When the owner has moved all of their things out of the home, it’s considered a vacant home staging, and we bring in all the furniture and decor items — from rugs to lamps and everything in between — for the rooms that make the biggest impact on buyer’s decisions.
For staging an occupied home we typically help owners decide what to remove, what to keep, and in some cases we bring in items to accent the decor. In both cases, we generally advise on wall color and any repairs that will deliver a positive return on investment for the homeowner.
Yes, we have a 5,000 sq ft warehouse with on-trend furniture, linens, rugs, floral products, lighting, artwork and decor items, for all rooms in your home.
The very best time for your staging consultation is as soon as you decide to list your home — or at least before you invest in repairs and any changes in the home (including painting). Very often we’re able to help our clients save money by recommending against changes they think they’ll need to make, thanks to our knowledge of trends, and our strategies for diverting attention from anticipated “problem” areas.
Plus, staging before you list is most likely to ensure you get top dollar for your home — 20% more, on average!
While we strongly suggest you make them all, ultimately the decision is up to you. We develop your action plan based on your home’s condition, strengths and weaker areas, and goals for your sale, always focusing on steps we know from experience will help increase your home’s perceived value, and its likelihood of creating demand. Clients who’ve realized the greatest return have completed at least 90% of their staging action plan.
You don’t need to do this before we meet, but you certainly can get started with packing away decorative items smaller than a cantaloupe if that works with your schedule. If you plan to continue occupying your home while it’s on the market, set aside all your decor items so we can review them and see which, if any, can be an asset for your home’s staging.
Agents do see plenty of homes that sell or don’t sell, so they have valuable knowledge — and some are trained home stagers — but they’re also busy listing and marketing homes. They typically have neither the time nor the in-depth knowledge of design trends — let alone the inventory — to focus on creating your greatest return on investment.
When we create your design action plan for a full-service staging, you’re paying for our expertise. For that reason, the items used in your staging project are at First Impression Home Staging’s discretion. What will attract top dollar from today’s buyers may not be your personal taste, but rest assured we all have the same goal: to get you the highest possible return from the sale of your home!
Staging is priced based on the scope of work, which is different for every home and home seller. Full-service stages can take 50-70 hours and require up to 3-6 team members to complete.
But your anticipated ROI is the final essential factor in every proposal: we recommend what we know will make a difference to the sale—and will advise clients just as firmly in what NOT to do.
Planning and Design Services
One thing all staging projects have in common is the need for planning and design services, but these will still vary according to the type and number of rooms being staged. Houses with unusual or irregular features or layouts can be more involved. Sometimes the design process is actually simpler and faster if we’re using our own inventory vs incorporating clients’ decor and furniture.
Inventory and Labor
Vacant home staging requires us to select, prep and transport furniture and decor items from our warehouse, and then back again. Some homes having a particularly eclectic or distinctive style may sell better when staged with our inventory, which is designed to appeal to the tastes of the maximum number of buyers.
Regardless of the project, our full-service professional staging takes into account:
- Prep Time for Creating a Well-Planned Design
- Staying on Top of the Trends so We Know Exactly Which Design Elements Will Be Most Effective at Engaging Buyers’ Hearts and Minds
- Professional Manpower, Paid a Living Wage, To Ensure Homeowners Have Peace of Mind As Our Team Moves and/or Installs Inventory in the Home
- Maintaining an Inventory of Quality Items, in Top Condition, and in a Range of Timeless Styles (Dented and Scuffed Décor Doesn’t Impress Anyone!)
- Training, Insurance, As Well as Comprehensive Quality and Safety Standards To Provide Clients With Peace of Mind As We Enter Their Homes
- Reliable Equipment To Ensure Project Deadlines Are Met
Our consultation fee is due before the session begins. The fee for a full-service staging project is due prior to scheduling your staging day. While we can help refer you to painters and other professionals, you are responsible for paying for their services and/or materials.
You are responsible for any items left in your home, whether the property is occupied or vacant. Any First Impression Home Staging items that are damaged while on your property will be billed to you at full replacement value plus 20%.
Because each project has a different scope and demands, there’s no single length of time we can provide — but we will give you a set schedule once we get underway! Usually the time required on-site at your home ranges from 2-8 hours, depending on the number of rooms and whether we’re using your items or fully staging individual rooms. We may request 2 days for larger homes over 5000 sf.