Judging by the number of folks who claim to call themselves "Home Stagers" today, you'd think it was the world's largest growing industry. However, just because people call themselves Home Stagers doesn't necessarily make them qualified. In fact, many would-be Home Stagers have had no real training at all. They just assume the designation and then hang out their shingle.

Regardless of what wannabe Home Stagers may say, staging a home for sale is an art, designed for the sole purpose of giving that home a competitive edge in the marketplace. The intent is to help a property make an immediate positive impact on potential buyers.

Home staging is different from interior design, which is intended to make living in a home more pleasant for those who inhabit the space, based on their lifestyle and personal tastes. On the other hand, home staging is meant to make the home more appealing to as wide a range of potential buyers as possible. In other words, interior design is geared toward home owners, while home staging is geared toward home buyers.

Over the years, statistics have shown that it's actually more cost effective for owners to raise the level of presentation of their homes through the use of home staging than to lower the price of their homes in an effort to sell them more quickly. In most cases, the homes that generate the highest offers are those that are well presented and beautiful, including the furnishings.

Home staging is an art and a science, and a professional Home Stager should possess both a knowledge of home buyer psychology and an innate design and decorating sense. Therefore, when you begin your search for a Home Stager, make certain that they can demonstrate a strong knowledge of both. As for referrals, and arrange to visit homes they've staged that are currently on the market.

At those homes, talk with the sellers to see if they believe having the Home Stager help them has been a positive experience. Has it generated more favorable responses from potential buyers? How long has the property been on the market? What type of feedback would they give you, now that you're in the market for a Home Stager yourself?

Also talk to clients who have successfully sold their homes after hiring the Home Stager you're interested in hiring. They'll be the most likely to offer genuine information about whether they would do it differently if they had to do it over again.

Once you've interviewed the Home Stager, as well as current and past clients, you can make an informed decision as to whether hiring that person will be advantageous in your own situation.

Copyright 2006 Jeanette J. Fisher