8 Reasons to Stage Your Home to Sell [Before and After Photos]

When you decide to sell your home, you are making a huge change in your life. Most likely, you are selling your largest investment, so it is vital that you take the necessary steps to get the best value for your home.

Hiring a great Realtor is the first step, but not the only thing you can do to get your home sold. Hiring a professional home stager can greatly increase the value that buyers find in your home. Keep reading for the 8 reasons to stage your home for sale. We've included some before-and-after photos of one of our Virginia team's recent listings.

Reason #1: The cost of staging will be returned to you in the sale of your home.

According to a 2015 National Association of Realtors report, more than half of buyers think a staged home is worth at least 1% more than an otherwise equal home. That means for a $200,000 home, staging adds at least $2000 to the value, and only costs an average of $675 per home!

Reason #2: You will make more money on your home sale if you stage your home.

That same NAR survey revealed that only 4% of Realtors feel that staging does not impact a buyer's view on the value of a home. That means that 96% of buyers will view a staged home in a more positive light.

Reason #3: A picture is worth 1000 words, and yours will be better looking than the competition.

More than 90% of buyers now search for homes online. That means that if you don't have amazing photos, your home will be overlooked by many buyers. Your home's photos are truly the first impression of your house-- don't you want them to be the best they can be?

Reason #4: Stagers give an objective viewpoint to your home and its features.

Your home is your refuge from the world. Even if you never thought you would live there forever, chances are you have made some memories there. It is difficult for many sellers to detach themselves from their homes enough to de-personalize and de-clutter enough to attract buyers. That's where the stager comes in to help.

Reason #5: Your home will look bigger and brighter after staging.

Professional stagers know how to arrange your furniture to set your rooms at their best advantage. They know if you should add light fixtures to a space, change the curtains to let more light in, or paint the walls to make everything look bigger and brighter. That means better photos and a better look when buyers enter your home for the first time.

Reason #6: Staging will help your home sell faster.

There are 3 factors that impact the sale of a home: location, condition, and price. Your location is fixed, and your Realtor will advise you on the price that will result in a successful sale based on the condition of your home. If you can improve the condition of your home through staging, you will be able to sell quickly and for a higher price than before.

Reason #7: If you don't stage your home, you are helping the competition. 

While every home is unique, making your home stand out in a good way will put it ahead of other homes in buyers' minds. If you choose to sell your home as-is, there's a good chance you are helping another home in your area sell faster, because the buyers didn't see your home in its best light from the beginning.

Reason #8: You can relax knowing that you have done everything you can to sell your home.

The combination of a great Realtor and talented staging team means you have hired the best people to help you sell your home. The responsibility now falls to their talents, and you just have to sit back and review the offers that come in.

Are you selling your home in 2016? Contact Greater Cincy Homes today and take advantage of our decades of combined experience in the Greater Cincinnati real estate market.

Have you seen our Columbia Road Listing?

Approximately 11000 Square Feet inside. 22 Acres outside. Woods, open space, streams and much more! This is a SPECTACULAR home features beautiful custom details throughout! There are a few photos below; for the full feast, click here 3023 Columbia Road Union Township Ohio

3023 Columbia Road, Union Township Ohio

My personal favorite is the outdoor living area complete with fireplace adjacent to the in-ground pool. 

You'll LOVE the view from here!

Columbia Road Pool and Outdoor Living Area

Click the links above for more information, pricing and photos. 

Or visit www.greatercincyhomes.net to see all of our Featured Properties

Villa Grande - Ft. Thomas New Homes for Sale

Villa Grande of Fort Thomas, KY
A Fischer Homes Community

Villa Grande is a new homes community built by Fischer homes located just south of Cincinnati, OH in Fort Thomas, KY.

Homes in Villa Grande range from the $370s up to over $750,000 for the city view sites. Sizes of homes range from the 2300 sqft range to upwards of 5000 sqft if you include a finished basement. City view sites are still available and begin in the $530s.

Call the Greater Cincy Homes team if you are interested in viewing homes in Villa Grande or if you are interested in more information. 513-400-4783.

