My husband and I are planning on selling our home within the next 6-8 months. For potential buyers, would the home look best vacant or to stage existing furniture? When we were viewing homes to buy in 2003, I prefered vacant homes so that I could imagine MY furniture in the space instead of seeing the homeowners belongings. It seems that most homes now have staged furniture instead of vacant rooms. So this question if for homeowners (sorry realtors), what do you prefer to see when you view a home for sale??

there are all kinds of different people out there....i want a house that is in good repair & good mechanicals....

I also think i have a good eye for things, so i can look past stuff. I will say that if there is soooo much stuff around, my assumption is going to be that mechanicals and routine maintenance wasnt a priority...

i feel that i can make a nice presentation in my home, so i wouldn't get a stager for it if i were to sell it..I would be packing a lot of stuff to get ready to sell and i would have to change my purple bedroom.....

As a buyer -- I prefer to see a vacant home. I can see flaws in flooring, walls, countertops, etc. I bring a tape measure with me to see if my furniture will fit in the room and I don't get sidetracked by the other people's possessions.

As a seller -- all the reasons I mentioned above for wanting to see a home vacant could work against a seller. If you're selling a vacant home it must be in pristine condition. Cleaned top to bottom, carpets deep cleaned and stretched, or even replaced if they're in bad shape. Walls freshly painted.

6 of the 7 homes I've purchased have been vacant when I viewed them, so yeah I prefer to see a vacant home. A lot of buyers today do not have the vision or spacial sensibility and do prefer to see a staged home, ao I'm sure you're going to get a variety of answers.

As a buyer, I prefer a staged home, because I have a hard time just looking at a room and saying to myself, "This will fit here, this will fit here." Having furniture in the room gives the other side something to compare their own furniture to by being right in front of them. Also, an empty home, no matter how beautiful, rarely makes me go, "Oh, I can LIVE here!" Meanwhile, if someone has decorated each room properly, I'll often think, "Yeah, I could definitely make this my home and love it."

I think it might make a difference for the seller-not the buyer. Reason is that you want your place to look inviting & as attractive as possible.

And it would all depend on your own circumstance,if you're moved out prior to selling or not. I'd consider getting a storage unit to clear out most of the clutter-especially closets!

I prefer empty, but I can tell you from experience & statistics- staged homes sell faster & for more money than the others.

You can probably do it yourself. Maybe just a consult would do. It's probably the best couple hundred of bucks you'll spend.

Look at it this way. For every extra month it sits on the market, you will lose a lot more money than if you just get it staged.

My daughter's house was nice & clean but not staged. After 8 months on the market, she asked me for staging advice. Because we live a LONG ways apart, I emailed her photos of staged rooms next to pix of her own rooms, along with explanations of the differences. She staged, & the house was sold the next week!

I'm not impressed by a staged home, but a lot of people are. For me, just make sure it's clean and uncluttered (vacant is fine, too). We looked at many nicely staged homes that had poor floorplans and not-so-obvious problems.

Our agent was walking around one house, for instance, commenting about how nice it was. I, on the other hand, was noticing the numerous cracks in the plaster in a home less than 10 yrs. old, and DH, inspecting the outside of the house, ended up putting his finger right through some of the wood trim around windows - newly painted but totally rotted underneath the paint. Nicely staged, but we ran, not walked, away!

We sold our last house vacant. Timed out that way, but also because our agent said we had way too much furniture. It was less than 1000 sq. ft., and apparently two chairs, a bookcase, and the TV constituted too much livingroom furniture. Sorry, I can't get more basic than that if I have to still live there, and if that's too much furniture, we were betting that any furniture at all would only point to how small the house was, not be an improvement, so we sold it vacant.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Kitty's Mom,

Thanks everyone for your input!

