Virtual Staging Tech is So Good Now That It’s Earning Flippers and Investors More Money
Summary
Virtual staging is becoming increasingly sophisticated with AI, allowing investors to market properties more effectively. Hosts should consider using virtual staging for vacant or poorly furnished properties, but be sure to be transparent and show "as-is" images. Over-reliance on virtual staging could lead to guest disappointment.
Key Insights
- •AI-powered virtual staging can be created in hours, not days, and cost a fraction of hiring a stager and photographer.
- •43% of those polled by the National Association of Realtors (NAR) in 2024 viewed houses online first, with 41% looking at photos first.
- •81% of buyers surveyed by NAR said that virtual staging helped them visualize living in a home.
Action Items
- ✓Consider using virtual staging for vacant or poorly furnished properties.Effort: mediumImpact: medium
- ✓Be honest in your depictions – making sure to show an “as-is” or “non-AI” image for comparison, or adding a note that the property is virtually staged.Effort: lowImpact: medium
Tools & Resources
- →REimagine Home: REimagine Home won HousingWire’s best overall AI-based virtual staging app.
- →Collov AI, Trolto, ApplyDesign AI Home Design: Other notable staging apps include: Collov AI, Trolto (specifically designed for social media staging) ApplyDesign AI Home Design
Watch Out For
- ⚠As glossier and fancier images pervade the real estate space, investors must draw a line to show where reality stops and virtual reality starts; otherwise—as is what’s happening on social media now—it’s hard to know whether what you are seeing is real or not.
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