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Interior design is the art and science of creating spaces that are functional and inspiring. The intent of interior design is to create a mood, feeling, and aesthetic that the inhabitants desire.

Home staging, both residential and commercial, is a way of styling, using psychological design techniques to entice interest and, most importantly, sell. Retail stores create their packaging and merchandise their stores in a similar way to people furnishing and staging their homes for a quick sale. Professional stagers use their design skills to accentuate the most promising features of every home. The style of residential staging may not be how you would necessarily live in a space but gives an idea of how the space could be used—both inspirationally and aspirationally.

Not all designers are created equal. Services, skills and processes differ. At a Finn & Sparrow consultation, we take care to listen earnestly and establish the vision and style you are going for, the scope of your project – considering longer-term ideas that may impact the most efficient and cost-effective recommendations. We educate along the way, collaborate, and establish a budget upfront. And, if you don't have a vision yet and are ready for something new, Finn & Sparrow is happy to paint one for you.

Many factors are considered to determine the price of staging a home—the size of the home, whether it is occupied or vacant, the scope of the stage (number of rooms), how much furniture is required, distance between the home and the stager, among others. In a 2021 RESA (Real Estate Staging Association) survey, the average staging cost of 1.7% resulted in a 7.1% ROI. In a 2021 survey of 4,600 properties, 73% sold over the list price. Staged homes, on average, sold for $40,000 over the list price and sold approximately nine days faster than the average days on the market.

Finn & Sparrow is building a specialty in bathrooms and kitchens. We handle one room at a time or many and offer services for new builds, rebuilds, and redesign in Eden Prairie, MN, the Twin Cities metro, and custom locations.

When homeowners live in the property during the home sale, occupied staging can be ideal. Often we can use much or some of the homeowners' belongings to style and stage the home for photography and open houses. Occupied staging pricing can be less than vacant if there are enough furnishings for the stage. Commonly, stagers do not bring their furnishings into occupied homes for sanitary and safety reasons. Finn & Sparrow provides styling services that curate and reposition existing furnishings for maximum impact. As needed, product recommendations are made for homeowners to purchase to maximize their home sale.

When homeowners have transferred, already moved out of a location, or are otherwise not living at the location, the staging is referred to as vacant. This often requires more work and more significant expenses. Vacant staging pricing includes design, furniture rental, project management, delivery, labor installation, and de-stage. What is E-Design? Electronic Design, or E-Design, are interior design services performed entirely online. Traditional design services have been in person, but E-Design enables long-distance partnerships, allows for health safety precautions, and provides greater personal preference in design delivery. 

A short-term rental is a furnished living space available for short periods of time, typically from one day to one month, and is considered an alternative to a hotel. A property rented longer than a month is usually considered a long-term vacation rental. Airbnb rentals are considered a short-term rental strategy as they are usually rented for up to one month. 

Like any attorney will tell you, it depends. There is no consistency across the practices of retailers and wholesalers. Some provide discounts to designers, and others do not. Retailers that give discounts to designers leave it to the designer's discretion whether they will pass it on or share it. Finn & Sparrow passes it on and shares discounts depending on the vendor source.

Debatably, decorators are not necessarily certified or accredited. Designers have been formally educated in their industry and trade. Organizations such as ASID and RESA are a place to promote education and excellence in their respective fields. Such trade associations hold their member service providers to a code of ethics and support regulation in the industry. Finn & Sparrow has a B.S. in Applied Design, a Certification in Residential Staging, Color Consultation Expert, E-Design, and is a current member and prior president of the RESA (Real Estate Staging Association) Minneapolis Chapter. Kim Aldrin has 30 years of Marketing experience at Target Corporation as an Art Director and Operations Manager, among other roles, and is Six Sigma Green Belt Certified.

Finn & Sparrow is based in Eden Prairie, MN., and serves the Western suburbs of the Twin Cities metro area in person and provides virtual, E-design services locally, abroad, and in approved custom locations.