WASHINGTON, D.C. — Nearly three out of 10 (29%) real estate agents reported that staging their sellers’ homes led to a 1% to 10% increase in the dollar value o ered, and almost half (49%) of home sellers’ agents observed that home staging reduced the time homes spent on the market, according to the National Association of Realtors 2025 Pro le of Home Staging. The report reveals the role home staging plays in real estate transactions, including the perspectives of homebuyers’ and sellers’ agents, the in uence of television shows and homebuyer expectations.
Sixty percent of homebuyers’ real estate agents cited that home staging had an e ect on some homebuyers but not always. Meanwhile, 26% of agents said home staging had
an e ect on most buyers’ view of the home, and only 12% indicated that home staging had no e ect on homebuyers’ views.
A majority (83%) of homebuyers’ real estate agents said staging a home made it easier for a buyer to envision the property as their future home. Homebuyers’ agents reported that staging would positively impact the home value if it was decorated to match buyers’ tastes (32%), and buyers were more willing to walk through a home they saw online (31%).
“The typical home seller resides in their home for 10 years before selling,” said Jessica Lautz, NAR deputy chief economist and vice president of research. “During that time, homeowners might overlook certain aspects that could be less appealing to potential buyers. By staging a home, agents who are ■ See STAGING, page 4
Photo by PC Photography / Getty Images A beautifully staged home entices more buyers and helps a home sell faster, according to a recent report.
Metro areas post home price increases this year
WASHINGTON, D.C. — More than 80% of metro markets (189 out of 228, or 83%) registered home price gains in the rst quarter of 2025, as the 30-year xed mortgage rate ranged from 6.63% to 7.04%, according to the National Association of Realtors’ latest quarterly report. Eleven percent of the 228 tracked metro areas recorded double-digit price gains over the same period, down from 14% in the fourth quarter of 2024.
“Most metro markets continue to set new record highs for home prices,” said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “In the rst quarter, the Northeast performed best in both sales and price gains by percentage. Despite the stronger job additions, the South lagged with declining sales and virtually no price appreciation.”
Compared to one year ago, the national median single-family existing-home price grew 3.4% to $402,300. In the prior quarter, the year-over-year national median price increased 4.8%.
Among the major U.S. regions, the South registered the largest share of existing-home sales (44.9%) in the rst quarter, with year-over-year price appreciation of 1.3%. Prices also increased 10.3% in the Northeast, 5.2% in the Midwest and 4.1% in the West.
The top 10 large markets (where large markets are de ned as the 150 most populous areas) with the biggest yearover-year median price increases by percentage all experienced gains of at least 10%. A total of six markets were in New York and Ohio. Overall, those top 10 large markets were Syracuse, N.Y. (17.9%); Montgomery, Ala. (16.1%); Youngstown-Warren-Boardman, Ohio-Pa. (13.6%); Nassau CountySu olk County, N.Y. (12.0%); Toledo, Ohio (11.1%); Cleveland-Elyria, Ohio (11.1%); Rochester, N.Y. (11.1%); Gulfport-Biloxi-Pascagoula, Miss. (10.5%); Trenton, N.J. (10.4%); and Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, Pa.-N.J. (10.2%).
Eight of the top 10 most expensive markets in the U.S. were in California. Those markets were San Jose-SunnyvaleSanta Clara ($2,020,000; 9.8%); Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine ($1,450,000; 6.2%); San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward ($1,320,000; 1.5%); Urban Honolulu, Hawaii ($1,165,100; 7.3%); San DiegoCarlsbad ($1,036,500; 5.7%); Salinas ($954,700; 6.2%); San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles ($953,400; 4.8%); OxnardThousand Oaks-Ventura ($931,500; 2.5%); Naples-Immokalee-Marco Island, Fla. ($865,000; 1.8%); and Los AngelesLong Beach-Glendale ($862,600; 4.8%).
“Very expensive home prices partly re ect multiple years of home underproduction in those metro markets,” Yun added. “Another factor is the low homeownership rates in these areas, implying more unequal wealth distribution. A ordable markets tend to have more adequate supply and higher homeownership rates.”
