ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF HOME STAGING MONTREAL VIRTUAL HOME … · home staging? It s very economi -...
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H4 SATURDAY, JUNE 9, 2018 MONTREAL GAZETTE NEW HOMES & CONDOS MEGAN MARTIN When a home is going up for sale, few things are as important as how it shows to buyers. Real estate brokers often recommend own- ers declutter, clean and, in most cases, stage their homes in order to appeal to the largest number of buyers. To date, traditional staging has meant renting and physically bringing furniture into a home for sale. Now, thanks to advances in technology, things are changing. Virtual home staging is opening up a new world of possibilities for brokers and homeowners alike, re- moving many of the headaches of traditional staging, and offering a cost-effective, simple way to make a property shine. Virtual home staging is a new digital service that uses the tech- nology to show what a real room could look like with furniture. “We take real professional quality photos of a vacant room and we add virtual furniture and accessories to it to demonstrate the possibilities,” said Sveta Mel- chuk, founder of Home Staging Montreal. “This service has been popular in the U.S.A. and Europe for a few years already, and it’s be- ing used on a regular basis by some real estate giants. I’m hoping that Montreal brokers will see the po- tential and will adopt the service as an additional tool for them.” The largest advantage this new technology offers over traditional home staging? It’s very economi- cal. “A physical vacant property home staging for three to four rooms could be between $1,500 to $2,000 for one month, and then $700 to $1,000 per month after- ward as it requires a lot of prepa- ration, manpower and inventory,” Melchuk said. “The virtual staging is done by our personnel using on- line technology; that’s why we’re able to provide it a low cost of $70 plus tax per photo if it’s vacant. We either take the professional quality photos the client provides or we could send our own photographer on site for an additional charge.” While the cost difference is sub- stantial, virtual home staging isn’t expected to replace the physical method altogether because sellers typically still want furniture to be present when buyers come visit the property. But by having pho- tos they can manipulate virtually, a range of different scenarios can be presented for the same room. “It allows potential buyers to visualize the space as it could be,” Melchuk said. “A room could be staged virtually as a bedroom or as an office, for example, to show a buyer the possibilities. It’s an eco- nomical tool as a value-add to the broker’s services.” It’s also appealing and afford- able to home sellers who hadn’t planned on using physical home staging to begin with, as well as brokers who focus their sales overseas with clients who typi- cally don’t visit properties before making an offer. For those types of home sellers and brokers, virtual home staging provides a fantastic opportunity that requires limited investment. “If someone is unable or unwill- ing to do a real staging on a vacant property, they can still have a vir- tual staging done and show the visitors the possibilities as well as different types of looks,” Melchuk said. Speaking of different looks, a big advantage of virtual home staging is that homes and rooms can be virtually designed with different styles of furniture to appeal to dif- ferent types of buyers, something that Gina Lavoie, real estate broker with Groupe Sutton, says is of great value. “I’ve been working in the indus- try for 31 years, mostly in Griffin- town and St-Henri, where young buyers want to see modern, sleek furniture,” she said. “But then, with clients in places like West- mount, often buyers are more mature and want more traditional furniture, so having the ability to match the virtual furniture with the type of buyer you’re targeting is a great marketing tool.” Having used the virtual method several times, Lavoie swears by its effectiveness. “I think it’s so great,” she said. “I had a condo for sale on Mullins Street in St-Henri, and as soon as I marketed it with the virtual staged photos I got offers. People shop on- line today — that’s just the reality of the market — so if your photos aren’t good, buyers aren’t going to be enticed to call and schedule a visit.” In addition to appreciating the finished product for its marketing power, Lavoie said the cost savings also provide a big motivator for us- ing the technology. “Traditional home staging re- quires a lot of work, and brokers sometimes only stage properties to take photos and then the furniture is removed,” she said. “If you don’t sell the home, you have to absorb the cost of all of that, so it’s easy to see the appeal of an alternative like virtual home staging.” Above, a living room before the virtual staging. Below, the same living room area, after a digital staging with pho- tos of various pieces of furniture and decor items. A vacant room, before virtual staging for online viewing (above, left) and the same room (above, right), after digital photos of furniture and decor items have been added to give potential buy- ers an idea of how the space can be used and personalized. Such staging can easily be geared to a potential buyer’s personal taste in furnishings. Above, a room devoid of furnishings, other than the curtains at the windows, a mirror, and ceiling lights. The same room, with photographically added furniture, potted plant and rug, looks much more inviting after a virtual staging (above, right). ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF HOME STAGING MONTREAL VIRTUAL HOME STAGING Forget about schlepping furniture into a vacant home; digital methods allow for much easier staging It allows potential buyers to visual- ize the space as it could be. A room could be staged virtually as a bed- room or as an of- fice, for example, to show the buyer the possibilities. It’s an economical tool ... ... Young buyers want to see mod- ern, sleek furni- ture. ... Having the ability to match the virtual furni- ture with the type of buyer you’re targeting is a great marketing tool.
Transcript of ALL PHOTOS COURTESY OF HOME STAGING MONTREAL VIRTUAL HOME … · home staging? It s very economi -...
