Virtual Staging in Real Estate: A Brief Overview
Not long ago, listing a property came with only two choices for real estate agents: They had to either stage the property physically, incurring high marketing costs, or skip staging altogether, resulting in unappealing listings.
But now, an exciting third option is revolutionizing the market!
Virtual staging is the third alternative that has been on the rise in real estate marketing due to its functionality to enhance property listings and as a result, attract house hunters and expedite the sales process. However, when considering virtual staging for real estate listings, agents have difficulty finding a reliable provider. Discussing the benefits of virtual staging for agents, buyers, and sellers, this guide will help you find a reliable provider.
How Virtual Staging Impacts Real Estate Sales
There’s no denying that properties that are furnished, stand out on MLSs. However, when it comes to physical staging, you’re stuck with a single set of furniture. Also, physical staging is expensive. Monthly payment to furniture suppliers, manpower compensations, designer expenses, and so on.
On the other hand, with virtual staging, the furnishing can be tailored to the taste of the buyer demographics, making the property more appealing to a wider audience.
Also, virtual staging costs a fraction of what physical staging does and brings about more design opportunities for agents. So, even if such properties don’t sell for a higher price than expected, which they usually do, they will certainly sell faster!
How to Choose a Reliable Virtual Staging Provider
When it comes to virtual staging, real estate agents have hundreds of options. There are virtual staging companies that accept orders and deliver the results within 24-48 hours, there are freelance photo editors that each have their own rules and requirements, and there are AI-driven tools that stage a room in 30 seconds or so. Here are a few tips that help you find the right provider.
Choose a provider that delivers high-quality results
Everything considered, quality must be your number one criterion when looking for a provider. Virtual stagers, whether human or app, that remove or add house fixtures or decrease the quality of your photos will not get you anywhere. Similarly, providers that deliver poorly-staged photos should be avoided
To ensure the quality of your intended provider’s work, you can check online reviews and get insights from their previous customers. Also, you can ask the provider to show you samples of their previous projects. With certain providers, you can also get a few free photos to make an informed decision.
Check out your provider’s refund policy and customer support
Before buying a plan, it’s wise to check the provider’s refund policy and customer support. You have to make sure that, when the delivered results don’t meet your expectations, the provider will either refund you or offer to make the necessary corrections at no extra cost.
Prioritize providers that offer both manual and AI virtual staging
As long as the rooms you want to furnish have a standard size, not too big or too small for their purpose, and the photos are taken from the right angle, you can use AI-driven platforms. Such platforms are more affordable and much quicker compared to freelancers or virtual staging companies.
On certain occasions, you might want to virtually stage a space that has irregular architectural features such as curved walls, narrow hallways, or sloped ceilings. AI-driven platforms are not yet intelligent enough to properly furnish such spaces. You need a professional virtual stager to help you here.
Therefore, it’s best to choose a provider that offers both types of virtual staging. You can ask them to furnish the atypical spaces, and for the rest, you can use their AI tool. AI HomeDesign is one such platform that you can put at the top of your list.
Don’t overpay!
Regarding the price of virtual staging, real estate photo editing companies follow no rules or regulations. While some companies charge over $70 per photo, others charge as low as $9.99 for virtually staging a room. But the price could be even lower using AI-powered virtual staging tools.
With such tools, you’d pay under $5 per photo. As a matter of fact, using a tool like AI HomeDesign, you can generate pro listing photos for as low as $0.24 per photo.
Who Does Virtual Staging Benefit?
Your immediate thought might be that virtual staging only benefits real estate agents as it enables them to list properties a few hours after they sign a contract with sellers. Or that it helps agents save on their marketing costs. True, but virtual staging has a number of advantages for sellers and buyers as well, and here is how.
How does virtual staging help sellers?
Professional virtual staging ensures showcasing the property in its best light which entails quicker sales and higher prices. Two things every seller wants!
Additionally, virtual staging relieves sellers from high marketing costs that were once a nightmare for them! With physical staging, agents might have to pay $2000- $7000 depending on how fast the property sells. Therefore, they usually demand the seller to cover some of the expenses. However, virtual staging, if you choose the right provider, won’t cost more than $20-$50 which agents willingly subtract from their own commission without even raising the matter with clients.
How does virtual staging help buyers?
The simple answer is that it allows them to see the full potential of the place and visualize themselves living there without having to visit it personally.
A serious issue with physical staging is that it might, and it usually does, hide the damages and imperfections that buyers certainly prefer to know about upon visiting the property. This means that when buyers visit a physically staged property, they can’t rightly assess its health as it is covered by furniture and decorations.
On the other hand, there is usually no furniture in properties that are virtually staged. So, no worries about such hidden damages!
In conclusion
Virtual staging is still in its developing stages and yet it has proven a highly practical technique that helps agents, buyers, and sellers in multiple ways. In a sense, virtual staging mediates between sellers, buyers, and agents, giving everyone what they want.
However, there are various providers for virtual staging that differ a lot in terms of the quality of their work and how much they cost. In this guide we tried to help you find a provider that meets your needs and budget, ensuring you get the best value for your investment!