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Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Blondy
I also think there are some things no amount of staging can fix.
We looked at a house that I loved. Great bones, great lot, great layout, great pool, great shape, great location. But, the whole freaking house was pink.
Not just paint. Bathroom tiles/fixtures, floor, kitchen cabinets, countertops light fixtures....everything. Even things that weren't pink took on a pink hue.
There is no kind of staging that could have obscured this fatal flaw. And only someone who was looking for a bargain AND up for redoing a whole house would have bought it.
Oh, wow, we experienced the same thing with a purple house.
Ordinarily paint and carpet don't phase me. However, this house was too much even for me. It wasn't even one shade of purple, there were dark purple rooms, lavender carpet, etc. The fixtures were purple (I didn't even know that was possible), even the cabinets were purple. The appliances had a purplish hue, but I don't know if they were really purple or just looked that way. Uggghhhh. I had to pass on that one.
Oh, wow, we experienced the same thing with a purple house.
Ordinarily paint and carpet don't phase me. However, this house was too much even for me. It wasn't even one shade of purple, there were dark purple rooms, lavender carpet, etc. The fixtures were purple (I didn't even know that was possible), even the cabinets were purple. The appliances had a purplish hue, but I don't know if they were really purple or just looked that way. Uggghhhh. I had to pass on that one.
I hear you. I spent a while trying to decide if the kitchen cabinets were actually pink. They were some kind of limed oak. I never did decide. It was just way to much work to contemplate for me, especially since a lot of it was new. Renovating a house where everything is old is one thing. Throwing out all new stuff just because its hideous is hard for me, so I usually pass on that. Plus if I wanted that kind of work, invested time and energy, I would just custom build.
I always skipped listings with photos of homess that were obviously staged. If the seller is going to lie about how they actually live in the home, they will lie about other things that are much more important.
What's wrong with putting your best foot forward? Would you damn a woman for coloring her hair? Would you sneer at a bride who wore a long white wedding gown when her usual attire was jeans and a t-shirt? Would you discount a man who had tooth implants instead of just leaving gaps?
Most homes for sale are "staged", to one degree or another, since homes have a large element of aspiration to them. I may have a ratty sofa that the cat used as a scratching post -- does that mean I don't enjoy seeing a modern, comfy sofa, or may not enjoy seeing the possibilities in a room? Do I really want to see my ratty sofa there? Probably not. :-)
Someone who opts for staging isn't trying to "lie" about the way they live -- because, let's face it, they DON'T want to live there any more, they are moving on. What they are trying to show is how YOU can live in it. Is the mail going to pile up on the kitchen counter? Probably. Will my linen closet ever look that pristine? Probably not. Doesn't mean I don't appreciate the art of the possible.
Its hard to know what furniture will fit, visually, without furniture in the home. Furniture also shows how the home was typically used, especially in a particular arrangement. We purchased a brand new home, and we thought the living room was pretty big. We wanted to see one with furniture in it, but we had no such luck. Once we got furniture in it and realized there needed to be walkways based on how the home was laid out, we realized that the 18x20 living room was really 15x15.
Then you don't need furniture, you need a tape measure. I always carried one when I was looking at properties.
Just a quick poll on staging.
Sellers are told that staging delivers higher prices and helps buyers visualize a house.
I often wonder how much of a premium buyers are willing to pay for a highly staged house.
If you were looking for a new home, would you prefer staged houses, or vacant, empty houses?
Let's assume that either way, the house is clean and has reasonably acceptable style and appointments and features.
I prefer an empty house! Why? Simple: that way I can see the walls, floors and so on ... I need to know in what condition the house it, I do not care about the furnutire or nice flowers or other crap.
Granted:some people let their wallet be influenced with superficial crap.
So sometimes I can see that people make this kind of fake stuff for potential buyers.
Just a quick poll on staging.
Sellers are told that staging delivers higher prices and helps buyers visualize a house.
I often wonder how much of a premium buyers are willing to pay for a highly staged house.
If you were looking for a new home, would you prefer staged houses, or vacant, empty houses?
Let's assume that either way, the house is clean and has reasonably acceptable style and appointments and features.
I'm a creative person, so it's no problem for me to look at an empty room and visualize what I'd do with it.
But apparently--and this is a relatively new realization for me--an awfully lot of potential buyers can't visualize a darned thing, not even pictures on the wall, unless they actually see examples before their eyes.
So for us who are good at visualization, staging is unnecessary--and we can visualize around it. But apparently there are those who can't imagine a room as living room unless there is living room furniture already in it.
Every square inch that I can't readily see is a square inch where a problem might be covered up. I won't ever see your beige carpet or sleek rented furniture again, but I *will* have to live with that damaged spot in the hardwood or with outlets in inconvenient locations.
As for getting a sense of scale, I'd rather have good measurements than 'staging' (I always brought a laser distance measurer, tape measure and a good camera when we visited homes). And sometimes would take a photo with my wife and agent positioned in the room for visual scale.
I think if a person is visual and/or creative they prefer an empty house so they can imagine their life there. A person that is not visual needs to see how the place could look. I think a well staged home sells better in general. It also helps sell a home with an awkward layout. The problem I see with it is that after the closing, the non visual buyers are at a loss on how to furnish or decorate. I see this a lot in the house forum where people have purchased a home, moved in and at a complete loss of what to do. They will share photos from the listing and you can see the home was staged prior.
My sister bought a home that was staged. After she moved in she became increasingly disappointed in the house. Her furniture and belongings were vastly different than the staging. Of course the color scheme of the house went with the staging so after she moved in, she realized she needed to repaint but then was at a loss on where to start. The house also had an awkward layout that she didn't really notice until the house was empty. I am very visual and can picture things in my head, my husband is not. I often have to draw things out for him when I want to renovate. He can't picture it when I describe how something would look.
I always skipped listings with photos of homess that were obviously staged. If the seller is going to lie about how they actually live in the home, they will lie about other things that are much more important.
It's hardly a "lie!" The OP's question notwithstanding, staging is most often used in vacant houses, here where I live anyway. We don't move out a seller and move in all new furnishings. We do encourage them to clean and declutter but I've shown a ton of houses with clutter! And bought a couple of those myself along the way.
It's hardly a "lie!" The OP's question notwithstanding, staging is most often used in vacant houses, here where I live anyway. We don't move out a seller and move in all new furnishings. We do encourage them to clean and declutter but I've shown a ton of houses with clutter! And bought a couple of those myself along the way.
I guess there is a difference in people's minds in what "staging" means. In my mind, it applies to a vacated house being set up to look as though it could be lived in. I don't count "painting and decluttering" a house that is still bearing residents as "staging."
I've never seen a vacated house "staged" as a deliberate attempt to fool a buyer that the house was currently occupied. I don't count it as a deliberate attempt to fool a buyer if a house has been painted and decluttered.
I'm going to get an inspection (or two) and go over it myself in either case.
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