The Real Estate Staging Association conducted a report stating that:

homes in Washington sold 7 times faster  than homes that are not staged

This study was conducted on 64 homes in Washington State in 2013.  Time on the market for these homes once staged prior to going on the market was 20 days.  The study was conducted across the country.  The study not only took into account newly listed and staged, but they took homes previously listed as unstaged and then studied what happened after they were staged.  For example, as part of the national study:

… 24  homes  that  were  also  priced  between  $500K  to  $999,999  that  were   previously  on  the  market  before  the  homeowner  decided  to  stage.  Those  homes  sat  on  the  market,  on  average,  for  140  days.  After  staging,  they  sold,  on  average,  in  48  days.  That   represents  a  difference  of  almost  89%  less  me  on  the  market.

Similar results were shown at all price levels and across 6 states.

Don’t make the mistake of not staging at the beginning!   If you compound lost time with the effect that time is money, it makes sense. Losing time means you need to continue to carry mortgage and home expenses, therefore there is significant savings in staging up front.

For example, reducing the time on the market from 4.7 months to less than a month yields significant savings.  A 4-month reduction in time on the market on an $1800 mortgage (factor adding $300 for monthly expenses for a total of $2100) adds up to $2100 x 4, or $8400 in savings!

Also, think about the studies done, where the seller often saw a higher selling price 10-15% through staging.  There is so much value in staging a home for resale!