Kitty's Mom - You mentioned having to look past a staged home and I completely agree. When I see a home that is not vacant my first thought is wondering what they may be hiding with there appropriately placed furniture. Maybe a burn in the rug or water damage on the wall?!? Also homes that are not vacant gives me the impression that the owners are not in a hurry to sell and I feel like I am intruding on there personal space. Also, I CANNOT STAND to see home pictures where the realtor has taken a photo of the homeowners bed or there dining room table, I want to see the rooms and not what the owners furniture looks like! Another red flag for me is when there are no outside photos in the MLS listing, it makes me think that the home is in a bad neighborhood or the home is in need of some work.

Unfortunately for us, we own a condo and in our association at any time there are around 4+ condos for sale. We live near military bases and the condos are popular with them. Our current home was vacant when we purchased it and thats probably how I would like to sell it (as long as we have another home lined up at that point).

I have mixed emotions on the subject. I am able to see a room's potential without furniture in it but I honestly think the majority aren't able to.
It is a fact that homes staged sell quicker and for more money so keep that in mind.

It isn't really about what we want but what will appeal to the majority when we are selling.
Since you located near a military base I would think many of your buyers would be first time HO. I think as a general rule they wouldn't have the vision to see the room furnished.
If they have brought furniture with them it may be hard for them to figure it out.

If you do list vacant make sure everything is up to snuff, so to speak.

That is the bottom line for me - homes that are neatly, tastefully and sparsely staged will sell quicker and for more money than homes that are empty.

Sometimes sellers have to move out and take their furnishings. They have been transferred! Just because they leave the house empty does not mean they can not stage the home.

The first thing they greets the eye of the potential buyer is the front of the house. It's the curb appeal. Arrange with a neighbor or friend to keep the lawn mowed, the leaves raked, the front porch swept. Everything must be tidy and appealing. There are lawn services who can take care of the landscape if no one else is available.

Fresh paint on the exterior and a front door that says welcome are a must. Replace a worn out door mat with a new one that potential buyers will see when they look down when wiping feet. An attractive, simple seasonal wreath can go a long way toward making the home feel warm and welcoming.

When buyers step through the door they need to be greeted by a spotless house painted with neutral colors. There are no cracks in walls, nail holes or dirty shadows where pictures once hung. Windows sparkle. Floors should be in good repair. Carpet should be clean and neutral. If worn, carpet should be replaced. Nothing turns off a potential buyer more than dirty, worn carpet or one that is an outdated color. Many potential buyers may not have the extra in their budget to replace a house full of blue or rose colored carpet.

Kitchen should be spit spot. Clean out refrigerator. Stove should sparkle as should oven. Make sure garbage disposal is clean and nothing left in it that would decay and cause odor. If necessary, pour a box of baking soda in it. Clean any debris out of bottom of dishwasher and wipe around door. Some of us clean freaks are turned off by grease build up, odors, and other signs of previous owners' messy meal preparation.

Don't leave the kitchen bare. Inexpensive decorative items can be picked up at the Dollar Store. A silk green plant on an island, a colorful tea kettle on the stove, and a couple of mugs on the counter nearby provide a sense of domesticity. If you want to get a little more decorative, set up a tray with teapot, cups/saucers to look like someone is about to have tea.

Remove plastic mini blinds and dated window coverings. Colorful valances and simple sheer panels are available at most discount stores. Windows should sparkle.

Leave some pretty smelly soaps in the bath along with a colorful hand towel or candle. Inexpensive towels can be hung on towel bars and left for the new owner. Bathrooms need to be excruciatingly clean. Remove the shower curtain or replace if shower is less than awesome. Strip the bathrooms of all personal items and the toilet bowl brush. Remove rugs and fuzzy toilet lid covers.

Many tend to agree that in high-end neighborhoods with impressive living and diningrooms that potential buyers are most impressed with these two rooms and that staging helps sell. I have, however, toured high-end homes where a few select pieces were rented. One I recall had placed a hunt board on the far diningroom wall and left a couple candlesticks. This was visible from the livingroom. A round table with a silk flower arrangement in front of the livingroom window was all that was placed in that room. Although not completely furnished, the sparkley diningroom chandelier and the lovely flowers were enough to focus the eyes of the buyers and their imaginations. How much furniture and how far you go in staging will depend on budget and whether or not you feel that not furnishing these two rooms would be a deal breaker.

