1. People don’t buy houses, they buy homes.
When you sell a house, you aren’t selling a commodity. You are selling a HOME, a place where a family will LIVE, raise their kids, have a refuge from the outside world. Even if you’re selling a tiny condo, you’re selling to someone who will bring their hopes and dreams of how their lives can be to living there. Walking through empty rooms, or an empty house, is usually pretty depressing. It looks lonely, it doesn’t shout “this is your home, you will love living here.” So why would a buyer feel especially motivated to make an offer?
When you sell a house, you aren’t selling a commodity. You are selling a HOME, a place where a family will LIVE, raise their kids, have a refuge from the outside world. Even if you’re selling a tiny condo, you’re selling to someone who will bring their hopes and dreams of how their lives can be to living there. Walking through empty rooms, or an empty house, is usually pretty depressing. It looks lonely, it doesn’t shout “this is your home, you will love living here.” So why would a buyer feel especially motivated to make an offer?
2. It’s hard to understand how large a room is when there’s nothing in it as a reference point.
Buyers can’t tell the difference between a 12 x 10 foot room and a 14 x 12 room if it’s empty. It looks about the same even though one is 40% bigger. And when you’re dealing with a space that is 15 x 20 feet, a potential buyer has no idea what to do with it or how to arrange it. They might think it’s just big enough for a couch, 2 chairs and a coffee table, yet there’s room for so much more.
3. When a room is empty prospective buyers focus on negative details instead of falling in love with the overall space.
Instead of looking at the flow of one room to another, they get bogged down in questions like:
Buyers can’t tell the difference between a 12 x 10 foot room and a 14 x 12 room if it’s empty. It looks about the same even though one is 40% bigger. And when you’re dealing with a space that is 15 x 20 feet, a potential buyer has no idea what to do with it or how to arrange it. They might think it’s just big enough for a couch, 2 chairs and a coffee table, yet there’s room for so much more.
3. When a room is empty prospective buyers focus on negative details instead of falling in love with the overall space.
Instead of looking at the flow of one room to another, they get bogged down in questions like:
- Is the drywall smooth?
- Will those bumps in the carpet come out?
- How come the closet doesn’t have a hanging bar yet?
- Why doesn’t that molding fit perfectly?
- How come the light switch is in the middle of the wall?
4. When a house or even a few rooms are empty prospective buyers can get distracted from looking at the house.
Instead of focusing on whether this is the home for them, they may be busy wondering: Is this a divorce? Have they left town? Are they selling because they have money problems? This train of thought will take them where you, as a vendor, don’t want them to go!
They’ll start thinking, “maybe I can put in a low ball offer since the seller might be desperate.” Clearly this is not the situation to get you the best price for the property. Why leave money on the table when a relatively minimal investment in home staging can make all the difference?
These tips and more can be found here.
Instead of focusing on whether this is the home for them, they may be busy wondering: Is this a divorce? Have they left town? Are they selling because they have money problems? This train of thought will take them where you, as a vendor, don’t want them to go!
They’ll start thinking, “maybe I can put in a low ball offer since the seller might be desperate.” Clearly this is not the situation to get you the best price for the property. Why leave money on the table when a relatively minimal investment in home staging can make all the difference?
These tips and more can be found here.
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