Back in the day, a client would have choked on their weetbix if I’d advised them to spend some money on staging their home for sale.

But these days, staging - where a professional furnishes an empty property – has increased in popularity as it is something that brings results, particularly in a buyer’s market. Emma Maddox from Eye for Style in Cromwell stages homes locally and in the four years she’s been running her business staging has become the norm, rather than the exception.

Staging is most useful for already-vacated houses and new-build properties that the developer or builder is trying to sell.

Hiring someone to add furniture and furnishings to an otherwise empty home offers several benefits.

The main advantage is that it makes a house feel like a home. Potential buyers get a much better sense of life in a staged home than they do in an empty house. They can see how rooms might be used, where furniture can be placed, and how the home feels.

Emma tells me that buyers now expect properties to be beautifully presented. First impressions count and an attractive staged home will definitely leave a more positive impression than an empty shell. In a competitive market, sellers need to stand out from the crowd.

Staging will cost the seller somewhere between $1500 and $3000 depending on the size and layout of the house. It’s not an insignificant amount of money, but it is often money well spent.

While it’s hard to quantify how much staging affects the sale price, anecdotally it might lead to an increase of $10,000 to $15,000 depending on the house’s value.

Where staging really counts, though, is saleability. A staged home is much more attractive to buyers and in a tough market for sellers that can mean the difference between a quick sale and languishing on the market for months.