What We Learned About Staging from Photography

Not everyone lives in a castle but for each person, their home should feel like “their castle”! Real estate photography has always had a place  in our business but until recently most of it was limited to front views and occasional backyards and pool areas. Wow, Has that changed! Nothing reveals more about the perception of space than a few interior photos of furnished rooms and even empty ones. Any homeowner, can shoot a few pics themselves and easily see the clutter, dying plants, an overabundance of knick-knacks, stained flooring, and the like and easily see how distracting this can be to the eye. The question is what to do about it. And...empty homes with empty rooms, often look like large walk-in closets or commercial office spaces.

In this day of the electronic and digital age, visual presentation is everything, and the instantaneous ability to satisfy the curiosity of potential customers is so important. First impressions often happen virtually before the home is even available. Setting the scene for “attractability” is the joint responsibility of both seller and agent.

How is this accomplished? First, there is a room-by-room walkthrough. Paths and flow should be easily navigable and the view into one room and another should be clear, clean, and uncluttered. Shelves should be edited or curated, not emptied, and counters and tabletops the same. Any extraneous furniture can be stored so every item feels intentional and necessary. No room feels more crowded than when it is jammed with overstuffed furniture and lots of half-burned candles!

Well, you get it, but you need help to pull this off. Enter the stagers. These angels of organizing come in all shapes and sizes, high end from scratch, scoop to nuts, including painting and flooring recs to packers, who box up and “shush” up your own things, move things around and add throw pillows and accessories. The bottom line is, it all makes for a perfect presentation and elevates the quality of the marketing. And an extra plus... You will already be partially ready for the move before you even launch!