H4 S AT U R D AY, J U N E 9 , 2 0 1 8 M O N T R E A L G A Z E T T E N E W H O M E S & C O N D O S
M E G A N M A RT I N
When a home is going up for sale, few things are as important as how it shows to buyers. Real estate brokers often recommend own-ers declutter, clean and, in most cases, stage their homes in order to appeal to the largest number of buyers.
To date, traditional staging has meant renting and physically bringing furniture into a home for sale. Now, thanks to advances in technology, things are changing. Virtual home staging is opening up a new world of possibilities for brokers and homeowners alike, re-moving many of the headaches of traditional staging, and offering a cost-effective, simple way to make a property shine.
Virtual home staging is a new digital service that uses the tech-nology to show what a real room could look like with furniture.
“We take real professional quality photos of a vacant room and we add virtual furniture and accessories to it to demonstrate the possibilities,” said Sveta Mel-chuk, founder of Home Staging Montreal. “This service has been popular in the U.S.A. and Europe for a few years already, and it’s be-ing used on a regular basis by some real estate giants. I’m hoping that Montreal brokers will see the po-tential and will adopt the service as an additional tool for them.”
The largest advantage this new technology offers over traditional home staging? It’s very economi-cal.
“A physical vacant property home staging for three to four rooms could be between $1,500 to $2,000 for one month, and then $700 to $1,000 per month after-ward as it requires a lot of prepa-ration, manpower and inventory,” Melchuk said. “The virtual staging is done by our personnel using on-line technology; that’s why we’re able to provide it a low cost of $70 plus tax per photo if it’s vacant. We either take the professional quality
photos the client provides or we could send our own photographer on site for an additional charge.”
While the cost difference is sub-stantial, virtual home staging isn’t expected to replace the physical method altogether because sellers typically still want furniture to be present when buyers come visit the property. But by having pho-tos they can manipulate virtually, a range of different scenarios can be presented for the same room.
“It allows potential buyers to visualize the space as it could be,” Melchuk said. “A room could be staged virtually as a bedroom or as an office, for example, to show a buyer the possibilities. It’s an eco-nomical tool as a value-add to the broker’s services.”
It’s also appealing and afford-able to home sellers who hadn’t planned on using physical home staging to begin with, as well as brokers who focus their sales overseas with clients who typi-cally don’t visit properties before making an offer.
For those types of home sellers and brokers, virtual home staging provides a fantastic opportunity that requires limited investment.
“If someone is unable or unwill-ing to do a real staging on a vacant property, they can still have a vir-tual staging done and show the visitors the possibilities as well as different types of looks,” Melchuk said.
Speaking of different looks, a big advantage of virtual home staging is that homes and rooms can be virtually designed with different styles of furniture to appeal to dif-ferent types of buyers, something that Gina Lavoie, real estate broker with Groupe Sutton, says is of great value.
“I’ve been working in the indus-try for 31 years, mostly in Griffin-town and St-Henri, where young buyers want to see modern, sleek furniture,” she said. “But then, with clients in places like West-
mount, often buyers are more mature and want more traditional furniture, so having the ability to match the virtual furniture with the type of buyer you’re targeting is a great marketing tool.”
Having used the virtual method several times, Lavoie swears by its effectiveness.
“I think it’s so great,” she said. “I had a condo for sale on Mullins
Street in St-Henri, and as soon as I marketed it with the virtual staged photos I got offers. People shop on-line today — that’s just the reality of the market — so if your photos aren’t good, buyers aren’t going to be enticed to call and schedule a visit.”
In addition to appreciating the finished product for its marketing power, Lavoie said the cost savings
also provide a big motivator for us-ing the technology.
“Traditional home staging re-quires a lot of work, and brokers sometimes only stage properties to take photos and then the furniture is removed,” she said. “If you don’t sell the home, you have to absorb the cost of all of that, so it’s easy to see the appeal of an alternative like virtual home staging.”
Above, a living room before the virtual staging. Below, the same living room area, after a digital staging with pho-tos of various pieces of furniture and decor items.
A vacant room, before virtual staging for online viewing (above, left) and the same room (above, right), after digital photos of furniture and decor items have been added to give potential buy-ers an idea of how the space can be used and personalized. Such staging can easily be geared to a potential buyer’s personal taste in furnishings.
Above, a room devoid of furnishings, other than the curtains at the windows, a mirror, and ceiling lights. The same room, with photographically added furniture, potted plant and rug, looks much more inviting after a virtual staging (above, right). A L L P H O T O S C O U RT E SY O F H O M E S TAG I NG M O N T R E A L
VIRTUAL HOME STAGINGForget about schlepping furniture into a vacant home; digital methods allow for much easier staging
It allows potential buyers to visual-ize the space as it could be. A room could be staged virtually as a bed-room or as an of-fice, for example, to show the buyer the possibilities. It’s an economical tool ...
... Young buyers want to see mod-ern, sleek furni-ture. ... Having the ability to match the virtual furni-ture with the type of buyer you’re targeting is a great marketing tool.
