What is

Home Staging

The term home staging was first coined in the USA by the American Barbara Schwarz in 1970. In essence, it consists of preparing a property by redecorating, adding or rearranging furniture to create an experience for homebuyers to rent or sell it at a better price and/or more quickly.

What is the difference between Home Staging and Decoration?

What is the difference between Home Staging and Decoration?

Home staging is quite a different term from decoration. Although it uses the same principles, the aim is not to personalise the home and adapt it to the taste or style of its owners, but precisely the opposite. The purpose is to declutter, depersonalise, and create a neutral and pleasant environment that is visually pleasing so potential buyers can imagine how they could live in the property.

Home staging improves a property’s aesthetic to make it as appealing as possible for it to sell quickly and for the best price. Remember that clients are buying into a lifestyle and need to envisage themselves in the home.

Which properties are home staging valid for?

Home Staging is suitable for all types of homes: owned, inherited, bank owned, flats bought to rent… The only exception in which this technique cannot be applied is in those homes that need a complete renovation, as Home Staging improves the existing but does not hide or mask the defects. If there are any defects, they must be repaired before applying the 5 techniques of Home Staging.

As a possible solution to the cases in which the property is in need of a total renovation, if the owner does not want to undertake the heavy expenditure in works that this may entail, at least a virtual home staging can be useful. In it, based on 3D renders or computer graphics, the potential buyer can get an idea of how the property will look like once it has been refurbished. This is also valid for empty flats, in case you do not want to spend anything on furnishing them.

Home staging will also not have the desired effect on properties that are priced well above market value. The application of its techniques will certainly improve its appearance, but it will not achieve an extraordinary increase in visits or close the sale. In these cases, the property needs to offer an additional design plus (both in the type of renovation or materials used as well as in the type of furniture chosen), which is beyond the scope of Home Staging itself.

Techniques for

Home Staging

There are many home staging techniques, but all of them involve the following 5 essential elements:

As mentioned, home staging does not mask defects, so if you need something fixed, do it before moving on to the other steps.

A dripping tap, a chipped wall, a shutter that doesn’t close, or a door that doesn’t fit are all minor repairs that need to be taken care of first.

The main goal of home staging is to make a property look clean. A dirty house, with dust on the tables, cobwebs in the corners or dirty tile joints in the bathrooms, makes a bad impression and puts off any interested party.

No matter how clean a house is, an unmade bed, the children’s toys in the middle of the living room, the dishes on the kitchen counter or clothes discarded on a chair instead of in the wardrobe will distract visitors and take away their focus from the rest of the home.

Photos of the grandchildren’s communion, a crucifix above the bed, a picture of the great-grandmother on the wall or the Ronda plate from the parents’ honeymoon are touches that are too personal and should be removed. Remember that home staging aims to make the buyer or tenant feel at home.

The objective of this stage is to make the most of or improve the visual aspect of the house by adding complements. For example, bed linen, cushions, curtains, carpets, a cover for the sofa if the upholstery is old, and a tablecloth to cover an old table.

  •  Sometimes it is necessary to buy a new piece of furniture, such as a lamp or dining room chairs. But other times, you can recycle what you already have, making slight changes. These may include handles in the kitchen or cupboards, neutral paint for the bedside tables or headboards, etc.