Investor · Thousand Oaks, CA · Member since 2016 · 53 posts · 8 votes
My partner and I are nearing completion of our first flip property in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles. It's a 4 bedroom, 2 bath, 1450 square foot, one-story house in a nice, quiet neighborhood. It's not a trendy, up-and-coming area. The buyers will most likely be a family with 2 or 3 kids. We stayed fairly "safe" on the rehab... it's very white. White walls, light grey, distressed wood-like laminate flooring, white shaker kitchen with charcoal quartz countertops, stainless steel appliances.
We aren't considering staging the bedrooms. However, we are pondering the idea of staging the main living areas... living room, dining room & breakfast nook. We could put a basic couch and rug in the living room and leave the rest alone. We "could" do some basic staging ourselves with a cheap couch, dining table & breakfast table for roughly $1000 - $1200. Or, we have an "okay" staging company who will do those areas for us for 3 months for $1650.
What we want to know is... Are we better off letting a "professional" do it? How much quicker will staging help sell the house? Can we expect to recoup our staging investment and more?
Real Estate Broker · Naples, FL · Member since 2013 · 9k+ posts · 6k+ votes
9y
I just started a thread yesterday. A friend of mine used virtual staging. Sure, the unit is empty, but the pics on the net really make it look great and his cost was $30 per picture.
Real Estate Broker · Naples, FL · Member since 2013 · 9k+ posts · 6k+ votes
9y
I just started a thread yesterday. A friend of mine used virtual staging. Sure, the unit is empty, but the pics on the net really make it look great and his cost was $30 per picture.
I just started a thread yesterday. A friend of mine used virtual staging. Sure, the unit is empty, but the pics on the net really make it look great and his cost was $30 per picture.
Investor · Los Angeles, CA · Member since 2012 · 1k+ posts · 500 votes
9y
Many buyers don't have vision so staging can go along way to create that vision for retail buyers. I personally hire a home staging company on higher end property's especially if I have a kick-*** home that we want to "out perform" the market on.
Investor · Moorpark, CA · Member since 2016 · 248 posts · 191 votes
9y
@Trevor Baker In my opinion, it's an unnecessary expense in the price point and area that your particular property is in, so save your cash. Either keep your budget under $1000, or grab some spare things from around your own home to throw in a few places. Buyers often prefer a clean slate anyway in order to better visualize their own belongings. Occasionally it can be useful to help people understand a weird layout of a house, and where to put their things, but I doubt that's a situation you have.
Real Estate Agent · West Hills, CA · Member since 2016 · 43 posts · 26 votes
9y
I would definitely professionally stage it. My partner does a couple of flips a month around the San Fernando Valley and Ventura county area. He always professionally stages his homes and we usually get them sold within the first couple weeks. You need to paint a picture for every person who walks through the door.
Investor · Thousand Oaks, CA · Member since 2016 · 53 posts · 8 votes
8y
We did the staging ourselves for much less than the cheapest stager. And, we were able to return a lot of the items we bought for staging!
We sold the house through a broker who was highly recommended by a friend and who gave us a good deal on the commission. The winning offer came in after the second open house. We closed in about 5 weeks and just got our check! Very happy!
Now searching to find our next fixer project! Looking for off-market fixers in the San Fernando, Simi or Conejo Valleys. If you know of one, contact me!