How much does home staging cost?
The average cost to stage a home is $995, and prices typically range from $598-$1,201. Due to several factors that can impact costs, hiring a home stager could cost you as little as $100 — or as much as $3,250.
Cost to stage a home:
| National average cost | $995 |
| Average cost range | $598-$1,201 |
| Low-end cost | $100 |
| High-end cost | $3,250 |
If you're selling your home and hope to earn top dollar, it's smart to invest in professional home staging services. Home staging is a type of decorating that essentially sets the stage so your potential buyers can envision themselves living in your home.
Keep reading to learn more about home staging, its benefits and how to get free cost estimates from home stagers near you.
What's in this cost guide?
Here are the main cost considerations you should keep in mind when looking for home staging services.
Project size
The larger the home staging project, the more you will end up paying. Usually, home staging prices will be higher for homes that are completely vacant than ones that have furnishings in them.
Occupied vs. vacant homes
You may have the best house on the block, but if it's vacant and doesn't look good on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) online real estate portal, buyers may just click right past your listing. Vacant homes generally cost more to stage because the professional must provide furnishings and decor to create a welcoming environment for potential buyers or spark the interest of online shoppers.
Some home stagers have their own stock of furnishings to use, while others partner with furniture rental companies. In either case, the cost of staging a vacant home covers transportation and thephysical setup of the furnishings. If items are rented, the final bill will include the rental costs. For example, Just Organized by Taya's starting price for staging a vacant home is $2,200.
Staging an occupied home typically requires less time from the home stager and less financial output from you because the home already has furnishings. The process generally entails developing a plan to declutter existing furniture and decor, creating easy pathways throughout the home, eliminating odors and completing small repairs. For occupied homes, Just Organized by Taya charges $800 for a full day of hands-on staging.
Consultation-only
Most stagings begin with a consultation. After you and the home stager have agreed upon a fee, the stager will visit your home, assess what needs to be done and work with you to create an action plan. You can then either work to execute the plan on your own or hire the home stager to complete it for you.
Purchasing only a consultation is a cost-effective way to stage your home with limited professional assistance. The consultation could include everything from guidance on home decor and furniture arrangement to recommendations on home improvements like painting the front door or repairing saggy blinds.
As an example, Just Organized by Taya charges $200 for a two-hour consultation with DIY tips and guidance. Clients receive a free, on-site, 30-minute consultation when a four-hour staging session is booked. And Staging 2 Sell It charges $250 for an initial one- or two-hour consultation and design session, which includes a written report. Their additional design consulting costs $65 per hour.
Geographic location
Where you live can also affect your home staging costs. Expensive real estate markets like San Francisco and Manhattan may have higher pricing for home staging services if competition to hire pros is fierce. Big cities with a high cost of living and a high cost to do business will have higher rates for home staging services because of the higher costs of furniture rental, moving services and business overhead.
Most home staging professionals offer a variety of services that help homeowners who are ready to put their house on the market. These services can include decluttering, rearranging or bringing in and staging furniture and decor in a home.
Typically, people hire home stagers when preparing to sell a home or to rent a home out, but it's also possible to hire a stager simply as a way to get fresh, objective suggestions for how to restyle your home. Some clients choose to have their entire home staged, and others focus only on certain rooms.
Home stagers can stage living rooms, family rooms, dining rooms, kitchens, master bedrooms, other bedrooms, bathrooms, offices and basements. You can also ask your home stager to style outdoor living areas like pool rooms, patios and outdoor kitchens.
Hiring a home stager gives you another pair of eyes to objectively assess and then organize your home, so it's appealing to prospective buyers when they search for houses online or do walk-throughs with their real estate agents.
As homeowners, we are too biased toward our own personal taste. Unless your buyers are interior designers or have a good sense of home decorating, seeing your personal taste heavily represented in their "dream home" makes it hard for them to see themselves living there — which can ultimately discourage them from buying.
In addition to helping you sell your home, home stagers can also help identify fixes for things you may not even notice anymore — like that cabinet that's hung crooked for years. They'll also provide recommendations for getting your home sparkling clean.
Selling a house can create big challenges, not with the physical move but also the emotional impact of leaving your home. Even if you're very motivated to sell, it's easy to get attached to your place and find it difficult to make changes.
Working with a home stager will help transform your house into a product that someone else can see as their home. These suggestions from Just Organized by Taya will help you make the transition:
- Detach yourself from your fond memories of your home and start thinking of it as a product. Set aside your personal taste, and trust the home stager to handle the decor and furniture placement.
- Take down all your family photos. Buyers will find it hard to imagine their own family living there with pictures of your family still hanging on the walls.
- If you're staging an occupied home, have it professionally deep-cleaned and remove any traces of clutter — especially for walk-throughs.
- Minimal decor makes the biggest impact. Trust your home stager's less-is-more approach.
The first step in finding the right home stager for you is to look at their portfolios online. They should have great MLS photos from their work with previous home staging clients. Look at the professional's website and social media presence, and decide whether you find the images of their recent work appealing. If you were in the market for a house, would the photos attract you to take a second look or schedule a walk-through with your real estate agent?
When you find an aesthetic you love, read the home stager's past client reviews. And look into their background, experience and training. Home stagers may have an interior design or similar design background. Many also take home staging courses and obtain certifications. Confirm that your prospective client has a business license and up-to-date liability insurance, which protects both you and your house if an accident should occur.
Next, communicate clearly about fees and make sure you have a clearly written contract that outlines the terms of service, relevant dates and timelines, and other necessary details.
One last tip: Plan ahead to get the home stager you want. Just Organized by Taya recommends allowing at least a six-week window for the process. You don't want to save this task for the last minute.
Find home stagers near you
When done well, home staging emphasizes your home's assets and plays down its quirkier elements. Search for the best home stagers near you on Thumbtack, and hire a professional today.
