Start a Showhomes Home Staging Franchise Business

Business continues to increase at Showhomes Home Staging, defying the long-term slump of the national housing market.

Showhomes posted a 20 percent increase from 2010 to 2011 and has continued to add new franchise locations despite the tough economy and slow housing market. The home staging franchise has posted positive gains six out of the last seven years.

Showhomes provides a unique twist on traditional home staging. It uses live-in home managers to take care of properties and keep them in show-to-sell condition. Using a live-in caretaker often lowers the homeowner’s insurance costs and eliminates the monthly cost of furniture rental, making home staging more affordable.

“We have a home staging solution that helps the homeowner sell the home faster and for more money than if it sat vacant,” says Matt Kelton, COO of Showhomes. “We sweeten the pot for all parties involved. Realtors are able to turn their inventory faster through our program and they are big fans of it, and we are able to offer temporary housing to our home managers that is a great value. It’s a real win-win-win for everyone.”

The Real Estate Staging Association, a trade association for the home staging industry, recently found that staged homes spent 78 percent less time on the market than the time they spent vacant before staging. In a Showhomes realtor survey, 96 percent of real estate professionals says fully staged homes sell for higher prices than vacant houses.

Over the past two years Showhomes has almost tripled the markets it serves, up to 73 units in 23 states. The company expects to continue its rapid growth in 2012.

“We are thrilled that home staging has become more standard when selling a vacant house,” Kelton says. “Without it, a homeowner is at a true disadvantage. Our unique program helps a lot of homeowners sell homes that would otherwise sit.”