Let's get right to the numbers:  

The national average cost to stage a house is approximately 1% of the asking price of the house.  

This is true on some levels, but not for every house.  First, this sort of number really only applies to vacant houses, where furniture and accessories have to be rented.  Second, I've staged many a million dollar house and the cost was no where near $10,000.  On the other hand, I've staged mid-priced vacants where this formula comes close to being on target - it all depends on what the homeowner and Realtor want.

I'm asked by virtually every new client with a vacant to stage for a ballpark estimate.  It is a professional policy of Preferred Staging's not to give estimates without first having seen the property, as there are too many variables to take into account (room size, layout, natural light, etc.).  However, I do offer the 1% formula as a starting point for the client to understand the cost of staging.  

Another number:  

"Preferred Staging's proposals to stage vacant houses generally fall between 0.5% - 0.8% of the asking price of the house."  

I quickly follow up the national formula with the above statement.  It doesn't have to cost a lot to stage your house.   Remember, all of the above numbers refer to VACANT houses.  Occupied houses are a completely different story.  

We staged this very sweet house in Arlington, listed by Anya Macklin.  The first step was a 2 hour walk-through consultation, which was paid for by the Realtor as a value added service to her clients.  Home owners know they have to declutter, but they often don't know what the next step is in presenting their house for sale.  In this case, we talked about moving some furniture to open up spaces, replacing some larger furniture with smaller furniture to allow easier access through rooms, removing and/or switching some wall art, using their own decorative pieces for display, and the addition of a couple of lamps, art work, and greenery from Preferred Staging's inventory.  

One week later we came back and spent just 2 ½ hours at the house; the home owners had done the bulk of the work themselves already.  The only items they had purchased were 2 new lamps for the master bedroom nightstands on my recommendation after a brief tutorial on table lamps and suggestions of where to buy them.  I generally don't encourage home owners to buy new items for staging a house unless it's something they really need and can use in their new home, in which case it becomes an investment, not just a purchase.   

The final staging cost to the home owners - including the cost of new lamps - is just about $500.  That's 0.001% of the asking price of the house.    The Realtor was very pleased with the results, and the open house had over 20 couples.  The house is priced right and shows well - and I'm sure to hear back soon that it has sold.  

Before and after photos of this property can be found on the Preferred Staging gallery.  

All the Best,  

Monica