I Want to Sell This Home Fast. Can't You Just Make it Look "Nice?"

You bet...upgrades are essential in this market. Savvy buyers will see through the staging if there are too many upgrades in the way. Debbie, you should post this to your localism as it does give some good info for home sellers to prepare their homes in your area. Hope that you included, "If you can't do it yourself, hire a professional home stager" as your bottom line in your e-book;)

Debbie, great post! I just blogged about a situation similar to what you're describing here. We *did* recommend the upgrades however we got told there was no money for anything we recommended and we had to make do with an assortment of furniture which had definitely seen better days in a house which could have used double the amount of furniture just to look "lived in". And all the cosmetic touches we gave the home still didn't make up for the upgrades which the sellers had opted not to do.

My key suggestion is that sellers need to see the big picture. As a professional home stager I'm not suggesting things just to get them to spend endless amounts of money. I am suggesting them because by giving the cabinets a facelift or by painting the rooms a neutral colour the home's value will increase, thereby justifying the price point and helping the home sell faster.

Debbie,

I am thinking this is an area where home stagers could use virtual home staging to show the sellers how much better the home would look with new counters, new kitchen cupboard doors, etc.?

As stagers we can visualize the house with the changes; obviously the sellers can't and they get stuck on the $$ they would have to spend to make the changes happen.

Virtual staging may be the tool to assist them with the visual result?

I had a similar situation earlier this year where the Sellers want TOP dollar for their home and the home had at least FIVE different floorings, which all could be seen from the front entry of the home: 2 different carpetings, 2 different granite tiles, & wood - in 2 different places.  Not to mention, wall moldings, wood paneling and wainscoting.  I at least tried to get them to change the 2 VERY dated and mis-matched chandeliers... "But those are expensive antiques!" they said....  "Great! Then we should put them in your new home!"  I replied.  In this case, the Seller HAD the money to make to suggested upgrades, even inexpensively so.  But they could not remove themselves from their emotional selections of decor.

It's all still there and the house is still on the market.