Home staging: your balcony can increase the value of your home

Existing in less than 6% of real estates in France, the balcony keeps being a rare and highly prized item for buyers. After the several lockdowns that started in March 2020, many people living in cities realized the importance an outdoor space attached to your home can have. In the larger cities like Paris where the median size of apartments is below 50 square meters, having an outdoor space to get some fresh air without having to leave your house has become a luxurious element for some and a necessity to others.

In 2021, 35% of buyers see the balcony as an indispensable condition to acquiring a real estate in an urban area. In highly demanded areas, the real estates that benefit from a balcony are not negotiated anymore and the buyers are in direct concurrence to each other. Inevitably, the price of apartments with balconies rose through the ceilings and the balcony has become a real value-add.

It is estimated today that a balcony in Paris can engender up to 5.000€ per square meter, adding up to 50.000€ on the price of the apartment. Which, approximately, is the price at which an apartment is sold in more provincial areas! However, of course, the price depends on different criteria too:

• The location: a balcony looking over a court or a parc necessarily has more value than a balcony on top of a huge and noisy crossroad
• The floor of the apartment: balconies situated on higher floors are valorized much more than those situated on the first three floors
• The surface of the balcony: the smaller it is, the more the price per square meter increases and vice-versa
• The exposition of the balcony: a balcony receiving only a little sunshine is valorized less
• The state of the balcony: a well-maintained balcony, furnished with quality materials will be much more valorized than a balcony in raw concrete.

As for the rest of the home, the general aspect is determinant for buyers. Home staging on your balcony allows the buyers to immediately see and captivate the value it has.

These are our advices to maximize the value of your balcony:

• Clean it thoroughly by brooming the floors and cleaning the guardrails
• If you have not yet, add some lights
• If the surface allows for it, dispose some green plants to make it more friendly but also hide the view to the opposite neighbor and heighten the feeling of a private space
• Add furniture that is adapted to the available surface and make the buyers feel at home right away
• To give your balcony an extra touch, add an exotic wood floor which will give a high-end touch to your home and will elevate your balcony from the other standardized ones available on the market. As they are made to fit, no alterations have to be made on the original state of the balcony and it is adapted to co-ownership guidelines
• When possible, try and schedule viewings at the times the balcony is most exposed to sunshine

Example of a home staging on a balcony: an exotic wood floor was added, plants and furniture allow for an easy transformation of the balcony’s look and making it more inviting.