Virtual Home Staging – A New Way to Sell Homes

Updated 07/2024.

Each year, we write a report on home staging, how much it costs, what ROI to expect when hiring a professional stager, and more. We’re now turning our attention to virtual staging, a newer way to sell a home that is quickly growing in popularity. Along the way, we’ll show some real-life examples of virtual staging we’ve ordered for our clients (and we always provide this service at no extra charge when it is desired and makes sense for the home. See everything we do for our home-selling clients here, along with our lower-than-average commission charge.

While there is some controversy in the staging industry about the authenticity of virtual staging, the trend may be here to stay. Many believe this new way to stage a home is especially helpful for vacant properties on the market, and we agree.

Note: if you plan to leave your home vacant while it is for sale, please check out our article, “15 Things You Must-Know Before Leaving your Home Vacant.”

Virtual staging offers several benefits to both sellers and buyers. We’re exploring those and sharing them with you here.

What is Virtual Home Staging?

Virtual Home Staging is interior design using a graphic editor to create realistic interior images of properties for sale. No real furniture is used; instead, imagery of the furniture is chosen and placed into floorplans.

Virtual Home Staging is Gaining in Popularity

Virtual staging has improved significantly over time. At first, distinguishing which properties were virtual staged vs. physically furnished was relatively easy. Still, the virtual images gave buyers a good look at what is possible regarding design and floorplan arrangements. As time has passed, virtual staging imagery has improved significantly, resulting in a more realistic view of how a home can be seen and making it hard to distinguish what is real and what is virtual.

Virtual staging has become so popular that the National Association of Realtors has added it to its annual home staging report. They survey buyer’s agents across the country with a series of home staging questions and then compile the results.

We keep tracking the annual results here if you want to bookmark this page. Most recently, the NAR has provided some compelling statistics on virtual staging and virtual views of homes in general, which helps explain why virtual staging is growing in popularity.

• Of buyers who planned to view a set number of homes while shopping, a median of seven homes were expected to be done in person, and a median of 12 homes were expected to be done virtually. This shows the value of virtual viewing in general.
• Additionally, “among buyers’ agents, having photos (77%), traditional physical staging (58%), videos (74%), and virtual tours (42%) available for their listings was much more or more important to their clients.”
• Also, “20% of buyers’ agents said that staging a home increased the dollar value offered between 1% and 5%, compared to other similar homes on the market that were not staged.”

In terms of staging the homes virtually vs physically, here are some highlights.

Advantages of Virtual Staging

Here is a long list of the advantages of virtual staging that can help you decide if it is right for you.

■ It is faster to implement than traditional staging. Instead of having an initial consultation with a staging representative and a separate installation date for delivery and setup, virtual furnishing can start immediately and be completed the same day. Now that AI is more involved in the process, AI images can be created as fast as 10 seconds. You can change the look as needed just as quickly.

■ It helps potential buyers visualize themselves in the home. Some rooms are bland and boring without furniture and decor livening up the space and showing its potential use and charm.

■ It helps define usable space that might otherwise go unnoticed or be diminished by the current owner’s belongings or lack thereof. Not every homeowner is making the best possible use of every room.

■ It can help the buyer get excited and be more likely to book a tour. Shopping for a home is overwhelming and time-consuming. When the home feels empty and cold, the busy home buyer is less likely to add it to their tour.

■ It’s far less invasive to sellers than traditional staging. Bringing in all new furniture and décor requires time, money, and a crew of people. However, a certain amount of unavoidable liability occurs whenever a homeowner physically stages a property.

■ It’s far more cost effective than traditional staging. The standard cost of traditional staging can range anywhere from $ 2K to $ 5K for a single-family home, with additional monthly carrying costs after that. According to Bankrate.com, a good rule of thumb in estimating the cost of traditional staging is .75% of your home’s list price, with luxury homes being closer to 1-1.25%. (The local stages we use are more reasonable than this estimate.) Bankrate also says it’s possible to find a virtual stager who charges only $35 per room. In our experience, that’s not far off the mark, but it costs more than that when you use a true expert (if go cheap, it could look terrible). And Virtual staging does not require ongoing costs. Once you have a room designed, you won’t be required to pay a monthly fee, which can add up if your home is on the market for an extended period. See our annually updated report on Portland home staging costs here.

■ You get more flexibility in changing staging designs and alternative options. Showing multiple options can help you attract a range of buyers. You can change the look quickly and inexpensively.

■ You can easily adopt design trends to help modernize the home. It is often said that home upgrades and even just a fresh coat of paint help to sell a home faster. Virtual staging works the same while helping buyers see what’s possible. Many people can’t see what’s beyond the surface, and virtual staging helps them envision it more easily.

■ You have more options to choose from in terms of design without access or budgetary restrictions. You may be limited to furnishings that are available in your area, but in virtual staging, the world is your oyster.

■ You can leave your home as-is: Any furniture inside the home can be digitally removed, which helps if the process of moving out prior to going on the market isn’t a possibility.

Disadvantages of Virtual Staging

Of course, with every advantage any new technology might offer, there can also be disadvantages. Here are a few to consider.

■ Buyers might also be turned off if they view beautiful, virtually staged photos online and then walk into an empty or alternatively designed house. The listing should clearly state that the home is virtually staged. It might even be a good idea to include a few images of some of the home’s empty rooms.

■ New or novice designers can create poorly executed images. If the home looks fake, it’s worse than if you left it vacant. Only work with true virtual staging pros. They know how to match the décor with the style of the home and go the extra mile to make sure the photos look authentic.

■ Poor designs will not help solve buyer needs. A room design that offers solutions that most buyers need, such as rooms accommodating both beds and desks, helps maintain and potentially increases the potential pool of buyers. Inversely, a poorly designed room can hide its ultimate potential, dissuading buyers from seeing if the home fulfills their basic needs.

The Legal Danger of Virtual Staging in Real Estate

It is an accepted practice to add in virtually staged furniture and décor. It is not an acceptable practice to make digital alterations to the home or property to make it look different than it really is. I’ve noticed several lawsuits arising because of the alteration of digital photos in real estate. Here are some examples:

• Digitally removing powerlines that hang over the property.
• Digitally repairing cracks in the driveway.
• Digitally upgrading or adding fixtures to the home.
• The list goes on.

The critical thing to remember is not to alter the home or property. Changing the filter or angle of the shot is accepted and normal practice, but making physical changes digitally is dangerous. Be careful when using AI to generate, alter, or fix your home listing photos. The AI you’re using may not realize it is getting you into legal trouble. Put your virtual home staging photos in the hands of a true professional.

The Best Ways to Use Virtual Staging as a Seller

As we’ve said, if you decide to use a virtual home staging service, take the time to thoroughly investigate before hiring someone. Be sure you’re both on the same page about how to present your home.

Some considerations are:

■ using virtual staging with physical staging

■ retaining your home’s wall and floor colors and textures

■ adding furnishings only to fill in empty spaces

■ adding deck and patio furniture if these spaces are empty

■ decluttering rooms of non-essential items

■ decluttering outdoor areas, like patios and decks

Should You Use Virtual Staging to Sell Your Home?

If you’re considering putting your home on the market, give us a call at 503-714-1111 or chat with the bot on our site. Our top 1% seller’s team will help you sort out the details to get your house sold. We charge 1.7% commission and we spend more to market our client’s homes than our competitors so that they sell faster and for more.