3 Photos That Will Make You Want to Stage a Vacant Listing
By Patti Stern
After making a desperate $50,000 price reduction on her parent's well-maintained home a "Today Show" viewer asked real estate expert, Barbara Corcoran, if she should remove the dated furnishings. Corcoran's advice: Never list a home without furniture. Stage it!
Vacant homes aren't memorable and won't stand out to buyers particularly in online listings where the majority of buyers begin their home search.
These three different vacant properties, pictured below, are a great example of how unfurnished homes can often look the same in the listing photos and get lost in a buyer’s search. Without furnishings, buyers can't distinguish one home from another. None of the homes stand out or make it onto their “must see” list.
Three different rooms, a master bedroom, living room and dining room, in three different vacant homes will look nearly identical to buyers online.
Regardless of price point, staging vacant homes is important to initially capture buyer interest and take them from the online listing to the front door. Once there, a well-staged home will help buyers emotionally connect to the property, ultimately taking their interest to the next level with an offer.
“This grand home has a beautiful interior with stunning details,” says Joanne and John Hoye of Berkshire Hathaway Home Services(link is external) in West Hartford, Conn., the listing agents for the Hartford home. “However, most of the time buyers don’t have the vision to see what a room can look like. Larger vacant homes in particular can discourage buyers, who may think they don’t have enough pieces to furnish the home.
Still need convincing or help convincing your sellers? Keep these insights in mind.
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