Virtual staging is quickly supplanting physical staging as a multifamily industry standard, based on benefits like cost savings, flexibility and more.
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When it comes to providing an ultra-realistic sense of a home or apartment’s genuine potential, the next best thing to being there is virtual staging. Multifamily developers are increasingly relying on this tech-driven capability to help them differentiate theirs from other residential products. Virtually staged models, including some with immersive and 3D components, are fast supplanting professional renderings as an industry standard.
“Though companies have a laundry list of innovations to choose from, many are turning to augmented reality and virtual reality to better promote their products,” says Lindsay Dillon, vice president of strategic partnerships and marketing for San Jose, Calif.-based virtual staging, CGI and 3D modeling platform roOomy. ”Real estate is no exception.”
The evidence is in the ballooning numbers. Valued at $3.33 billion in 2015, augmented reality is expected to be a $133.78 billion business by 2021. VR/AR technology makes it possible for would-be buyers or renters to visualize the residence they are considering. That ability to imagine or envision a prospective home is extremely valuable. According to a report from the National Association of Realtors, 77% of buyers’ agents reported staging a home made it easier for a buyer to visualize the property as a future home.
Beyond the visualization capabilities, virtual staging offers a number of other upsides.
Cost savings
Virtual staging can enable developers to generate greater revenues by selling or renting additional residences. But it also benefits them on the expense side. That’s because physically staging a model involves substantial expenditures. By contrast, virtual staging often costs as little as having a set of staging furniture delivered and picked up. Virtual staging can also replace model units, enabling those units to go back into inventory to be sold or rented and contribute to net operating income.
In apartment communities, leasing teams typically lose $20,000 to $24,000 a year by dedicating a model unit for tours by prospective residents. That number is based on average monthly rental costs of a one-bedroom unit as a live residence rather than a model. Add to that the typical $3,000 cost of renting a physical staging product set for a one-bedroom apartment, and the lost revenue and cost of physical staging looms large.
Multiple staging options
Virtual staging is very scalable. Developers with multiple multifamily projects in markets nationwide, each with unique character and different unit layout blends, are able to present distinctive staging for the units and layouts available. No longer is it necessary to physically stage, say, a one-bedroom unit and ask prospective renters or buyers interested in studios or two-bedrooms to base their visualization on a different sized unit. Each of the three unit sizes can be showcased in virtually staged versions. Virtual staging can present an open-floor concept with minimal design just as well as it can a more opulent featuring grand entryways and statement pieces.
Creating immersive experiences
The evolution of AR/VR technology continues to advance virtual staging’s capabilities. That makes prospective residents’ experiences increasingly realistic. It can allow developers to do more with virtual staging. Would-be residents can virtually “walk through” an apartment or condominium and interact with that unit.
In RoOomy’s virtual staged models, for instance, prospects can shop while touring, clicking on furnishings and products they like during the tour. Everything seen in the vignettes can be bought, investing the experience with a greater sense of interactivity.
“Multifamily properties cater to a very diverse demographic of potential residents,” said Taylor Wilding, director of business development for the company. “Virtual staging presents a huge opportunity for developers to showcase the peak potential of the various units in their portfolios.”