Staging your property in a Hot Sellers Market.

Real estate sales in Niagara is hot news. Prices are up, units sold are up and the trend is not likely to stop anytime soon.

With homes selling within hours and some selling above asking price, it seems reasonable that in this market, going the extra step of having your home professionally staged seems less important than when the market is down, competition is high, and you need every advantage to make the sale.

In a hot sellers market like this one there are compelling reasons to still make that effort and stage your home or property. The first reason, and the best reason as always to do everything you can, is to ensure that your home is fetching the highest price possible.

Consider this: A home valued at $300,000 that sells for 5% above asking earns $15,000 extra for the home owner, but if that home is staged and listed for $330,000 then sells for 5% above listing, the earnings above listing is $16,500 PLUS the $30,000 asked over the valuation. That’s a total of $46,500 in your pocket, less the cost of staging.

Vacant homes left bare will stay on the market longer. Much longer than they should. With all the renovation shows out there, flipping houses no longer an insider’s secret, buyers are savvy to “flips”. A staged property changes the buyers perspective from, “what reno’s were done?” to “I love how this room looks” and “I can see myself living here”.

Real estate investors will realize top dollar by staging a home and can sell the home faster, meaning they can move on to the next project more quickly.

Showing your property at it best is the objective in any market, but the time to pass up the opportunity to stage is not in this hot sellers market. Home owners and real estate investors alike need to not only work with a Real Estate Agent that offers a great marketing plan but also one that works with a professionally certified stager to make sure the home is “market ready”

“I don’t need to stage my house”, is a statment that can cost thousand of dollars in unrealized profits. Even in a hot market like this one.