A blank canvas is different from a neutral canvas. A blank canvas means a home is vacant when it is put on the market. Some sellers believe this is a good thing as a buyer can visualize the home the way they want to with their own furniture in the space, or using the room however they want to.
Unfortunately this isn’t easy for the buyer to do. A high majority of the buyers, as many as 80% cannot visual a room or home when it is vacant. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), 82% percent of buyers’ agents said staging a homemade it easier for a buyer to visualize the property as a future home.
Why is this:
- Rooms Look Smaller When They Are Empty: This makes it tough for a buyer to know if their furniture will fit in a space.
- Key Rooms in an Open Concept Home Are Difficult to Distinguish: Buyers are not quite sure where one room stops and another starts. They are left wondering what a blank area in between can be used for.
(Photo taken by @Spacecrafting)
- Most Buyers Cannot Visual How Furniture Should Be Arranged: This is one of the toughest things for a homeowner, how should their furniture be arranged? Most people think furniture needs to be against a wall, so a home with a lot of windows may leave them perplexed. Floating furniture in and throughout a room cannot be visualized by many so they don’t know how the home will work for them.
- Online Photos of a Vacant House Are Cold and Impersonal: There is nothing to captivate the buyer, draw them into the home from their online search. Even beautiful built-ins can look boring and daunting when they are empty.
Sellers don’t expect the entire home to be staged, but NAR’s data shows that 46% of buyers say that staging the living room is very important, while the main bedroom (43%) and kitchen (35%) were close behind.
If you will be selling a vacant home, consider talking with a Home Staging Company to stage the most important rooms.
