Key Factor Number 2 - Staging a Home or Investment Property may be critical to It's Marketing Success

If you own a home or investment property on Maui, one of the criteria you should include when hiring a realtor is that they be knowledgeable and experienced in staging.  Ask them to explain the options available to you and how they would incorporate staging in the marketing plan to sell your Maui real estate for the price and in the timeframe you want.

Whether you are trying to sell a new home or resale, if you are trying to maximize the price (and who isn't), you need to understand the benefits you can derive from ‘staging’.  A professional real estate agent should be able to explain the options for you to consider.  There are numerous articles and books on the subject and, even here on Maui, a growing number of interior designers who are specializing in staging homes and investment properties for sale.

Many buyers find it difficult to visualize what a room can look and feel like when the appropriate furnishings, wall coverings, flooring and overall layout of a room are designed to work together.  A bare home, be it new construction or a vacated resale, lacks warmth and personality.  Sometimes, even worse, a cluttered home confuses buyers.  So, whether unfurnished or furnished with your personal collection of stuff over time, either poses a major obstacle to achieving your objective of selling your home for the highest price in the shortest time possible.

While there are a number of things the sellers of an existing, furnished, home can do, an unfurnished home generally requires someone skilled in interior design to ‘put it all together’.  The prices charged for staging an unfurnished house or condo varies widely.  If the stager is going to use consigned inventory, it might cost from $2,000 to $5,000 up front and $1,000 to $2,000 per month.  Some stagers, particularly those working for furniture stores, require you to purchase the staging inventory, which can cost up to $100,000.

If the property you want to sell is furnished, it may be more a question of what can be removed or rearranged to maximize the property's appeal to a prospective buyer.  Focus on living areas first - entry, living room, dining room, den, kitchen, recreation room.  Clear away most all personal items like photos, anything more than a couple of knick-knacks, trophies, etc.  Don't overlook bedrooms and baths.  Impressions here can make or break a prospective buyer's overall interest in the home.  Make sure rooms are well lit.  Dark or dimly lit homes are much less appealing than brightly lit ones.  Clear all but the most essential items from countertops.  Clear away the fronts of refrigerators.

Stage the outside of a home is important too.  Cosmetic repairs to siding, fences, garages and other exterior structures and landscaping improvements are all critical to an effective staging effort.

So staging is a very important aspect of any marketing plan for selling real estate, especially when selling property on Maui.  The more appealing any listed property appears, the greater the likelihood a buyer will come along willing to meet the owners selling objectives, including price and timing.