Why Your Empty NYC Apartment Isn’t Selling (And No, Virtual Staging Doesn’t Count)

Why Your Empty NYC Apartment Isn’t Selling (And No, Virtual Staging Doesn’t Count)
By Someone Who’s Watched Enough House Hunters to Have Opinions: Me.

Alright, gather round, homeowners of New York City. You’ve got an apartment. It’s stunning. Location? Prime. Views? Unobstructed. Closet space? Ha! But here’s the problem: it’s sitting on the market longer than that sourdough starter you abandoned in 2020. Why? Because it’s empty. And empty homes are like unbuttered toast—technically fine, but no one’s craving them.

Let’s talk about staging—the magical art of making people believe that they too can own a velvet accent chair and light their Diptyque candle while sipping pinot and watching the skyline from their Tribeca terrace.

First, the Data (Because I Didn’t Just Come Here to Be Funny)

• Staged homes in NYC sell 73% faster than unstaged homes. Yes, seventy. Three. Percent. That’s almost Kardashian-level performance.
  
  

• On average, staged properties sell for 6-10% more than comparable unstaged listings, according to the Real Estate Staging Association.
  
  

• Zillow data shows virtually staged listings get fewer in-person viewings—because buyers feel duped when they walk into what looks like a Craigslist free-section listing.
  
  

Why Empty Apartments Don’t Sell Themselves

Picture it: you’re walking into a gorgeous, $4 million Chelsea loft… and it feels like a cavernous, echo-filled break room. Without furniture, buyers can’t visualize where their bed goes, where the couch would sit, or if they can actually fit a dining table without needing to eat over the sink. Most buyers (read: 90%) can’t picture spatial layout on their own. These are people who need IKEA instructions to assemble a chair. Help them out.

Unfurnished listings feel cold. Uninviting. Lonely. Like they were last inhabited by a vampire who left in a hurry.

But What About Virtual Staging?

Ah, yes. The budget-friendly, Photoshop-dependent cousin of real staging. Look, I love a good digital makeover as much as the next gal who’s filtered out her eye bags for a headshot, but virtual staging is a band-aid on a brownstone.

Here’s why it flops:

• It’s misleading. What looks like a beautifully furnished living room online turns out to be a sad echo chamber IRL. That kills emotional connection.
  
  

• Buyers are disappointed. Studies show they’re 35% more likely to pass on a listing when what they saw online doesn’t match the in-person experience.
  
  

• Agents lose credibility. No one wants to feel catfished by a $5 million listing.
  
  

The Emotional Science of Selling

Staging isn’t just decorating—it’s emotional manipulation, and I mean that in the best way. You’re selling a fantasy: the dream of the NYC lifestyle, the “I-make-my-own-hours-and-host-wine-tastings” vibe. You can’t sell that with bare walls and mystery outlets.

What to Do Instead

• Hire a professional stager. They’ll bring in furniture scaled for NYC spaces (because your West Elm sectional isn’t fitting in that pre-war one-bed).
  
  

• Use warm lighting and neutral tones. No one wants to walk into a lime green explosion unless they’re auditioning for Bravo.
  
  

• Show how each room is used. If it can be an office, stage it as one. If it can be a nursery, you’d better get a crib in there stat. (Even if it’s only for a dog. Honestly, especially if it’s for a dog.)
  
  

Final Thought

In New York, you’re not just selling square footage. You’re selling a lifestyle, a mood, a dream—and dreams don’t come true in a vacant echo chamber. So stage your apartment like it’s going to the Met Gala. Because buyers? They need to fall in love. And love takes furniture.

Want help making your listing look like a Nancy Meyers movie instead of an abandoned WeWork? Call me. I’ve got staging teams, real candles, and a lot of opinions.

Love,

Kelly