6 Reasons Why It’s Important to Stage a Vacant Oahu Home For Sale

The following are six reasons to show why, especially in today’s market, it’s more important than ever to stage a vacant home:

1. Homes that show well are the ones that are warm, inviting, and make an emotional connection with the buyer. Vacant homes rarely accomplish this goal.

2. Buyers have to become emotionally excited when they enter your home. They will make a decision within 30 seconds as to whether your home is right for them. In today’s market, they have to go “wow” as they enter each room of your home. Partially, or minimally, staging a home does not work. Think about it, how do you feel when you enter a vacant home versus a beautifully staged home?

3. Without furniture, there is no frame of reference, making it difficult for buyers to tell the scale and size of the room. Will the master bedroom fit a king size bed? How about the great room – it looks too small for a sectional. When buyers have to start questioning…they normally walk away.

4. When homes are vacant, every flaw is exposed. Normal wear and tear, a chipped tile or small crack will be magnified. This will cause buyers to focus on the negatives…rather than the positives. A professional stager knows how to redirect a buyer’s focus, emphasizing the positive features of the home while visually diminishing the negatives.

5. Only 10% of buyers can visualize, so when they walk into your home, 90% won’t actually be able to visualize the home’s potential. You don’t have to be a gambler to see that these are terrible odds with probable poor results.

6. A vacant home will send a message to buyers that the seller is desperate to sell. Right or wrong, knowing the seller has already relocated gives the buyer a distinct advantage when negotiating, often submitting a lower offer. The Real Estate Staging Association’s survey of Realtors found that vacant homes take 68% longer to sell and sell for as much as 15% less that professionally staged homes

Pitfalls of Selling a Vacant Home

The fundamental thing to consider when deciding whether to furnish a vacant home is price. And statistics have shown that the ‘price’ of leaving a home vacant can be a lower selling price and a longer time on the market. You must ask yourself if this is a price you can afford to pay?

Does this room “really” get you excited?

My approach is to provide you with professional staging at no cost to you as you are already paying a great deal in Realtor fees to sell your home. I bring the extra value you deserve for those dollars as I also own Stage It Hawaii, an upscale home staging company, with over $140,000 in furnishing to completely stage your vacant home. 

If I don’t have the proper furnishings for you particular home, I will buy them. Before you list your home with anyone, call me for a free consultation and evaluation of your home, and what I can do to sell it faster and for more money. You will be glad you did.