Should You Show An Empty
Home?
If you have already moved
out of the house you are selling, you generally have two choices. You can do home staging-either on your own or
by hiring a professional-or you can let the house be shown empty. There are pros and cons to both, although
many will lean toward the staging option.
Consider the possible benefits of showing an empty home, however, before
you spend money and time on staging.
A Blank Slate
When a buyer comes into an
empty home, it is easier to visualize their own items in the home. They can picture just where their couch will
fit, where to wall mount the big screen TV, and which wall will best showcase
their favorite painting. The blank slate
that is provided by an empty home lets the imagination of the buyer take over,
allowing them to see the house as they would make it and not as you have made
it.
A Cost Savings
Professional home staging
can be expensive. So can renting
furniture on your own. Leaving the home
empty saves you all of those potential costs, and if it means the house takes a
little longer to sell, you have still come out on top in the money
department. Especially if you are on a
tight budget, home staging might be a cost you just can't afford.
Less To Worry About
There is nothing to steal
or damage in an empty home, so you don't have to worry about anything being
ruined during an open house or a showing.
You can also rest easy knowing that there is no real reason for anyone
to break into a home that is standing empty.
While many experts will
recommend home staging as a method of making the home more attractive to
buyers, it isn't always a necessity to get your home sold. Consider the possible benefits of an empty
home, and then make a choice as to whether or not staging is right for
you. Remember that you can always bring
staging in if you are having no luck selling the home while it is empty.