Who Pays for Staging a House?

What is The Purpose of Home Staging?

Home staging is making a home visually appealing to potential buyers. It allows the seller to highlight the property’s best features to attract potential buyers and higher offers. This crucial aspect of selling a home involves preparing the house for sale and happens before other real estate transactions, like closing the deal.

Staging expenses vary widely, especially for different strategies, such as consultation fees, DIY home staging costs, and full-service staging. However, paying for a well-staged home can be worth the price if it leads to better offers. A properly staged home can give you a competitive edge in a buyer’s market. 

Benefits of Staging

Whether you pay for a professional home stager or do the work yourself with the help of your real estate agent, preparing the home for sale makes a significant difference. 

First, it will increase buyer interest in the house. The more interest there is, the more likely you will receive appealing offers. Home staging can also speed up the selling process by attracting more offers quickly. 

Traditional Home Sales: Who Pays for Staging?

A traditional home sale will involve a buyer, a seller, and real estate agents representing each party. Whether you invest in virtual staging, a staging consultation, or comprehensive professional staging services, that cost will cut into your potential profits. So, who ends up paying for staging fees during a traditional sale? It could come down to your negotiation skills. 

Seller Responsibility

Generally, home sellers pay the full cost of the traditional staging process. They are trying to make the property more appealing, so it makes sense it is their primary responsibility. Sellers often pay for the professional stager and other financial aspects, such as furniture rental. However, some exceptions could mean the seller doesn’t pay the full fee.  

Negotiation and Agreements

Negotiating with the buyer can reduce the cost of home staging. If the buyer wants to purchase the home, you could ask them to pay some of these costs. If that doesn’t work, you could wrap the home staging costs into a higher sale price, making up for the investment when the sale is completed.  

Many sellers estimate potential expenses involved, such as the staging duration, cleaning vacant properties, rental furniture for empty rooms, renting a storage unit, power washing, or making minor repairs. They include this total cost in the price of the home to ensure they get their money back. Some add a thousand dollars for unexpected expenses, too.

Real Estate Agent Contributions

Your real estate agent can also help reduce the financial burden of home staging. Many agents offer additional staging services, such as virtual tours, as part of their work with sellers. They may also recommend specific stagers who offer lower fees to help you save money. In some situations, the agent could contribute to the cost of professional staging fees. 

Staging Costs

Home staging will have varying costs. For example, DIY staging costs are much lower since you don’t need to hire a professional. The cost of the staging will also be affected by factors like the size of the home and its location. Sellers should understand these elements to make informed decisions with their available financial resources. 

Types of Staging Services

The better the property looks, the more likely the home will sell for a good price. Staging a home is one aspect of a strong marketing strategy to attract prospective buyers. Vacant property costs often include cleaning, more furniture, repairing maintenance issues, and there is more effort required. These properties often require comprehensive services.

The costs involved in staging your home will depend on the method. If you do everything yourself, you may only have to pay for a few materials like paint and new decor. A consultation often costs a flat fee based on the home’s square footage and the stager’s experience. Furniture rental will drive up your costs even more. 

Factors Affecting Cost

Several factors affect the cost of staging your house. The bigger the home, the more expensive staging fees will be. If you are paying for full staging, expect to spend a lot more than you would for a consultation. The property’s location will also determine the price, as hot real estate markets tend to fetch higher prices for a professional stager. 

Average Staging Costs

DIY home staging is the cheapest option, potentially costing you a few hundred dollars. However, it could jump up to thousands if you need to rent furniture. A professional consultation could fall between $150 and $600, depending on the location and size of your home. If professionals are staging the whole house, you may spend $600 to $2,500. The general estimate for a full staging is 1% of the home’s sale price. 

Alternatives to Professional Staging

Professional staging can be very expensive, and considering the other closing costs, it may not be worth the money. Fortunately, there are several alternatives to hiring professionals for this work. 

DIY Staging

The cheapest option is to prepare the property yourself. You could research basic tips for DIY staging, such as enhancing natural light, rearranging furniture to create more space, and removing clutter and personal items. This also gives you more control over the staging process.

Virtual Staging

Selling a home online means virtual staging can be a practical solution. Instead of physically staging the home, photos of the property can be edited to include furniture and decor digitally. This is a great strategy in today’s real estate industry since many buyers focus on online listings before visiting houses in person. 

Partial Staging

If a full staging service costs outside your budget, you can always opt for partial staging. Instead of working on the whole home, the professionals will stage the most important areas, such as the entryway, living room, kitchen, and master bedroom. You can do the rest of the house yourself for free or hire other agents, such as freelancers, who will charge a lower fee.

Working with a Cash Home Buyer to Evade Staging Costs

Staging a home can be both stressful and expensive. In competitive markets, it is necessary to appeal to buyers by investing in these services. However, you can avoid preparing and staging your home entirely by selling to a cash buyer like A-List Properties. 

We can buy your house in Texas as is with a fair cash offer. You do not need to invest in repairs, cleaning, or staging before accepting an offer from A-List Properties. Plus, we have the funding on hand, so there are no financing delays, and the deal can be closed within two weeks. 

Call us today at 972-526-7042 or complete the online form to request a no-obligation cash offer.