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Don’t Go Bargain Shopping for a Home Stager


Blog by Elysse Bulloch | January 14th, 2016


People love a good bargain. But when it comes to selling your home, you’re probably not targeting the bargain shopper. So don’t go bargain shopping for your professional home stager either. After all, you will be entrusting her with one of the biggest investments in your life.IMG_0502.JPG

Your real estate investments matter. So, if you’re looking for a quality buyer, you will also want to surround yourself with a quality real estate team. That includes a great realtor and, increasingly, savvy sellers are taking advantage of the value added by home staging professionals.

As with most things in life, the cheapest option isn’t always better. Sure, when you’re buying a more disposable item, bargains are great. In real estate, what’s better is a high quality, strong return on investment.

With the right stager, your up-front investment in staging fees will be returned in a faster sale at a higher price to a quality buyer who immediately falls in love with your listing. And that may cost you less than you think.

I’m not recommending that you forget about price all together. What I’m saying is that there’s more to it than bargain shopping. When hiring a professional home stager to shine a spotlight on your home, quality matters.

That includes:

  • experience staging your specific type of property AND in your specific neighbourhood;
  • understanding who your potential buyers are AND what they are looking for;
  • access to quality staging furniture, art and accessories;
  • home styling skills and training;
  • reliability and professionalism;
  • local network of contacts; and
  • personality fit.

Instead of simply bargain shopping, interview a few potential stagers in person (perhaps recommended by a friend or realtor), and ask questions. Request before and after photos. Find out the measurable results of their work. Contact references. Get a feel for what it would be like to work with them.

Trust is imperative when it comes to selling real estate. And that doesn’t always come at bargain basement prices!

Want more real estate staging tips? Follow Simply Stylish Staging @ElysseB on Twitter!