• What Is Virtual Staging?
• Can Virtual Staging Help You Sell Your Home?
• Traditional Staging vs Virtual Staging
• Do Buyers Like Virtual Staging?
• How Do Realtors Do Virtual Real Estate Staging?
• Common Mistakes
• Make Your Listing Photos Stand Out With PhotoUp!

Virtual staging is the future. Capturing the perfect home-staging scene just got a whole lot easier. With virtual staging, you’ve access to an endless selection of items from furniture and art pieces – any item that would be needed for your dream shoot! 

From homes with luxurious design budgets down to tight ones; everyone can now set up their ideal staging without being limited by real-world restrictions.

In this post, we’ll share how Realtors do virtual real estate staging and whether it’s effective to help sell listings faster and for top dollar. We’ll also compare traditional staging vs virtual staging, look into what buyers prefer, and more.

Alright, let’s get started!

What Is Virtual Staging?

Virtual staging is a creative way to transform an empty or outdated room into a cozy and attractive space for potential homebuyers.

Professional virtual stagers use high-resolution photos combined with computer imaging software to digitally add furniture, area rugs, potted plants—the works to your real estate images.

It’s basically like traditional staging but without all of the heavy lifting (literally AND figuratively)!

Can Virtual Staging Help You Sell Your Home?

Selling your home can be tough if it’s vacant or has outdated furniture. To give this statement some backbone, research shows that vacant homes sell for an average of $11,306 less and spend six more days on market compared to staged and virtually staged homes.

Virtual staging is an amazing asset that can help you show potential buyers what they’re missing out on. In other words, it’s a great way for buyers to envision each room in its best light and see its full potential!

By virtually furnishing your property with designer pieces, even empty homes have the potential to wow – and potentially sell faster for more money. 

This digital version of staging may help bring Realtors and agents one step closer to closing on that sale faster and for top dollar. 

Traditional Staging vs Virtual Staging: Which Is Better?

Home staging has long been a great way to help buyers envision the potential of a property. To be effective, it requires an eye for detail and plenty of physical work – no easy feat. 

But with virtual staging, Realtors can now make beautifying their real estate photos much easier. This innovative approach offers all the advantages of regular home staging without any extra hassle or expense. 

It’s also around 97% cheaper to use the digital version of staging. While traditional staging can cost anywhere from $600 and up per room, virtual staging typically costs from $24 to $79 per image depending on the provider you’re using.

For example, PhotoUp’s virtual staging service only costs about $20 to $30 per image. We also offer discounts for large bulk orders.

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Do Buyers Like Virtual Staging?

Yes! According to the National Association of Realtors®, 82% of buyer’s agents say that staging makes it easier for buyers to visualize themselves living in a home. And as many as 38% of seller’s agents say that they stage all their clients’ homes before listing.

However, you should always disclose that your images are virtually staged so that people don’t feel deceived or get disappointed when arriving at a physical showing. 

Presenting before and after photos and labeling them as “virtually staged” is a good best practice. 

If you can’t label your images, you can add a disclosure text that lets people know that your images are digitally altered. Here’s an example of a disclaimer you can add to your marketing copy:

“Some images have been virtually staged to better showcase the true potential of rooms and spaces in the home.”

How Do Realtors Do Virtual Real Estate Staging?

Realtors have embraced technology when it comes to real estate staging, allowing them to save time and money compared to traditional staging. 

With virtual staging, they can upload high-quality, amazing-looking photos of their listing to capture buyers’ attention and help them to see the home’s full potential. 

Realtors often enlist the help of professional virtual staging companies to ensure photo-realistic furniture and decor and make their listings stand out from the competition. 

These companies use 2D imagery and digitally enhance properties by adding furniture, artwork, and accent pieces into 3D models that simulate a home in its staged glory. 

Technology such as 3D scans can be used to capture a space’s true dimensions and layout which allows for the maximum amount of accuracy when decorating virtually. 

Through this creative way of showcasing a property, agents can provide buyers with an opportunity to envision living in the space without ever stepping foot inside.

“When done right, virtual staging can help sell a home faster and for more money. To do this, you’ll want to hire a professional real estate photographer who knows how to take high quality photos and also work with a reputable virtual staging company that produces photo-realistic images.”

Devon Higgins, Head of Sales & Marketing at PhotoUp, Realtor at Hello Homes GR

Common Mistakes

As mentioned, virtual staging is an excellent tool for giving your listings a professional boost. But it’s not as simple as just clicking ‘upload your images and go.’ 

Be sure to carefully consider which virtual staging company you choose. Many provide stunning results, while others can leave buyers unconvinced with less-than-realistic visuals. 

When deciding how best to showcase your next listing, don’t forget: realistic virtually staged photos are key!

Here are some common virtual staging mistakes:

• Misleading buyers: Failing to disclose that your images are virtually staged or provide buyers with clear before and after photos can be misleading and make them feel deceived. Buyers may expect the home to look the same as its listing photos, so don’t forget to disclose that you’ve virtually staged your listing photos.
• Going overboard: Make sure to use a provider that can create photo-realistic virtual staging images. Like traditional staging, you’ve to be careful not to overdo furniture and decorative elements in staged photos. Keep your staging simple and decluttered, which will leave room for imagination and cater to a broader audience.
• Using a DYI App: Falling for the temptation to use a DYI virtual staging App is a common mistake. Even though it may initially seem cheaper, it’ll cost you more money in the long run when your listing doesn’t get as much buyer interest because of unrealistic images.

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Make Your Listing Photos Stand Out With PhotoUp!

With over a decade in the industry and hundreds of professional photo editors in the U.S. and the Philippines, PhotoUp can help you create stunning real estate photos. 

PhotoUp’s virtual staging service can help buyers get an idea of what a home can look like with fresh and modern interiors, assisting them to make a quicker buying decision. 

The visualization and imagination power virtual staging offers is extremely powerful! 

Some buyers may even place an offer sight unseen or pay a premium price for the property when being able to see the home’s full potential. 

That said, our virtual staging services include:

• Virtual staging of vacant or furnished rooms
• Digital decluttering, repairs, and redecoration
• Color changes for walls, ceilings, and flooring
• Virtual twilight
• And virtual landscaping

Our extensive design library features 11 decor style options and 18 room types. There are also 21 design accessories to choose from. 

Featuring decor choices popular with today’s buyers, PhotoUp’s 11 interior design styles include:

• Mid-Century Modern
• Scandinavian
• Coastal
• Farmhouse
• Modern
• American
• Industrial
• Hamptons
• Luxury
• Southwestern
• And Commercial

Unlike some other services, our virtual staging service is super easy to use.

PhotoUp’s user-friendly software allows you to upload your images, choose furniture sets, add instructions, and then access your high-resolution images in just a day or two. 

PhotoUp Virtual Staging Demo

To see how easy it is to get started, check out our short virtual staging demo:

It’s really that easy!

Sign up for a free PhotoUp account today, and let our professional CAD designers create stunning real estate images to help your listing stand out from the competition for a quicker sale!

We hope this blog post answered the question of how Realtors do virtual real estate staging. If you enjoyed this post, you may want to check out the following resources as well:

• Is Virtual Staging Legal? MLS-Compliant Virtual Staging
• Best Virtual Staging Companies of 2025 (Rated & Compared)
• How to Virtually Stage a Room in Less Than 5 Minutes
• What Is Virtual Staging in Real Estate? (Examples Included)
• 10 Benefits of Virtual Staging for Estate Agents