In the past, the only choice with staging a home was whether or not to do it at all. With the rise in popularity of virtual staging, you now have a new option. But is virtual staging really a better option than real staging, and how do both options compare? Our real estate agents have more on the advantages of real versus virtual staging, including the key factors that can help you sell your home faster.
Real vs. Virtual Staging: Which Sells Homes Faster
First, a quick summary of both options. With real staging, a home stager will bring in furniture and décor to stage the home, to make the property as appealing as possible for buyers. With virtual staging, everything is done digitally. The home is staged virtually, so there's no real furniture involved. Virtual staging looks just like the real thing when viewed online, and the process is handled by virtual staging experts.
The Pros and Cons of Real Staging
The key advantage of real staging is that it enhances the appeal of the home during showings and open houses, when potential buyers visit the home in person. With real staging, the home will be fully furnished and decorated when buyers arrive. However, real staging also comes with some drawbacks:
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It's more expensive than virtual staging. In addition to paying the home stager, you need to account for the manual labor involved, rental fees, furniture delivery, and setup.
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Real staging is more time-consuming and can take anywhere from a few days to multiple weeks. There's also more potential for delays due to the need for furniture rentals and coordinating manual labor.
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If you'll be living in the home while listing it, real staging can make that more difficult. Real staging can also require ongoing maintenance, depending on how long the home takes to sell.
The Pros and Cons of Virtual Staging
Compared to real staging, the potential downside of virtual staging is that it doesn't account for when buyers come to see the home in person. The impact will depend on how much you're planning to market the home in person. However, virtual staging also has some major advantages that make it well worth considering:
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Virtual staging is significantly more affordable, which typically leads to a much higher ROI relative to real staging. There are no labor costs, no furniture rental costs, and no worries about ongoing maintenance.
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Virtual staging is also typically much quicker than real staging, and can be done in as little as one or two days.
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Virtual staging doesn't interfere with your life if you'll be living in the home while listing it. Everything is handled online, so you don't have to worry about the disruption of staging or the stress of keeping the staging maintained.
The Bottom Line on Staging Your Home
For many sellers, the substantially lower cost, higher ROI, convenience, and online marketing appeal of virtual staging make it the preferred choice for selling your home faster. Given that the overwhelming majority of homebuyers from all generations start their search for a home online, virtual staging is often a natural fit. The main use case for real staging is when you're expecting to market the home primarily through open houses and showings. The appeal of a fully-furnished and well-staged home can make a big impact when buyers see it in person.
