To stage or not to stage – that is the question. The importance of home improvements to selling your home is undeniable. Staged homes allow potential buyers to see a property in its best condition, complete with all the bells and whistles like furniture, art, rugs and decor, eliminating the need for the buyer to use their imagination.
However, furnishing a home is not cheapespecially suitable for high-end residential buildings. for flipperswhich means adding thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars to their cost.
However, the virtual stage has been a godsend for many. Since most homes are viewed online, interior designers with software skills can create realistic renderings at a fraction of the cost of actual staging, without the hassle of hauling furniture, creating scuff marks, and paying carrying costs.
and AI (artificial intelligence) and virtual reality options are available to companies, e.g. Matt Porter, installment gaming is undergoing a sea change. Here’s what you need to know to keep up.
Why Home Improvements Are Crucial to Selling Your Home
according to National Association of Realtors (NAR): “About 80% of buyer’s agents say staging helps their clients better imagine life in a home. One-third say it can even increase a home’s value compared to similar homes Increase by 1% to 10%. Not staged”.
Other benefits noted by NAR include shortening the number of days a home is on the market before it sells and the ability to market to buyers via video home tours through social media.
Advantages of Virtual Staged Homes
So why should you stage your home virtually? Here are three reasons why.
Quick implementation
Speed is undoubtedly one of the main benefits of staging a home virtually, with the help of artificial intelligence Modern stage software Now available as a mobile app and capable of achieving complex images in seconds. Even though professional designers use sophisticated computer-based software and take hours rather than minutes to create renderings, there’s no doubt that virtual staging is becoming more accessible at an alarming rate.
low cost
If you hire a virtual professional staging company, the cost ranges from US$72 to US$360 Per home, depending on how many rooms you choose to furnish. This may increase in more expensive markets when upscale homes are built. However, can also be significantly reduced If you decide to use a freelance site like Fiverr or Upwork, you can outsource your gig to a gig economy worker for as little as $5.
Allowing sellers to be at the forefront of design trends
One of the great advantages of virtual home staging is that you can showcase your home in a variety of styles many kinds of Buyers range from traditional to contemporary, rustic to farmhouse chic. The virtual stage is like a fashion show in your home, with outfits changing between each pillar on the runway.
Disadvantages of Virtual Home Stage
Virtual staging isn’t always the perfect solution. Here are three things to remember.
Do Not applicable to in-person viewings
While virtual tours can be great if you need to get a listing online quickly, interested buyers will ultimately want to view the home in person. this where real The stage presence paid off.
possible difficult Ask the buyer to walk through the empty house while checking their phone or the real estate agent’s iPad. The tactile and sensory feel of sitting on the couch and observing the atmosphere can help buyers instantly imagine themselves living in the home.
Virtual/video tours have limited features
Immersive, lifelike artificial intelligence home tours are already available through the following list of websites: Zillobut they Agents are not currently allowed to appear in videos, whether they are pre-recorded videos or live tours via FaceTime, which have become popular during the pandemic.
sometimes it can seem Artificial
The problem with virtual reality and artificial intelligence in general is that unless You hire extreme High-quality rendering software as Used by an architectural firm or with a skilled eye for design, some virtual staging can look a bit fake, which often turns off buyers. Buyers tend to think: “That is obviously complete use computer. What are they hiding?
Expert advice
Jade Walker, a house flipper Pittsburgh Turnkey Investment PropertiesUsed Both virtual and real stages and have return real installment. She offered a realistic perspective.
Pay attention to the market
“There’s no real way to measure what’s more successful, especially in the current climate market, Because the inventory is too small, once a house is available This is priced If you get into the market right, you can sell,” Walker told BiggerPockets. “However, I find that when a buyer walks into a property, real staging helps the process. I don’t need to explain what goes where. it certainly Give me peace of mind that I won’t leave any stones behind left Never reversed.
If you can afford it, leave nothing to chance
Walker added:
“One way to tell is to list two townhouses in the same development—one virtual, the other traditional—and see which one sells the fastest. I’ve certainly seen others Sellers who do great with virtual showings In my case, when live showings didn’t generate offers on virtually staged homes, I asked myself, “Would traditional staging make a difference?” ” For me, putting down a $2,400 down payment on a home and then paying $200 per week for a 1,500-square-foot, three-bedroom home with a semi-finished basement helps the buyer see the vision ,This is worth it.
Let the buyer pay the installment fee
In expensive cities like New York or Palm Beach, Florida, real estate agents rely on large commissions and often pay real As part of the cost of doing business.
“I have several real estate agent clients who may make $60,000 in commissions from selling a home and pay $16,000 out of their funds. my own pocket to stage it,” Tiffany Woolley TWinteriors.comBased in Delray Beach and working in Palm Beach, Boca Raton and the greater Miami area, he told BiggerPockets. “Then they’ll set up the deal so the buyer pays for the furniture so they don’t have to furnish it themselves when they move in. The alternative is to leave the listing on the market and lose out on potential commissions.”
Improve the software
Woolley’s team has also embraced virtual staging, which she believes is inevitably the way forward. “With virtual staging, you can enjoy the convenience of speed and lower cost,” she said. “There’s an art to using software to suit your needs. For example, certain rooms look better When they yes ignite 2,700 to 3,000 Kelvin. It gives them an intimate, warm and inviting feeling. But if you don’t know this, and you Set lighting to 5,000 Kelvin, or bright, It’s like you’re in the operating room.
“The downside, of course, is that any potential buyer would still be walking into an empty room,” Woolley added. “We overcame this by having a giant easel and high-quality virtual staging in every room so buyers could immediately see how the room would look. It helped solve a lot of problems.
Use virtual staging for pre-sales
Virtual staging also allows property speculators and developers to generate interest before buying a home finished.
“We can create renderings based on architectural drawings and floor plans,” Woolley said. “This allows our clients to do pre-sales, which is great for developers of apartment complexes and flippers, and from my perspective as an interior designer, it doesn’t limit me to one geographical location.”
How to save installment costs
Woolley offers practical advice for home sellers who need help finding a staging budget:
“It’s amazing what you can accomplish by organizing, painting, moving things, and adding things Some Accessories. Usually, homeowners have good furniture no exist displayed Effectively. Flippers may have some basic storage items that can be used in a variety of situations house, Then pay someone to come in and decorate.
Woolley also noticed a growing trend among real estate agents with large social media followings to leverage their influencer status: “Home interior brands and designers will pitch to influential agents. Mentioned on social media, this means free furniture and accessories. It’s more prevalent in the luxury market than anywhere else and I can see it eventually expanding to other real estate segments.
final thoughts
As technology advances, virtual staging will become increasingly important in helping sell a home. But for high-end residences, it is necessary visible personally, real The installment is Not just optional; necessary expenses.
It’s not unthinkable that home and virtual stages could be used together. Real staging provides potential buyers with an immediate sensory experience, while virtual staging reveals the variety of design options a space can accommodate.
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Notes on BiggerPockets: These are the opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the views of BiggerPockets.
