If you are out there looking to buy a home and are shown two options – one that is dead empty and emanates a sense of bewilderment. The other option exudes a sense of tranquility, and the setting seems like a family lives there.
Which one would you choose? In most cases, you would choose the second option, and homesellers are fast understanding and adapting to the potential buyer’s preferences. They realize that first impressions play a key role in real estate. So, they have started using AI-powered tools to stage the property they want to sell virtually.
If you want to learn how to do virtual home staging or have yet to know what the concept means, we have created a definitive guide to help you ace it in 2023 and beyond. By the end of it, you would be surprised at how easy it is to implement and may also feel a bit silly as to why you had never done it this way. Let’s get going.
A Brief Overview of Virtual Home Staging
Home staging is a concept that has been around since the 1970s. But we have realized that many realtors haven’t heard of it. So, before we delve deep into the virtual house staging guide, we would like to discuss the term ‘virtual home staging’ briefly.
Virtual home staging or virtual staging refers to the process of personalizing an on-sale property to suit the target market’s preferences. It means placing the furniture and decor items in a manner that highlights the property’s best features to make it more sell-able and demand a higher price.
In the past, real estate agents used to set up the property physically, but they have realized that the process costs a lot of time and money. So, modern-day realtors have moved past traditional staging and have embraced the concept of virtual home staging as a marketing tool for showcasing the property’s full potential.
Virtual home staging saves time and resources and presents an endless world of home design possibilities. Realtors are now using it to convert vacant properties into something the target market can be termed ‘inviting’ via software and technology.
How to do virtual home staging? Here are the steps –
Preparing Your Property for Virtual Staging
A study by the National Association of Realtors found that 81% of home buyers’ agents quoted that a staged home made it easier for them to make a purchase decision. So, how do you plan a virtual home staging for your property?
The first step is to have a clean slate, i.e., get the property deep cleaned and in shape. Your target audience can be any, and their preferences can vary, but not many will buy a home that looks untidy and unwelcoming. Remove every item that you feel that is unnecessary for virtual staging.
Then, move on to the next stage, where you are ready to get your property photographed. Only a professional photographer can get the angles right and make the property look more spacious and attractive.
Remember to get the measurements and floor plan right from the word go. It would allow you to see the bigger picture and create a more realistic virtual staging portfolio for your property. We suggest hiring an industry expert to understand your home’s measurements accurately.
Also, read – 10 Best Gallery Wall Ideas To Design Your Blank Walls
Choosing Virtual Staging Software
Given the vast number of options available when choosing a virtual staging software, how do you choose the most feasible one for your needs? Foyr Neo, a leading virtual staging platform, offers a free 14-day trial so that you can explore the AI-driven prowess for impeccable home staging.
Here’s why users should use Foyr Neo for their staging needs –
- It gives you access to its library of over 50,000 render-ready 3D models to convert empty rooms into dashing spaces within a few minutes.
- Leverage the power of AI-assisted floor planning to perform complex operations like finding the appropriate lighting for a given setting.
- It comes equipped with a powerful cloud rendering engine to prove professional-grade home staging renders within minutes.
Virtual Staging vs. Traditional Home Staging
Traditional (physical) staging is time-consuming and costly, whereas, virtual staging costs just 10% of traditional one, as per a report by HomeAdvisor. With virtual staging, you offload many of these responsibilities (and therefore curtail the costs involved) to software. It allows you to complete the entire process at a fraction of the cost. Also, since you do not have to move the hardware every single time physically, you are saving a lot of time and effort otherwise spent on traditional staging.
Another vital reason to choose virtual staging over its traditional counterpart is its flexibility. Instead of moving that sofa from one corner of your living space to another only to push it back into its original place, you can simply drag and drop items in virtual design software. Further, an in-built library ensures that you have endless options to make a property more desirable to potential buyers.
Virtual staging is more comfortable for a buyer, too. Instead of having to visit many properties in person before finding their dream home, they can access virtual staged properties sitting in the comfort of their home. This way, they get more time to spend pondering about a property and ultimately make a more informed decision.
Virtual Home Staging has gained immense popularity in recent years, especially in 2023, as it offers a cost-effective and efficient way to transform spaces digitally.
