Definition:
Home staging is the act of preparing a home (and the contents of the home) for sale, with a special emphasis on presentation and appearance.

It's important to realize that preparing a home for sale and staging a home is not always the same thing. For example, as part of your pre-sale preparations, you might go through the home to make small repairs where needed. This is an essential step in preparing your home for the market, but it's not the same as home staging. Staging a home for sale normally involves things of an aesthetic nature, such as design, organization and overall appearance (as opposed to mechanical or functional improvements)

The goal of home staging then is to improve the home's appearance in the eyes of potential buyers, with the ultimate goal of selling the home more quickly and for the highest possible price.

If you are selling a home, then you've obviously been on the other side of the process as a home buyer. Think back to your home buying experience. Try to recall the difference between the homes you thought were "just okay" and the homes that made you say "wow!"

Home staging can help you turn your "okay" house into a "wow" house.

Think of home staging as presenting your house in a way that appeals to the largest possible audience, in order to ensure a quick sale for the best possible price. It bears repeating. The key to this whole thing is appealing to the largest audience — that's what it's all about.

Benefits of staging your home

• Staging increases likelihood of a sale - When selling your home, you must do everything within your power to increase your chances of selling — and I mean everything. These techniques can give you an extra edge in selling the home quickly.

• Staging reduces the home's time on market - When you put in the extra effort to stage your home effectively, you will move closer to a quick sale. Anyone who has sold a home before can attest to the fact that the least time the home is on the market, the better. This is especially important if you will be paying two mortgages until the home sells (as is the case when you buy a new home before selling the old one).

• Staging helps justify the asking price - If you are in a seller's market and you price your home correctly, you probably won't have to haggle over the asking price. But in a market that leans toward the buyer, you need everything in your favor to justify the asking price. Proper home staging can help you justify the asking price by positioning the home more favorably in the buyer's mind.

• Staging forces you to think like a buyer - When you set out to stage your home for the market, you will be looking at the home as if you were a buyer. Adopting this perspective early on will help you in many ways when preparing your home for the market.

• Staging forces you to organize and de-clutter - Clearing away shelves, closets and cabinets is a big part of the home staging process. It also helps with moving, because you'll have to pack things away at some point anyway. So when you stage your home, you will also get a head start on packing to move.

• Staging can be fun! - It may sound like all work and no play at first. Granted, you will certainly be putting some elbow grease into the process. But staging a home can be a creative process as well, and many people find they enjoy it once they've begun.