CONVINCE RELUCTANT OWNERS TO STAGE

 

Some sellers are extremely reluctant to spend more money on a home that they are planning on selling. You ultimately have to get to know your clients and their personality so you know what types of explanations to use with them. Start out by reassuring them that you are a qualified stager and have helped  many clients in the past. Let them read an article about hiring stagers, such as How to Hire a Qualified Stager. Let them interview you to reassure themselves of your qualifications. But here are some ideas to start with.

Give them examples of success stories you’ve had.

Show them statistics on the rate of return on investment for staging.
This works great with those who understand finances.
 

Explain to them that by spending 1-2% of the asking price, they will get back much more than that when they sell the home.

Plus they will sell quicker.  My favorite statistic to use here is that “The cost of staging is less than the amount of the first price reduction.” 

And give examples. If they are selling for $200,000, the cost of staging will be about $2000. The staging alone will help them not only get that asking price, but probably even more. Also, most homes do experience a price drop, anywhere from $5000 to $10000. Which would you rather spend?

Staged homes show better online.

This leads to more people wanting to see the home, leading to more potential offers. It’s all a numbers game. Somebody who gets 50 showings is much more likely to get an offer than someone who only gets 5 people through the door.

Staged homes look better so people have a hard time finding reasons to offer less money.

The home looks great and is priced competitively. They’ll have a hard time finding a justification for offering less. 

Buyers would have a hard time finding something wrong with this home. Everything has been updated.

Copyright 2011 by Erica Bowers

Homes that are not staged don’t show well.

Potential buyers will nickel and dime away at the asking price. Normally by this point, you are so annoyed and just want this to be over so you agree to the reductions. There’s a high probability the deductions will amount to more than the $2000 you could have spent staging.

Who's ready to put in an offer? Would you visit this home if you saw this picture (and other similar ones of the home) online? Even if you looked past the messiness, would you give these sellers a full price offer?

Copyright 2005 by Southern Comfort

Staged homes will attract more serious buyers 

Staged homes will attract real estate agents who can’t wait to show the home to their clients.

Staging gets you a head start on the dreaded task of packing. 

You’ll already have gotten started and everything will be organized and ready to go for the rest of your stuff.

Offer to take them to staged homes (if you have any currently on the market).

If not, show them any that are on the market that are comparable to their home. If possible show them one staged and one non-staged home to illustrate the difference.

 Take reluctant sellers to a staged home either via appointment or open house or (see tip below) have them host an informal open house with feedback cards.

Copyright 2010 by Century 21 Real Estate, LLC

Host an informal open house and invite family and friends and even agents.
Have them (anonymously if you or they wish), complete a survey or questionnaire.

Ask them to list the negative features, positive features, suggestions for improvements, any deal breakers that would keep them from buying the home, and what they think the home is worth now as it is (not yet staged).

Offer to undo the staging if they are really unsatisfied. 

I have never had this happen and I haven’t heard of it happening from others.

Hopefully, one of these strategies will work with your client. You might also want to go over the CMA with them again, and point out the difference in the suggested listing price based on whether the home is staged or not.  If you are still struggling and need some fresh ideas, please feel free to contact me for further suggestions that are personal to your specific clients.