A Staging Consultation is a fee-for-service meeting between a Professional Home Stager and a house Seller. During that meeting the Stager complies a list of recommendations for work to be completed throughout the property (inside and out) to ready the property for sale. The Consultation Process can also include a list of action steps, priorities, and resources.
Having a thorough Staging Consultation by a Professional Stager is like drawing up the ultimate “honey do” list. It helps you identify things around the house that you may not see, that will detract from a sale, and that will gobble up equity if you don’t correct them.
KNOW WHEN & WHY TO CALL A HOME STAGER
Before you list your next property, find out how to invest your time, money, and resources to help get your client’s property in tip top shape to secure the most equity possible. A Professional Home Stager will help you figure out what you need to do and where you should spend your money to bring your listing to market.
WHAT TO EXPECT FROM THE STAGING CONSULTATION
A complete Home Staging Consultation is a thorough inspection of your property listing. Some Professional Home Stagers also provide a “Walk-N-Talk” consultation with a list of recommendations (it’s an abbreviated version of the complete staging consultation). For an additional investment, your Home Stager can provide a written report for both you and the seller.
The written report of the inspection usually looks like the mother of all “honey do” lists. This list contains all the things your seller may have planned to do eventually but needs to be completed now. Plus it may include a lot of stuff they probably never noticed while living in the home. The more your seller do to prepare the home for sale, the better the return on investment will be.
WHAT DOES THE CONSULTATION REPORT COVER?
A complete Staging Consultation will result in a comprehensive list of recommendations that flow from room to room. It will also include observations and recommendations for the exterior of the home. Think of this as a “Property Action Plan” – the starting point!
If the idea of your Seller doing all of this work make either of you overwhelmed in any way, just remember to look at the Staging Consultation and Action Plan as a treasure map. Let’s get you to the pot of gold (the equity) at the end of the rainbow.
HOW MUCH IS THE HOME STAGING CONSULTATION?
Let’s look at the Consultation as your initial investment and not as a cost or expense. The price you pay for a Staging Consultation is based on one of three things:
- The number of hours your Stager spends on conducting the consultation
- The square footage of your property listing, and
- The number of rooms the property have
The larger the house and the more stuff the homeowner have, the longer it will take to compile a comprehensive list of recommendations. Prices will vary depending on where your property is located but a good average for a “Walk-N-Talk” consultation is about $350 for up to two hours.
A good rule of thumb to go by is if your property is less than 2,000 square feet, you can expect to pay around $350 without a written report. However, be prepared to pay more for larger properties.
We have staged many houses where sellers decided to just try doing everything on their own without any preparation at all or by not having a professional Stager to conduct a Staging Consultation. Many have regretted not taking the time to do a thorough job – an oversight that left the house on the market for months.
As the Agent, it’s your fiduciary responsibility to recommend home staging service options to your clients to help them get the most amount of money for their investment. If you need help, contact The Savvy ID Home Staging. The Consultation process is the foundation of the entire sales process and it’s very crucial to the showcasing part of the equation. Let us take you from Stage to Sold!
Until next time,
Katherine