Home Staging: Helping Sell Homes Faster and for Better Prices

Jane Livingston Founder, Stage and Sell

As a real estate professional, I have often relied on the services of a professional home stager to help present a property in its best possible light. Much like a makeup artist enhances and brings out a person’s best features, so do stagers.

The value of staging has been reported on at length over the last several years. Most recently, The New York Times just last month published an article entitled “The Art of Home Staging,” noting, “Homeowners, reluctant to spend the money or admit that their decorating choices might not be catnip to buyers, are often loath to pay strangers to impose their tastes on their premises. But as staging has evolved over the past decade, many real estate professionals say it has become more important — and more sophisticated — than ever.” I wholeheartedly agree with the sentiment- staging has indeed become an art, and one that smart real estate agents are employing.

I have had the pleasure of working with Jane Livingston, founder of Stage and Sell, on many successful projects. Jane has been staging homes for more than 20 years, as a television producer and director for Emmy-award winning home makeover and interior designs shows and her own houses. It is my pleasure to sit down with Jane in this three part series and get her insights into how staging can work in today’s market.

What is the biggest misconception about staging today?

JL: My number one, least favorite, misconception is that only the top 1 percent can afford staging.  Our clients with multi-million dollar properties understand that appropriate staging is a strategic marketing tool that gives them an edge in their very competitive, high-end market.  Yet sellers with homes valued under $1 million often have the misconception that staging is too expensive to be worthwhile.

26 Woods Road, Snedens Landing

Often, their agent can only convince those non-believers to call us after they’ve endured months on the market and a price reduction.  What they discover the hard way is that good staging will sell their house faster and for more money. To further dispel this misconception, last year all the houses we staged in the $400,000 to $1 million got accepted offers for asking price or more within days of hitting the market. Now that’s better than a price reduction!

Stay tuned for next weeks post, as Jane will share her tips on successfully staging a home to sell.

For more about Jane and her staging services, contact stageandsellny@gmail.com.