Villa Grande entry sign.

View from Villa Grande city view sites. 

FSBO: Why Agents are Worth MORE Than What You Pay Them

Why 'For Sale by Owner' Doesn't Save you the Commission

Since hiring a  professional real estate agent to sell a home became a popular, sellers have been trying to sell their homes themselves to save the commissions that agents charge.

In many situations, a full time real estate agent will charge a 6% commission as a brokerage fee to assist a homeowner in selling their home. Brokers often make an offer of half of their listed commission to other real estate agents to bring their buyers and ultimately purchase the home.

But do homeowners really save the 6% commission?
A seller must put themselves in a buyer's shoes to fully understand the big picture. A home buyer who sees the "For Sale By Owner" sign in the yard, they too understand that the home seller is not paying a commission to an agent. The buyer feels like since there is no commission being paid that they too can save some money if they purchase this home. Both parties can't save 6% commission so usually the buyer and seller end up negotiating for the savings.

Experience and Costly Mistakes
Homeowners likely sell a home 6 or 7 times in their lifetime. A good professional real estate agent sells somewhere around 30-50 houses per year. The average homeowner will make mistakes that a professional will not make. Lack of experience with negotiations, inspections, title issues, qualifying the buyer, and other hurdles can certainly cost the seller thousands.

Maximum Exposure & Time = Money
Real estate professionals have tools at their disposal such as the MLS (multiple listing service) and other technological marketing tools to generate traffic to your home. What's more is that agents have relationships with other agents in the market that represent buyers who may be interested in a home like yours.

Having these tools, agents are likely to sell your home much faster than you may be able to. Some FSBOs might say "So what? I don't have to sell fast to get top dollar." Math doesn't lie. If you have a mortgage on a home, you make an interest payment on your home mortgage. Interest is the cost of borrowing money and a cost that you cannot get back. Every month that goes by that you do not sell your home, you pay added interest that you will never see back.

The average days on market for a good agent are under 30 days, therefore a good agent will have your home sold and you can save added interest on your mortgage. FSBOs usually try to market their home themselves for 30-60 days before listing with an agent. By waiting, the homeowner has lost whatever interest they have paid on the mortgage.

So what should a homeowner do?
It is a difficult concept to grasp. It is easy to think that not paying a commission will save you more money than you can make on your own. However, less than 3% of homeowners are able to sell their home without the help of a real estate agent and 85% of FSBOs eventually list and sell with a Realtor.

A smart homeowner will find a fantastic Realtor that sells at least 40+ houses per year and has experience in the area where their home is. Interview this agent and ask difficult questions about what will that agent do to get the home sold. Work on a detailed plan to market and sell the home with the agent and listen to their advice when they give it to you.

If you are looking for the right agent to call, my contact information is below. Together, we can discuss the marketing plan that will get your home sold and you moved on to your new home.

Aaron Smith
Greater Cincy Homes
859-360-9997
greatercincyhomes.net

Special Loan Program for Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky Doctors

Special Financing for Physicians in the Greater Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky Area

Whether you just passed your boards or whether you have been in practice for years, when you are buying a home in Cincinnati you have options when it comes to financing.

Are you a Resident, Fellow, or New Physician?
Are you currently in residency or set to begin new residency within 90 days of the closing date OR scheduled to complete medical residency/fellowship and under contract to work within 90 days of the closing
date OR have commenced work within the last 12 months with a hospital, physician group?

You may be able to get financing up to 100% of the home value on a new purchase, up to $500,000 or 95% up to $1 million.

Established in Medicine?
Are you a licensed doctor who has been employed as a non-Intern/Resident/Fellow for at least 12 months
by a hospital or physician group or self-employed for at least 2 years as an MD or DO?

You may be able to get financing up to 100% of the home value on a new purchase up to $650,000. Or refinance a 100% loan-to-value up to $650,000, 90% up to $1 million, or 85% up to $1.5 million.

For more information about the Physician's Loan Program, call Aaron Smith with Greater Cincy Homes at 859-360-9997 or send us a message at GreaterCincyHomes.net.