	story by SUSAN RITCHIE This is a tale of two homes. Loved by their families for decades, they were both put up for sale this year. A young couple will soon move in to one of the homes. They love its spacious rooms, its style and its freshness even though it was built years ago. They can see their lives unfold there. The other home sits empty. Potential buyers love to look at the family’s art collection and at the many family photos. But they leave quickly, and don’t return. The house feels cramped and old. And it smells, just a little. They can’t imagine living there. The homes are very similar. Built at the same time in the same area, their floor plans and lot sizes are identical. Why is one desirable, the other not? This is the reason: The first home was staged—deep cleaned, decluttered, depersonalized and repaired—before it was put on the market. The other home was left the way the family had lived in it: Cosy and highly personal. According to Janette Mitchell, an accredited staging professional and owner of Mississauga-based Four Corners Home Staging, staging is a marketing tool. She says, “The goal is to achieve the highest selling price possible in a short period of time, regardless of a hot or slow market.” One of the main objectives of staging is depersonalizing, or neutralizing a home. With a neutral décor, prospective buyers can better focus on the home’s attributes and see themselves living there. RE/MAX broker Theresa Baird says it’s important to make a home as neutral as possible so buyers feel they can make it their own. She says, “If they’re looking at your photographs, or your stuff, they’re not interested in buying your house.” Though at first he was sceptical about the importance of staging, James Hodgins, broker of record for Hodgins Realty Group, became a true believer after agreeing to have Mitchell stage a few homes for him as a test. The homes sold much faster and for better prices than he would normally have expected. Hodgins says, “The results were indisputable. How could I not be converted?” Hodgins gives a recent example of a home Mitchell staged for one of his clients. The transformation was dramatic. In fact, Hodgins says, “The home was completely transformed. The home we sold did not resemble the home we initially saw.” Most importantly, Hodgins says, investing in staging paid off for his client. He says, “I would say they easily doubled their investment. And they shaved months off their selling time.” Research confirms staging is worth the investment. The report on a 2006 Royal LePage poll on staging stated, “décor improvements help make a strong impact on buyers and can ultimately affect a home’s market value.” Mitchell feels spending about one per cent of a home’s value on staging is a reasonable rule of thumb, though she says it can certainly be done for a lot less. Doing it for less includes the basics, particularly cleaning. Sandra Diab, a certified Canadian staging professional, says cleaning is the single most important thing homeowners need to do to stage their homes. She advises, “Clean like you’ve never cleaned before.” In addition to cleaning, Diab, owner of Lasting Touch Interior Design and Staging, says homeowners need to remove clutter from their homes. The easiest way to do this, she says, is to pack early. Diab says, “Don’t wait until you’re ready to move.” Both Mitchell and Diab feel it is entirely possible for homeowners to stage their homes themselves if they have the time and the talent for the job. However, Diab believes DIY—do it yourself—homeowners would benefit from consulting with a staging professional before getting started. Something experienced home stagers understand that homeowners may not is the target market. Diab says it’s vital to stage your home in a way appropriate to the area, the architecture and the type of buyer who will likely be interested in your property. Because stagers are not attached to the home, they are objective about necessary changes. They can recommend such things as furniture repositioning, landscaping improvements, repairs, accessories and quick ways to neutralize and update a décor. If you don’t want to do it all yourself, home staging companies can take over any aspect of the process. They can also do what is referred to in the field as "showcasing." According to Diab, showcasing can be as simple as making small changes to help buyers see themselves living in your home. Or it can be as complex as bringing in rented furniture, adding lighting and artwork, and creating new focal points. Many home stagers offer a turnkey solution—taking over the entire project so the homeowner doesn’t have to lift a finger, or a paintbrush. DIY or turnkey, many real estate agents want the homes they sell to be staged. Theresa Baird is one of them. She says, whether it’s a buyers’ market or a sellers’ market, staging will make a difference. Baird says, “You’ll always command a better price in either market if you are priced right and look better than your competition.” Baird recently worked with clients in Lorne Park who, upon her recommendation, had their home extensively staged. She believed, if staged, the house would command close to a million dollars, a full $100,000 more than if it was left in its original state. Working closely with Janette Mitchell, Baird enlisted an extensive team to handle painting, carpeting, landscaping and more. The homeowners spent almost $20,000, and Baird believes it was worth every cent. She says, “We received multiple offers, and we got the client just shy of a million dollars.” Extensive or cosmetic, DIY or turnkey, if you’re selling your home you need to seriously consider staging it first. As James Hodgins says, with the popularity of design shows on HGTV, people expect designer Brian Gluckstein to be living in every home. And even if he’s not, says Hodgins, “The bar has been raised.” GL	ABOVE: Living room fully staged and ready for resale. BELOW: Before the transformation. Photos Courtesy of Sandra Diabrdiga