An article on the ToledoBlade.com discussed “Virtual Staging” and quoting some Realtors it goes on to show what a fraud Virtual Staging is.
In my experience however, all Virtual Staging Companies that I have seen online and in talking with them, they will not alter anything to do with the structure such as is discussed in this article. The sagging ceiling will stay sagging. The stained carpets will stay stained. The cracked walls, they will not fix. No, they will not even add granite countertops.
Instead, every reputable Virtual Staging Company I know of will place furniture into vacant homes, very similar to what a regular staging company does, with one big difference, and of course with virtual staging no actual furniture is in the home.
I agree with the article in that if major deficiencies are digitally repaired then that is fraud.
So, why would an agent or a home owner want to use Virtual Staging? Simple. Vacant homes do not show well in photographs. Buyer’s often cannot figure out what the room might look like with furniture, pictures on the walls, or appliances.
A vacant bedroom looks bland and often people cannot figure out if their bed, nightstands, dressers, and other furniture will fit. Same with the living room, family room, kitchen or any other room, even the pool area.
Virtual Staging can fill the void of an empty space.
Seeing the rooms filled with furniture in the photos, even if it is virtual furniture can give the buyers a good idea of what they have to work with.
Some may say it is dishonest due to the fact that when the prospective buyer goes to see the home there will be no furniture there, but that is really not that much more different than taking photos of a home while the owner is living there, they move out and when the prospective buyers get there, again there is no furniture. Is it so much different than an agent taking photos, but making sure the sagging ceiling does not show, or not showing the stained carpet, holes in the walls and so on.
I believe virtual staging is fine as long as it only places furnishings in a vacant home, not if it does what this article states. That truly is a fraud. As already stated, I do not know of any of the Virtual Staging companies that will do what the article says is being done.
Should there be a statement stating that the home has been virtually staged? It is always a good idea to disclose, though you rarely see in the listing that the owner has moved and there is no furniture in the home now. The listing should already have in it whether things like appliances are included or not.
Should it be any different with virtual staging?
I would love to hear your opinions.
Comments(2)