While staging has become mainstream for owner-occupied homes, staging vacant homes is less common. This is a missed opportunity because vacant homes tend to be the least impressive and appealing to home buyers. When selling your home, making a strong, positive first impression on buyers is essential. In the competitive Florida real estate market, standing out can make the difference between a quick sale and a listing that lingers for weeks or months.

Staging vacant homes is becoming an essential strategy for realtors, builders, and investors aiming to attract serious buyers and generate higher offers. At Salt & Shore Staging Designs, we specialize in contemporary coastal designs that bring the essence of the Florida lifestyle into every home we stage. Here’s why I recommend staging your vacant Florida home:

Home Staging Benefit #1: Improving the Presentation

One fundamental way to get buyers genuinely interested in a home is to assist them in visualizing living there with their furnishings. Without furniture, buyers aren’t always able to accurately assess the actual size of the rooms or even their purpose, and often struggle envisioning themselves living there.

Not only that, if a home is vacant it is more challenging for buyers to focus on its positive elements. Instead of noticing the beautiful architectural features, they may hyperfocus on minor flaws or anything they deem as negative. This will make it difficult for potential buyers to see a home’s full potential, and as a result, it will lower its perceived value.

Staging helps by providing context and scale, showing buyers how someone can use each space, and enhances the overall perception of the property. Staging also helps to distract from room flaws, directs attention to room focal features, and helps buyers appreciate each space. Additionally, staging helps to warm up cold and uninviting empty rooms, making them more welcoming and appealing to buyers.

All the above increases the home’s value for buyers as well the home’s overall marketability.

Home Staging Benefit #2: Optimizing Online Impressions

It’s a fact that in today’s digital age, your first showing is online. Over 90% of buyers shop there first, significantly impacting how much (or how little) buyer interest your property generates.

First impressions are made through photos and virtual tours. Empty rooms look less appealing in photos and will fail to capture buyer interest. Staged homes are far more likely to generate interest and engagement online, leading to more viewings and offers.

Staging vacant homes helps properties stand out online, making them more attractive to buyers. This approach significantly improves their chances of selling quickly and attracting quality offers.

Home Staging Benefit #3: Less Time on Market

Statistically speaking, staged homes in Florida typically sell faster and receive better offers than vacant homes. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), staged homes spend less time on the market and often sell for a higher price. According to RESA, staged homes will spend over 60% less time on the market than unstaged properties.

By staging your vacant home, you can reduce the time it takes to sell and increase the likelihood of receiving competitive offers.

Home Staging Benefit #4: Better Emotional Connection

If you’ve ever been in a home that is beautifully decorated and staged, it often evokes a strong emotional response. In my experience, this usually inspires people to imagine their own home decorated this way or think about how it would feel to live in a space like this. Effective home staging creates that emotional feeling for buyers. It helps them feel “at home” when touring a property.

This emotional connection is powerful. You see, buyers shop with logic, but they buy based on emotion. Staged homes, which can create that tangible emotional connection, will attract more buyer interest and be much more effective at selling buyers on the lifestyle and the life they could have there than empty homes can.

Vacant homes don’t create or foster this emotional connection with Florida buyers. Without furniture and decor, buyers find it difficult to envision themselves living in a space. Staging vacant homes helps to create that welcoming atmosphere that evokes positive emotions and makes it easier for buyers to fall in love with it. As I mentioned above, this emotional connection is a crucial factor influencing their decision-making process.

Home Staging Benefit #5: Improved Purpose and Function

If you’ve ever been in a vacant home, you know how bewildering empty rooms can be. Empty rooms often lack function or purpose, making it difficult for buyers to understand how to use these spaces. Not only that, but empty rooms tend to look smaller than what they actually are. This perception is one of the reasons why vacant homes often linger on the market and fail to attract home buyers.

Staging vacant homes helps clarify the purpose and function of each room. It also helps define each space for buyers, adding tangible value as it shows people how to use each space or gives them ideas on how they could use it.

If you’re selling an empty property, you’re leaving buyers to guess at how best to utilize each room in the home, which can lower the perceived value of the property. By staging, you clearly define each area and showcase each space to highlight its potential and appeal.

Vacant home staging helps buyers see the full value of your property and how it can meet their needs.

Stage Your Vacant Florida Home

Investing in staging your vacant home is smart for realtors, builders, and investors who want to enhance their property’s overall marketability and value. Staging helps buyers visualize each space better, creates strong online impressions, and highlights your property as more attractive and valuable.

All of these things will generate more buyer interest, which in turn attracts higher offers and accelerates the property’s sale.

At Salt & Shore Staging Designs, we’re dedicated to helping you achieve these goals with our vacant home staging service. Contact us today to learn how we can help you make your Florida home stand out.

For more information on how we can help you stage your vacant Florida home, learn more about our services and see our latest coastal-inspired designs.