You can't turn on the news or log onto the internet without hearing about how bad the real estate market is today. It can be very depressing, especially when you have your house on the market along with the many others available. Buyers have more homes to choose from now, than ever.

If these before and after photos aren't enough, here are five reasons why you should NEVER try and sell a vacant home.

1. People Don't Buy Houses, They Buy Homes.

Buyers purchase homes based on emotions. The number one reason a buyer purchases a home is because it "felt like home". If the room is vacant it can feel cold and lonely.

Once the home is professionally staged, it becomes warm and inviting. Bringing in just the right amount of furnishings and accessories can make the difference. Have you ever heard of an empty room being described as warm and inviting?

2. Without Furniture, There Is No Frame of Reference

What is this room? Is it a dining room or home office? How big is this room? Without furniture it can be difficult to tell the scale and size of a room. Empty rooms actually appear smaller than those with furniture.

When the buyer does not have the answers to their questions...they walk away. Don't keep a buyer guessing, it only distracts them from considering your home as a purchase.

3. When A Room is Kept Empty, Buyers Focus on Negative Details.

A crack in the wall or the chipped tile on the floor is much more noticeable when there is nothing else to look at. If a room is professionally staged, the positive features are highlighted and any flaws are de-emphasized. The buyer has an emotional connection with the room and will linger a little longer and start imagining their families enjoying this space.

4. Only 10% of Home Buyers Can Actually Visualize the Potential of a Home.

Most buyers walking into your home have no imagination of the wonderful is may have to offer them. They aren't able to visualize there is enough room for their table and chairs. They just can't picture it.

Are you willing to take the risk of losing a sale because there was no furniture and accessories to help a buyer visualize the remarkable potential that your home has to offer?

5. Paying For Two Mortgages Can Get Expensive

The fact is that a vacant home typically takes twice as long to sell and the longer it "sits" on the market the lower the sales price will be.* Why risk paying two mortgages only to have the sales price lower than it would have been if you had the home professionally staged?

Home Staging is about adding the minimum amount of furniture and accessories to highlight the best features of the home. It's not about creating a "model home" environment. Furniture is added and arranged to emphasize the best features of the room, but that is just the beginning. Accessories are then added to create the emotional connection points, that keeps a home buyer in the space a little longer so that they start imagining their families enjoying all that the room has to offer.

Furniture and accessories are rented on a monthly basis, from the Home Staging Firm. The fees are often based on square footage of the home or the listed price. The larger the home or higher the price, the more inventory needed to provide the correct look and most especially provide the correct "feeling".

*according to a NAR survey

At Southern Staging & Redesign we are professionally trained at offering a vacant home staging service that is quick, affordable and focuses on building emotional marketing connections throughout the home, so that buyers will "FEEL HOME" when they walk through the front door.

Before you consider reducing your vacant house, consider having it staged by a Professionally Certified Home Staging Consultant. For more information about vacant home staging, call Nan Johnston at Southern Staging & Redesign or check out her website at www.southern-staging.com to see some before and after photos of a vacant home.770-251-0608. Also see a before and after of a family room.