I have had my design business for 23 years, and the staging side just celebrated its tenth year! Wow! I figured this was a good time to address a few frequently asked questions…
1.) Is staging the same as interior design?
As an interior designer, you might think I get a lot of this, but the truth is, the main person who struggles with this question is me! or anyone on my team, lol. Why is that, you might ask?
We often have this level of expectation that our projects should look like design projects. And in this era of “Instagram Moments” and all things social media, we feel like everything needs to be perfect. While there is some truth to a bit of perfectionism, the actual goal of staging is simply different:
Staging is about “setting the stage”. It is about creating the scene for the home buyer that we’re presenting for marketing. As stagers, we are a part of the marketing team. We are NOT decorators or designers. Sometimes, we are designing, but at the end of the day, we are about helping our agents market their listings.
So, it is far less about decorating and more about styling a home to evoke a feeling in potential buyers who walk through the listing.
2.) Does a vacant home need to be staged?
Short answer? YES.
It sounds odd, but empty rooms look smaller. And most folks cannot see the use of space. The goal of staging a home is to remove all question marks from the listing. Every odd little nook and cranny, each weird little room. Any little niche that doesn’t seem to have a purpose should be addressed with the staging so the potential buyers do not have to think for themselves.
We want them to have a seamless experience as they tour the home with one thought in their mind: “I can see myself here!”
3.) What is the time frame for a staging project?
If the only staging that is happening is furnishing the home, the process is fairly quick: 1-2 days, occasionally 3 if it’s a large or complicated property. On the other hand, we offer what we call our (trademarked!) Mini-Flip, where we will “re-imagine” a property with our suggested list of improvements to maximize its potential and profit. This service can take several weeks, but the payoff is amazing!
4.) What is the cost of staging a home?
All stagers charge a bit differently, and the price varies by market. We are located in Southern California. For our vacant staging services, we have a base staging charge that includes two months of staging for the following spaces:
- Living Space
- Dining Space
- Primary Bedroom w/EnSuite
- Kitchen & Powder Room Accessories
Each additional space is extra & optional.
If the seller would like to take advantage of our Mini-Flip, this is a separate charge, of course, and we manage the entire project!
If you have additional questions we didn’t answer in this post, reach out to us. We would love to chat and answer your questions!
