There are 3 key elements that you can control when selling your home: these are Price, Presentation and Promotion. To get the highest sales price in the shortest amount of time all of these elements need to be maximized. (Now lots of people will tell you that LOCATION is the most important element – and location is very important however, we cannot do ANYTHING WHATSOEVER about your location, we can only reflect it in the price, the presentation and the promotion.)
Maximize the 3 aspects of selling for the highest sales price!
Price: Price is critical and it is an art, a science and a constantly moving target. The selling price of your home sadly, has nothing to do with how much you bought it for, how much you owe or how much you hope to see in net proceeds after the sale. It is based on market conditions, your competition, the size, square footage, number of rooms, improvements and selling features of your home. Good realtors will do a market analysis for you to give you a recommended selling price for your home – please don’t rely on the often highly inaccurate estimate you might see on real estate websites. Your best bet on selling fast is to price your home competitively – not too high and not too low. We recommend listening to your agent – after all, that’s what they are there to help you with and they are experts in this area.
Presentation: How your home looks, feels, smells and compares to others is your presentation. This is where cleaning, de-cluttering, making repairs and simple updates and then staging come into play. Presenting your home in the right way can make it stand head and shoulders above the competition and help buyers fall in love with it. It can make small rooms look larger, help solve those “where do we put the sofa” questions and make your home seem more updated and expensive. The decision to purchase your home is an emotional decision that buyers then justify with logic. The right visual merchandising (staging) is what helps this happen. (And home staging has nothing to do with your taste or how you decorate – it is a product positioning skill.)
Promotion: This is the marketing aspect of the sale. Things like maximum number of professional photographs, videos, listings, open houses, etc are at play here. This part is typically managed by your agent so choose wisely. But remember, you can either help them showcase an amazing product or hurt them by not providing great rooms to photograph, making repairs and fixes, or completing simple updates. Your on-line photos are critical because statistically buyers look at hundreds of houses on-line but visit only a dozen before making an offer. No matter how many photos your agent puts up, if the rooms don’t look great, your property is unlikely to make the cut and will therefore get less showings.
GOOD STAGING CAN HELP WITH ALL OF THESE ELEMENTS. It can help you sell for a higher price, make your product show better and solve buyer questions or property challenges and look amazing in all the promotional materials meaning more showings, delighted buyers and offers.
If your home is not selling, then one of these items is out of whack and it may not be the price. Staging costs less than a price reduction (and increases perceived value rather than a price reduction which decreases it) so keep that in mind when considering your next steps. If you would like to get more money faster, please call Rocky Mountain Home Staging at 720-295-0720 – we are here to assist you every step of the way.