Furniture for Home Staging

When Ed Kelly got a job in Chicago, he and wife Katie had little time to sell their house in Atlanta. They had to pack up and move, fast. They regretted having to take their furniture, knowing it would be harder to sell their home empty. So they thought the best thing to do would be to rent furniture for home staging. But they weren't happy with the results.

"The furniture was bland and the cost was high," says Ed. Renting furniture for home staging can run 30 percent of the cost of buying furniture new, so it's hardly a good deal. And on top of that, the pieces are usually beige microsuede and can look commercial-grade.

A wiser scenario for the Kellys might have been leaving behind some pieces and staging the home with a mix of their belongings and some specifically purchased furniture for home staging purposes.