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Average staged sale time in 2021 is 45 days vs 108 without
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Demand for staging on unsold new builds rising
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Staged homes sell 3x faster according to developers
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Staging also rising in the private rented sector
UK, 8 November – With the housing market eerily quiet and estate agents reporting only three phone calls in one day compared to the usual flurry, developers are turning to staging companies to help make their products stand out, sell, and sell faster.
Developer Beau Property spotted this niche three years ago and added staging and interior experts to the growing team some three years ago in order to support their work on crafting high quality boutique home developments across Kent & Sussex. Today, the business runs as a separate company under the Beau Property group and even stages showhomes and unsold units for other developers and housebuilders too.
According to the Home Staging Association’s full year 2021 report, homes that are staged have an average sale time of 45 days compared to unstaged properties of 108 days. According to Beau Property, they see their staged homes sell three times faster than those unstaged.
Chris Hammond, director at Beau Property said: “Homebuyers are more demanding than ever and rightly so. They spend significantly more time looking at images, videos and floor plans prior to a physical viewing, making property presentation a big deal. That’s why we decided to launch Beau Property Home Staging with an in-house team of experts who really know how to make any house, flat, new build or show home look its absolute best. We do this with clever styling and interior design technology having had years of expertise in knowing what works. Overall, we believe that staged homes sell up to three times faster than non-staged ones; staged homes sell at a value 8% higher than that of non-staged and can increase values generally by 10% so if a property is not selling or attracting as much interest or, if you simply want to maximise a home’s potential, staging is an essential tactic to add to your sales strategy.”
Beau Property has several case studies which underpins this belief and that of the stats found by the Home Staging Association.
Its unique live/work property close to the town’s famous Pantiles had 22 viewings in one week despite Covid and went under offer in just 10 days. A four-storey, two bedroom home with a separate, self-contained office space on the ground floor fronting on to a high street with bars, restaurants and retail, it was a strange property that needed staging to understand the living space and to enhance its unique attributes.
The same applies to rentals. The Crown Mews in Hawkhurst Kent was converted from a former single storey dentist surgery which the developer converted into two rental apartments for their PRS portfolio. Despite identical layouts, fixtures and fittings, the apartment staged by Beau Property Staging went under offer in three days, while the apartment undressed remained available for three weeks. When the apartment was later staged, several viewings were immediately booked and the property was rented in two days.
Hammond adds: “Staging is becoming important to PRS landlords too, particularly at the higher end of the market where properties are more expensive and renters have more choice. The right staging can make a rental property feel like home rather than accommodation that serves a temporary purpose.”
A third example is an apartment in another developer’s scheme called Molyneux Place in Tunbridge Wells Kent. The apartment had been marketed for sale for 4.5 months despite the town remaining a very hot local market throughout 2022. Beau Property Staging was brought in and staged the home on 24 August. The buyers viewed on 21 September and the sale was agreed within a week.
Hammond concludes: “As we are going into a quieter market with interest rates, debt and energy all squeezing buyers, developers and sellers alike are increasingly turning to staging and interior specialists to help their homes stand out and sell – not just for show homes but for other units too. We fully expect this practice to expand over the next 12-18 months at a fast pace.”
