The first thing many home owners think before signing up to have us stage their home is, “Is home staging worth it?  It seems like an awful lot of money to put into a property that we are going to sell anyway.”

They start adding up the cost of painters as I often suggest a fresh coat of paint to make sure the walls look their best.  I also suggest a handyman to replace light fixtures or old carpeting and then, of course, the cost of the actual staging.  Click for the results of the home staging poll that we ran.

It all adds up, but the benefits to putting in some time and money really are worthwhile.

Two fairly typical examples of home staging projects I have recently completed were located in the east end of Toronto.

For people that are afraid of putting in money without any guaranteed return on their investment, I hope these actual stories will help ease your mind.

First Property:

The first property was an occupied home with some dated carpeting and loads of furniture that needed to be moved and stored before staging.  I estimate that the moving and cost of the new carpeting up the stairs was approximately $3,000 and the staging fee was approximately $3,000, for a total preparation cost of about $6000.

Seems like a lot of money, right?

We staged the house with  new living room furniture, new dining room table, kitchen table, bed and linens as well as lots of great artwork and accessories.

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jBAZmDbjMLU&feature=plcp

The house was listed at $529,900 and sold for $621,000, or $91,000 over list in seven days.  If my math is correct, the return on investment was $85,000 in seven days, or 1416%.

Second Property:

The second property I staged was a vacant semi-detached home on a busy street.  It had been rented and was in desperate need of painting, some handyman work to put up new light fixtures, repair a fence and some other odds and ends.  There was a large bright blue shed in the back yard that was crying out to be painted.  Once all of that work was completed we staged the property.

The staging fee was approximately $3500 and the cost of the painting and handyman work was about $3000, for a total preparation cost to prepare the home for sale of $6500.

The house was listed for $449,900 and sold for $500,000, or $50,100 over list in seven days.  The return on the investment was $43,600 in seven days, or 670%.

While there are never any guarantees in home staging, as an investor or a home seller, don’t you want to make sure you secure the greatest return on your investment?  Staging with StagingWorks will ensure your property looks its very best, stands out from the competition and sells for a higher price.  Is home staging worth it – our clients tell us the answer is a resounding “yes”. For more information on our services, click here.