Eager to sell more homes this year? Improving a property's curb appeal is no longer enough. With more people searching from their living room couch, you need to improve web appeal, too. 

Over 90% of people look online when searching for homes. Meanwhile, older millennials lead the pack. They account for 98% of internet-relying home buyers.

If you want to appeal to these buyers, consider using VR real estate staging this year.

What is virtual home staging, exactly, and how can it help you sell more properties this year? Keep reading to find out!

After reading this guide, you can determine if virtual staging suits your real estate business's goals. Read on to learn more about VR staging today. 

What is Home Staging With VR?

First, let us cover the basics. What exactly is virtual home staging?

In general, home staging allows you to expertly dress up a room. You can alter a home's aesthetic to appeal to specific buyers. Appealing to their unique tastes could help you make a sale.

For example, you can adjust a home's lighting, art, and furniture to appeal to a specific group of buyers. These popular styling techniques could help you sell faster. You could even generate a higher asking price. 

In the past, real estate agents needed to hire interior designers to stage a home. Designers would waste valuable time and money designing a home room by room. Lugging furniture and decor around can become exhausting, though.

Instead, you can turn to VR real estate staging to appeal to buyers online.

About 43% of homebuyers look online first, then call an agent. Meanwhile, about 97% of homebuyers search online for homes at some point in the process. Virtual home staging will allow you to appeal to buyers before they schedule an in-person tour. 

With virtual reality, you can complete the entire staging process on the computer. You will rely on less labor, leading to fewer expenses. 

How It Works

First, make sure to invest in a professional photographer. High-quality images of the property are essential to VR home selling. 

Companies like Hommati offer these types of services, so you do not have to worry about trying to find a professional photographer with the skills of creating virtually staged images. They have teams who specialize in creating the virtual images that look just as real as if the furniture and decor were in the room when the photo was taken. 

The interior design options you choose will only appear in your virtual home staging. If the buyer decides to tour in person, they will either see an empty home or the dated furniture that was covered up by the updated virtual options. 

Using virtual staging will allow prospective buyers to discover what a property might look like once they move in. They can access the virtually staged photos from their computer or smartphones. You can even print out your virtual staging images for other marketing purposes. 

The Pros

Using the latest technology with VR real estate staging could help your business stand out from others. Here are a few benefits of creating a VR open house to keep in mind. 

Efficiency and Expense

Consumers only take three to four seconds before they make a decision. After those initial seconds, they determine if they want to see a home in person. VR real estate staging could help you give them a nudge in the right direction. 

You can ensure a property makes a strong first impression the moment a potential buyer reviews the listing. Otherwise, they might only see an empty home. They might struggle to imagine their own life in that property as a result.

Empty rooms will not appeal to buyers as much as a beautifully staged home will. 

Home staging can also help improve your ROI. You will not have to spend time and money hiring an interior designer. Instead, you will only need high-quality images and the right program. 

The average cost of staging a home falls between $4,000 and $8,000. Virtual staging, on the other hand, costs between $100 and $150. Some programs are even cheaper.

You will not need to pay for consultation costs or weekly charges, either. With traditional home staging, you might have to pay as long as the decor remains on site. With virtual staging, that is not a problem.

Creative Freedom

Sometimes, traditional interior designs cannot pull off your design goals. They cannot bring the images in your head to life. Often enough, that can become frustrating.

Remember, you will not have to work with an interior designer if you choose virtual home staging. Instead, you can transform a home following any style option. 

Depending on where you listing is located, you can add beach house decor to a home on the water, industrial style to a city apartment, or traditional furniture to a suburban house. 

Ease and Convenience

Traditional home staging can become stressful, time-consuming, and costly. It only works if you are selling a home no one lives in, too. You might lack flexibility as a result.

With virtual staging, however, you will have the ease and convenience you need. Remember, all you need to get started is photographs of the rooms you want to stage. Then, you can use those photos to fully furnish each room or replace the existing outdated furniture.

With virtual home staging, you will have the opportunity to adjust a property as you see fit. You can show potential buyers a beautifully staged property with ease!

The Cons

Unfortunately, every new technology receives a little criticism from time to time. Here are a few common drawbacks you might want to consider.

Expertise Needed

You can learn how to virtually stage a home on your own. Unfortunately, the learning curve might require trial and error. If you are busy, you might not have the time to learn how to use the program.

Instead, you can find virtual home stagers who can create your VR open house room by room.

It is important to find someone with experience, though. Otherwise, you might end up with low-quality results. That is where Hommati comes in. Their professionals are skilled in what looks good and how to present a perfectly staged home. 

You will not need to worry about poor quality photos when working with Hommati. 

Misleading Photographs

Some people feel that virtual staging is a little misleading. Prospective buyers need to know that they are looking at a virtual reality simulation. Otherwise, they might not appreciate the lack of transparency.

They might feel disappointed when they arrive to see the listing in person, too. 

While the photos are realistic, some buyers may think that that is how each room is set up and expect to see it in person.

Make sure you inform potential buyers the property was virtually staged when they first see the images. 

They Remain Virtual

Prospective buyers might want to view a virtually staged home in person. Unfortunately, you cannot showcase exactly what they view online.

You can make your virtually staged photos a part of your showing, though. Simply print out the photos. Feature the images on easel displays within each room. 

Otherwise, print them in posters or brochures. Potential buyers can still see what the virtually staged home might look like. 

How to Prepare

If you are interested in VR real estate, there are a few steps you will need to follow first. Following these steps can help you make the most of your time. 

1. Clean the Home

Make sure each room that you want photographed is clean before your Hommati photographer arrives.

The cleaner the room looks, the easier it is to transform the room using virtual home staging. Otherwise, it may be more difficult to remove the unwanted items when it comes time to virtually stage the room.

2. Removal Personal Items

Take the time to declutter within each room as well. Otherwise, that could mean higher costs to remove items from the room that you do not want in your images.

Try to remove any personal items, documents, or valuables. If you can, make sure each room is empty. It is easier to start with a blank slate. 

If you are unable to empty each room, that is okay, but try and limit the amount of stuff that is in the room you want staged. 

3. Make Necessary Improvements

Remember, it might take longer for the virtually staged photos to get back to you if there is a lot of clutter in the photographs. You can shorten that wait time by tackling small home improvements. For example, you can polish the floors or touch up chipped paint.

Make sure there is no evidence of wear and tear within the room. You will have an easier time appealing to buyers if the property looks its best.

Do not forget the home's curb appeal, too. You can appeal to buyers with a VR open house that covers the exterior and interior. Make sure the yard is clean and neat. 

4. Take High-Quality Photos

Hire a professional photographer to take high-quality photos of the property. Otherwise, a bad photograph can impact the final result. Hommati is the perfect option, because their photographers are skilled and equipped with the proper knowledge and tools to get the best images. 

5. Find the Right Software

As part of this process, it is important to make sure you are using the right tools. You can explore our real estate agent resources here to get started. Use the best software to ensure the best results.

VR Real Estate: An Easy Way to Start Selling Today

Help your listings stand out from the rest. Consider the benefits of using VR real estate staging this year. You can attract prospective buyers, show off a stunning listing, and save valuable time.

Start creating your own VR open house and use Hommati's resources today!

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