What is "staging," exactly?
Staging is anything you do to prepare your home for sale and to make it more attractive to a buyer’s eye. Staging helps present a home in its best possible light, and includes cleaning, de-cluttering, adding color and arranging furnishings. It’s a little bit of theater–your property is the "set" and furniture and accessories are "props." It’s different from decorating, which is personalizing a space. Staging is about neutralizing a home so that it will appeal to the greatest number of potential buyers. It’s selling your space, not your things. Buyers need to be able to "mentally move in"–to picture themselves living in your home–before they’ll make an offer. We always tell people that the way they live in their home and the way they sell it are two different things. Think of it this way: You wouldn’t sell your car without having it detailed first. Staging is the same idea–it’s detailing for your house.

How common is staging?
In certain markets in cities like San Francisco and Seattle, nearly every home is staged. Staging is also taking off in cities like New York, Los Angeles, Miami, Atlanta, Nashville, Houston, Dallas, and Chicago. Nationally, only about one in five properties on the market is staged, though that number is rising as the concept spreads.

How much does staging cost?
It varies, depending on where you live and the scope of the staging. A consultation with a professional stager, who’ll tour your home and then give you a punch list of things to do before putting it on the market, runs a few hundred dollars. Hands-on staging services can cost anywhere from $1,000 for a small condo where they’re mostly using items you already own to $10,000 or more for a high-end home in an expensive market where they’re bringing in all-new furnishings. But the average cost for home staging in most markets is about $1,500 to $3,000.

How does staging work?
I’ve staged over 5,000 homes, and I’ve never seen sellers not recoup their investment. In fact, we did a survey recently and found that staged listings sold up to seven times faster (in six days compared to 45, on average) and for 17 to 25 percent more than comparable unstaged properties–and I’ve seen a few staged homes go for 50 percent more. Even in slow markets, staged homes sell while others sit. It’s a small investment with a potentially huge return.

How do you find a stager?
Ask your real estate agent for referrals, check with friends or neighbors who’ve recently sold a staged home, or search IAHSP’s member database. Stagers should have an interior-design or real-estate background or have completed a training course like IAHSP’s, which awards designations such as ASP (Accredited Staging Professional) and ASPM (Master Accredited Staging Professional). Interview at least three stagers before you hire one, and always check references.