Staged to Sell vs. Designed to Live

Staged to Sell vs. Designed to Live 

Transcription 

(00:07):

Today, we're going to talk about staging to sell versus designing to live, and how that experience will vary because when you're staging to sell a house, there are some distinct goals. When you're designing to live in that house and make it fully yours, there is an entirely different process. By covering these two, I'm going to give you some visuals as well, and I hope you will understand the difference and the goals of what we're trying to do with staging. When it comes to staging a home, our primary goal is to highlight and sell that house. We want to bring attention to all the features and assets of that house. So that way, buyers will notice things about the house and place a good offer. We do not want them to be focused on your art collection or ornate, beautiful, and unique furniture pieces. 

(01:16):

We want them to notice things like tray ceilings, the view when you walk in, or beautiful windows or the size and space of a master. When you work with a designer, what they're going to do is the opposite. The architecture of the home might also highlight some features. But then what they're trying to do is take that home and create a space that expresses your personality. They're going to ask about your favorite colors and pull in pieces that have sentimental value for you. Let's say you have a rocking chair from your grandmother or an art. We work with that for the home to be more appealing.

(02:13):

It's about appealing to your wants, needs, desires, and vision. We are staging to sell to attract as many people as possible because we want potential buyers to fall in love with the house. There's more of a neutral openness to that look versus designing to live, where it's about you and the homeowner.  Right now, I'm going to give you some visuals for you to get an idea. If you look through design magazines, you can start seeing this reality. When trying to sell something in an advertisement, for instance, a lamp, the lamp is the focal point from other things in the room because it is the item being sold. Take a look at a picture of a rug. The rug company is focused on selling a particular carpet and we don't have a lot going on. The pieces brought in are meant to highlight the rug, right and that is the purpose of this app, to sell rugs. 

(03:48):

Another example of an advertisement is selling countertops, but there are items on its top. It's not a mere countertop sitting in an empty room because its stage is set up. The stage is located in a kitchen, but the beautiful cabinets highlight the countertop. It shows off a lifestyle by having little things of making it feel like an actual home without much distraction to notice the beautiful countertop. So that's an example of staging when selling something. Now, there are little tasks about designing for a person. So here's an example of a house that is designed for a particular style.

(04:50):

You have a lot of knickknacks, probably a lot of meaningful things. I mean, you don’t notice or know where to look. Such a picture where a lot is going on does not show the purpose of designing to live because we don't sell all the aspects of the house. We pick what we want to live in, and it's a style I found eclectic.  Here's a modern one but still looks right. If we are to sell this room, we wouldn't want a lot of furniture. 

(05:36):

For the extra desk, that's great for living because you need a place to work, and it works in the room because of its style. But, for selling the space, you may want to go a little simpler so that we notice that the fireplace becomes a focal point. It was built to become more of a focal point. We should also be seeing that the Eiffel tower is right out your window, and not all the little things on the coffee table.

(06:26):

At least that's how I felt when I was looking at this magazine, but they redid this. This is what's trending now. A lot of terracotta, colors, and the wood paneling are what you're going to see in California homes. All of these contrasts in colors and that maximalist vibe is excellent if you live in the home, and this is your style, but this is not the best way to sell this house. This gives you an easy way to understand the difference, and I hope you found that helpful.

(07:13):