Nearly 17% of markets (38 of 228) posted home price declines in the rst quarter, up from 11% in the fourth quarter of 2024.
“A few areas where home prices declined a year or two ago are now rebounding, including Boise, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City, San Francisco and Seattle,” Yun said. “Similarly, some markets currently experiencing price declines — but with solid job growth — could see prices recover in the near future, such as Austin, San Antonio, Huntsville, Myrtle Beach, Raleigh and many Florida markets.”
Housing a ordability slightly improved in the rst quarter. The monthly mortgage payment on a typical existing single-family home with a 20% down payment was $2,120, down only $2 from the fourth quarter of 2024 ($2,122) but up 4.1% — or $84 — from one year ago. Families typically spent 24.4% of their income on mortgage payments, down from 24.8% in the prior quarter and 24.5% one year ago.
First-time buyers found marginally
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Staging
Realtors strategically highlight the best features, ensuring sellers receive the most-competitive o ers.”
For homebuyers, staging the living room was considered the most important (37%), followed closely by the primary bedroom (34%) and the kitchen (23%). In contrast, staging the guest bedroom (7%) was the least important.
Homebuyers’ agents emphasized that including photos (73%), traditional physical staging (57%), videos (48%) and virtual tours (43%) in their listings were highly important to their clients.
Seventeen percent of homebuyers’ real estate agents said that staging a home resulted in a 1% to 5% increase in the dollar value o ered, compared to similar, un-staged homes on the market.
Twenty-one percent of home sellers’ real estate agents reported staging all their sellers’ homes prior to listing them for sale, while 10% only staged homes that were di cult to sell. More than half (51%) of home sellers’ agents did not stage homes before listing them for sale but recommended that sellers declutter or correct property faults.
The most commonly staged rooms by home sellers’ real estate agents were the living room (91%), primary bedroom (83%) and dining room (69%). In addition, 68% of home sellers’ agents staged the kitchen. The least commonly staged rooms were a guest bedroom and children’s bedroom (both 22%).
When it comes to staging compensation, 26% of home sellers’ agents said it depends on the situation. Another 23% reported that they personally o er to stage the home, and 17% said that the seller pays to stage the home before listing. The median cost for using a staging service was $1,500, compared to $500 when the home sellers’ agent handled the staging themselves.
The most common home improvement recommendations from real estate agents for home sellers were decluttering the home (91%), cleaning the entire home (88%) and improving curb appeal (77%).
Among home sellers’ real estate agents, incorporating photos (88%), videos (47%) and traditional physical staging (43%) in their listings were much more or more important to their clients. In contrast, 34% of home sellers’ agents considered virtual staging to be less important, while 24% felt it was equally important to their clients.
Forty-eight percent of respondents reported that homebuyers expected homes to look like they were staged on TV shows, and 58% said that buyers were disappointed by how homes looked compared to those portrayed on TV shows.
Among real estate agents, 21% said TV shows depicting the homebuying process impacted their business. In addition, 77% of respondents indicated that TV shows set unrealistic or increased expectations, 60% said they set higher expectations of how homes should look, and 14% said they result in more educated homebuyers and sellers.
better a ordability circumstances compared to the previous quarter. For a typical starter home valued at $342,000 with a 10% down payment loan, the monthly mortgage payment declined to $2,079, down just $2 from the prior quarter ($2,081). That was an increase of $82, or 4.1%, from one year ago ($1,997). First-time buyers typically spent 36.8% of their family income on
mortgage payments, down from 37.4% in the previous quarter.
A family needed a qualifying income of at least $100,000 to a ord a 10% downpayment mortgage in 45.1% of markets, up from 43.8% in the prior quarter. Yet, a family needed a qualifying income of less than $50,000 to a ord a home in 3.1% of markets, up from 2.2% in the previous quarter.
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3 Bed | 2 Bath | 1400 sq ft | MLS# 225051865
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Placerville ~ $1,169,000
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