Don't forget that the back yard and patio are an extension of the house. A couple inexpensive chairs placed on either side of a small table can show buyers that this is an area that can be used for rest and relaxation and entertainment. Make sure the back yard is as well maintained and appealing as the front yard.

Garage should be clean. If in need of fresh paint, as many do, it should be painted. Concrete should be clean. Oil spots cleaned up. Laundry room should be clean. Where washer and dryer sat, the floor may need some extra cleaning. Clean out the grime in the washer connection box.

Bedrooms need nothing. Buyers should be able to visualize where the bed, nightstands, and dresser go. If bedrooms are carpeted, make sure carpet has been cleaned.

Remember that the key is that potential buyers must be able to visualize their living in the home. I think most home buyers today are pretty savvy. After all, they watch hgtv. They expect neutral colors, a spotless house, a well maintained yard, a house in good repair. Savvy home buyers should have enough imagination to visualize their furnishings in an empty house. After all, it is the house they are buying.

I could go both ways. But when it comes to selling my home, I removed extra furniture/decorations and relied on the saying
Keep It Simple Stupid!
I don't have too much where they will think 'What were they thinking!' and enough to realize someone still lives here! I toured an open house that was owned by a Realtor and I felt her house needed some staging they had too much out and it was hard to look beyond that to see what I would do with the house. But maybe I watch too much HGTV and she is too busy working to watch!!

Empty, that way I can visualize my things in a room, after all I am not buying their furniture.

I liked the houses empty when we were buying our first house just recently because I'm a detail person and like to get down to seeing what is before me and what I'll be in for: carpets, floors, walls, cabinets, etc. Not everyone is like me though I realize.

If I were selling, I wouldn't on purpose take out furnishings though unless I had to use them elsewhere. I'd make sure the place was spotless and appealing.

I don't like to see completely vacant rooms. It is hard for me to judge the size of the room without furniture.

Keeping some furniture/accessories in the home can help accentuate/enhance a room that otherwise has no or little architectural features. Staging also helps a buyer visualize how to successfully use an awkward space or helps to minimize a flawed floorplan. Plus, if the walls aren't vanilla or builder's beige, leaving coordinating accessories/furniture helps support
or enhances the color scheme.

If the house is neat and clean and prepped for sale I can go either way.

IF you had to press me I'd say empty, so I can see what's going on. It may not happen often there there are some INTENTIONALLY deceptive buyers who try to hide stuff with furniture, rugs, etc.

And although some of that MIGHT be found during inspection, I wouldn't want to even get that far if that were the case. I really what to see all the walls, floors, etc. Like others I'm NOT impressed with staging. I'm buying the HOUSE.

Now, some posters also point out you can do what I call 'staging an empty house' or 'staging light,' or 'light staging.' However, THIS is even tricker than staging a furnished house, but can be done as well.

Light staging is basically making an empty house feel warm and lived in. It's for example: a seating area that make sense -- perhaps in the kitchen area (one poster said: in case people want to sit and write and offer, but really some people may NEED to sit at some point)

But it's also: a welcome mat, laying out or hanging NEW CLEAN NICE bath towels, a couple of vases of flowers, JUST A COUPLE of candles or a bowl with candy on a table, some hand soap. There were some other things listed but I forgot I'm sure others will remember, and add to these ideas.

Now, as I said, this is even trickier than full staging, because You're not trying to give a fake lived-in look per se, (which would turn me off because it would be obviously fake if not done right) but you can make the house "warm" without having it fully staged.

I would like that 'happy medium' because it's warm, shows that the owners DO CARE that the house is up for sale and made it neat, and yet it's still empty so I can see everything, but I don't feel the place has NO personality and has been vacant for six months.