New Top 10 Reasons to Stage Your Home

Happy Fall, You All, We just returned from a lovely vacation in Montreat, just outside of Ashville, North Carolina. I noticed something cool. In Montreat and also here in Jacksonville, people are paying more attention to curb appeal. I'm so happy about that!    I have been gathering pictures for my CURB APPEAL for DUMMIES presentation. Watch for the notice about this webinar, coming soon. You will love it! I just updated my list of  the Top 10 Reasons to Stage your Home. I thought you would be curious, so here goes: 1. You will sell it 78% faster, according to the Real Estate Staging Association national stats. That means 30 days on the market vs 100 days.   2. You will get 6 to 10% more money. That means if your home is worth $300,000, you stand to gain (or not lose on markdowns) $18,000 to $30,000.   3. Agents are much more likely to show a home that they know is staged.    4. 95% of home buyers look online to decide which homes to tour. So, great photos attract more buyers to your home... lots more.   5. Your home will lose at least 1% a month while on the market, according to Zillow.   6. The first markdown can be 3% to 5%. For a $300,000 home, that is $9 to $15,000. Staging costs are a tiny fraction of this number.   7. Home staging services for an occupied home cost an average of ¼% to a max of ½% of home value for an occupied home. So, spend about $750 for that $300,000 home to save $9 to $15,000 on the first markdown.   8. A vacant home must add carrying costs to the 1% a month it can lose when it doesn't sell quickly: mortgage, lawn care, HOA dues, electric, water, insurance, etc... $3000 a month for a recent client.   9. The cost of home staging services for a vacant home can vary a lot but 1% of home value is a good average for a 3 month leasing term, depending on the number of rooms furnished... about $1000 a month for the $300,000 house. So, spend $1000 a month to save an estimated $3000 a month carrying costs plus $9 to $15000 or more in markdowns.   10. You will have less stress and the satisfaction of knowing that you have done all that is needed to maximize your home's potential. If you were selling your car, you would have it detailed, wouldn't you?   Some recent  2014 examples: A $200,000 house gets 4 showings and 2 offers in 2 days, one is a cash offer. A $700,000 house gets 2 showings and sells in several days to the first person who saw it. A $400,000 house, on the market for 6 months with no acceptable offers, then gets staged and sells to the first person who sees it. A $350,000 house sells to the first person who sees it. A $200,000 house gets 3 showings and sells in 72 hours. A $600,000 beach condo sells in 10 days.  See the whole list with addresses: August Blog Post     Also, I told you last month about one of my staging students from this area, Kelly Wulbern, who staged a home that will be on HGTV this fall. Check it out on Realtor.com. 3208 Southwell Ct. 32225 It sold in 6 days!!! Great job Kelly!! We will let you know when it airs.        ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I hope you are all doing well. I am so grateful for those of you who take the time to read the newsletter. You are truly good friends.