There is a lingering question when home staging is considered as to whether it is better to use the seller's furniture, sell the property vacant, or to sell it fully (or partially) staged. While our Jacksonville based home staging company tries to use the seller's furniture when possible, sometimes it doesn't present the best option for getting the highest price. When the seller's furniture competes with the architecture of the home, or works against the likely demographic, it is often better to rent furniture. The end goal is to present the home in the best possible light.
When the seller's furniture competes with the architecture of the home, or works against the likely demographic, it is often better to rent furniture. The end goal is to present the home in the best possible light.
Let's look at the home we staged in Atlantic Beach this week. It is a William Morgan (Architect) home, built in 2002. The architecture is clearly modern, with lots of windows, and an open floor plan.
Does the photo of the living room below, look like it's in an architecturally significant property near the beach? While this may be cozy and completely appropriate for the current homeowners, it may not lead to the highest and best sale.
The photo below is in fact the same room, although not from the same angle. As you can see, the room has been painted a warmer, richer color, making it feel less stark. The furniture is more modern, but still comfortable. Just as importantly, the room now shows seating for many, making it a great entertaining space. Rather than looking at the furniture, the eye is now drawn to the architecture itself, which was the point of this particular home's style.
Let's take a look outside. Northeast Florida is known for outdoor spaces and this home has a wonderful, although smaller sized porch for entertaining. This was the MLS photo prior to our professional staging services. The seller's had actually already moved out, so we were not asking them to remove their furniture, but it's important to see how different seating styles can open up a room and highlight the best features of the home. It's not enough, when staging your home for maximum value, to simply bring in furniture to a space.
The home should be the star player when selling, not the furniture. Furniture, art, and accessories, should only be used to highlight what is actually being bought and sold. In this case, the stunning lines and architecture of an Atlantic Beach house with historically architectural significance.
Because I knew I would need to appeal to a large demographic of buyers and didn't want the house to feel too modern, I tried to play the balance of modern and organic. I wanted to ensure that the simplicity and clean lines of the home were kept in our staging. Color was used very modestly, which was unlike the point of view of the current homeowners.
Because I wanted to have some organic elements my original thought had been adding a dark wooden table. In the end though, i decided to go with a glass table and linen covered chairs.
I feel that our home staging team met the needs of this great architectural home, pushing buyers to look at the home itself rather than the furniture, art, or accessories in them. We created a comfortable place where buyers will remember the overall feel of the property when they discuss it later.
If you want to see more of the after photos of this home, you can view them on our Facebook page.
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