The micro industry of professional home staging has grown in leaps and bounds over the last decade. But how do you choose the right home staging professional? Below are some quick tips when getting started in the home staging hiring process:

1. Find out the starting price point for a staging fee in your market

2. Determine a range for a monthly rental fee for furniture

3. Are there any ‘extra’ consultation fees?

4. Is there a minimum rental term/time period required for the furniture rentals? e.g. 1 month, 2 months, 3 months?

5. Is there a delivery charge, setup charge, etc.?

Depending on your market, the answers to these questions vary widely. If you don’t already know the answers to these questions about your market, do some research, ask local realtors and other real estate investors. Because there is so much competition, particularly in the high-end home market in California, some over the top tactics have made the news. Here’s a link to an article on Mashable.com about a realtor who went to extremes to sell a house a couple years ago. This is comedy: http://mashable.com/2012/07/13/realtor-makes-sci-fi-movie/

Many realtors and real estate investors have home staging down to a science. What are some of the most creative, home-staging techniques that you’ve seen? Please share them below for the benefit of all. We could all benefit from hearing your staging successes.

Posted by Corey Curwick Dutton