If you’re a homeowner in Australia, you probably already know something about home staging, or property styling as it is also called. The process of preparing a property for sale isn’t new – it’s always been practiced to one degree or another in real estate. What is different, however, is the way in which this process is approached.

Styling properties used to be simply about clearing everything out of a house and leaving it vacant – creating a blank slate – and then allowing prospective buyers to inspect the property using their own imaginations to fill in the many blanks. At some point in the past 20 years, the rules of the real estate game changed. Today, if you don’t have your property professionally styled, you may wait many months before you even get an offer.

The biggest difference in the way real estate is sold today can be stated in one phrase: the World Wide Web. Today more than 90 percent of home buyers begin their search on the internet. Long before they contact a real estate agent, prospective buyers are browsing the listings of properties online. They view thousands of carefully composed images of properties that have been – in most cases – prepared or staged by a design team, giving the prospective buyer images of what their new lives might look like when they move into the property.

Property prices throughout the Sydney region have risen substantially in recent years, which is good news for vendors. This good news is a double-edged sword. It means that you will probably get a bigger return on your investment when the sale is complete, but it also means that you have to work a little harder to seal the deal. Buyers have more or less become resigned to paying more for the home of their dreams, but their ultimate decision hinges on the perception of getting more for the more they must pay. These new buyers are looking for added value.

This added value begins with the staging of the property. Before the internet listing images can even be taken, a professional staging company comes in, evaluates the property, sees to any repairs, and/or upgrades, then brings in and arranges furnishings, artwork, and décor to display the house perfectly. It is a production that can sweeten the final sale price in a very big way.

The cost for home staging is extremely affordable. A well-staged property begs to be shown. Selling agents recognise a property that will sell quickly and are eager to show such a property time and time again. The more traffic your home sees in terms of prospective buyers, the sooner it will sell. Also, because the law of supply and demand always works, bidding wars often break out among buyers. Such competition among buyers can create a substantial windfall for the seller.

Put in simple terms, proper staging of your property is the key to a successful sale in this keenly competitive market. A really good staging company will help the seller understand everything that can be done to add even more value. Highly professional stagers understand the psychology of the sale. They study the market, know the buyers, and recognise every last place your home can be upgraded or enhanced to appeal to the broadest range of home seekers. Essentially, professional home staging creates the win/win scenarios everybody hopes to find.

At Urban Chic Property Styling, we have been staging homes to sell in the Sydney area for decades. We offer additional advantages in that we were successful selling agents before we became successful stagers – we know our stuff. We bring years of experience, talent, and abundant intellectual resources that can only come from working for and with clients over time. To us, styling properties is the ultimate expression of our passion for Australia’s vibrant real estate industry. We’d love for your sale to be another amazing real estate success story. Call us today.

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