How to Start a Home Staging Business

Research the Local Housing Market

Before you even set up your business, you need to understand the needs of your potential customers. If you live in a fairly affluent area, then you need to be willing to invest in items that fall into a fairly high price point. If you’re in more of a moderate income level area, then you have to be able to make homes look more appealing without spending so much that you get priced out of the market and don’t deliver any significant ROI. It can also help to understand the architectural styles and design trends that are popular in the area so you can accentuate them in your designs. We buy houses DeLand.

Name and License Your Business

Make it official. Choose a name that communicates your service and appeals to your target customers. Then get licensed to do business in your local community.

Choose a Specific Target Market

Aside from just serving any local homeowners, you could choose a specific target to focus on with your marketing efforts. For example, you might build a network of local flippers who you work with on investment properties. You could work with apartment building owners who want to get their units rented quickly. You could even work with those who own offices or commercial spaces.

Create a Pricing Structure

Determining your prices can be a difficult but important step. Consider your own monetary investments, the time each job is willing to take and other factors that might prove difficult, like moving furniture into upstairs units. Ideally, you’ll create a formula that lets you just plug in all of that information for each job so you can easily and quickly come up with quotes.

Formulate Client Contracts

A sound contract is key for any working agreement. Find templates online or consult with an attorney to create verbiage that fits with your specific situation.

Invest in Liability Insurance

It’s also a good idea to have some liability coverage in case you break or damage something in a client’s home. You don’t want to end up in a legal dispute or forced to pay for some expensive home repairs.

Connect with Area Realtors

One of the best and fastest ways to connect with home sellers is through their real estate agents. These realtors are equally motivated to have their houses sell quickly and at a premium price. So network with them and share your contact info so they can refer sellers to you when the opportunity arises.

Find Discount Home Decor Suppliers

Some sellers completely empty out their homes before listing them, while others could just use a little more style. Either way, you will probably need to bring in some extra decor items to fill in the spaces and make it especially attractive to potential buyers. So attend some local auctions and check out discount furniture and decor retailers in your area to build up your supplies without spending a ton of money.

Invest in Storage Space

If you purchase any large furniture pieces or even build up your collection of smaller decor pieces over time, you’ll likely need to purchase some outside storage space so that you can keep and easily access all of those pieces for future jobs.

Look into Furniture Rental Options

For jobs that require a lot of furniture, you can also look into rental options. This can be especially attractive for large homes that need pieces that don’t fit in your storage unit or trendy items that you won’t be able to use for a ton of future staging jobs.

Create a Website

Having an online presence is important for any business. But it’s especially important for a visual and emerging field like home staging. It allows potential customers to really see what you can do and understand the value you provide.

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