Traditionally, staging entails introducing furniture and accents into your home to enhance its appearance and assist potential purchasers in imagining their lives there. Currently, vendors are utilizing modern technology to do this virtually, with images of empty spaces being digitally enhanced with furniture and decor.

Home buyers now frequently demand a digital experience. Buyers may get a sense of the area without ever stepping foot inside the house thanks to tools like interactive 3D tours. How does virtual staging compare to the "in real life" (IRL) experience, then?

The benefits of virtual staging

According to Mark Visco, the fundamental advantage of staging virtually is that it saves time and money. Visco is the owner of a business that specializes in virtual staging and listing photographs. Agents wishing to employ virtual staging services have been contacting him more frequently, he's noticed.

Visco claims that staging an event virtually is easier to do and a lot more cost-effective. "Virtual staging can be done in a few hours for a fraction of the expense instead of having a stager come by for a consultation, then come back when their schedule permits them to stage for a day and give you a bill."

Virtual staging could be a wonderful way to speed up the staging process if you are selling your vacant property remotely and it is difficult to be on-site.

The style, size, and shape of the furnishings are less constrained when staging virtually. The furniture that the staging firm has purchased is not a restriction on you. Before choosing and digitally arranging any "furniture," Visco works with the homeowners to create the style and atmosphere of the room.

"Normally, I provide the vendor the photos and ask them to select the rooms, photos, and staging angles. If they have any, I also ask them to tell me their preferred color and style," explains Visco.

The difficulties with virtual staging

As technology advances, there are new problems to solve. Both 3D touring technologies and virtual staging are still relatively new phenomena, and they don't usually coincide.

"There are flaws in consistency going from the in-person tour to the images if I shoot a 360 tour on a vacant home then virtually set up a few rooms for photos," Visco claims. Overall, though, I haven't heard any negative comments regarding the fact that a tour isn't virtually manufactured while a photo is.

If you don't use the proper staging software, you can also encounter problems with images that appear unnatural, according to Visco. "Make sure everything is normal-looking and properly scaled for aesthetic appeal. When furniture is much too small or huge for its surroundings, it is unsettling.

He also advises avoiding staging a home to make it appear like something it is not to potential buyers. The owner must be careful to avoid virtually staging their home in order to conceal anything inside, such as a damaged surface, a hole in the wall, water in the basement, etc., or to make a space appear larger than it actually is.

While virtual staging in a vacant property can encourage potential buyers to tour, once they are inside, they are met by empty rooms, depriving home shoppers of that carefully prepared in-person experience.

The benefits of actual staging

Virtual staging is effective when the house is empty, but real furniture is essential for sellers who are actually residing in the house while it is on the market. For many years, interior designer Kerrie Kelly has worked with home staging. Not every home, according to her, need a brand-new set of staged furnishings.

According to Kelly, some well-maintained, simply styled interiors may only need a specific piece of artwork replaced or new potted plants added to the front porch, while others can need a total top-to-bottom house edit.

Since you can correctly capture furniture from all angles when staging in real life, virtual tours can be more engaging.

Physical staging's difficulties

Although Kelly frequently observes that a physically staged property sells 80%–90% more quickly than comparable unstaged homes, the method has up-front costs.

According to Kelly, the price per room is normally $500–$600. Therefore, even if the home sells right away, staging a 2,000 square foot home may cost roughly $2,400/month with a three-month minimum agreement. The initial consultation that is required by the majority of stagers can cost up to $500, according to the expert.

It's a tool to think about whether you intend to virtually or physically stage your property, especially as the average time on the market rises. In light of this, if you're preparing to sell your house, think about finding a skilled agent who can assist you with your unique staging requirements.