SHS Home Staging Certification Course FAQ
Do I need a design or real estate background to take the course?
No, you don’t need any prior knowledge. SHS home staging certification courses are designed for beginners to learn everything needed for starting a home staging career.
Is it possible to learn home staging via an online course?
Yes! Your instructor has been teaching this way for about 15 years. Through the course material and your hands-on exercises and assignments, you’ll get a home staging education that’s as good as (or better) than in-person seminars. Through our method, you’ll get more hands-on time and more practice.
How will I know what to do when I start staging rooms in clients’ homes?
Our home staging checklist will guide you through the process and our course material will flesh out the details.
Do you need to be certified to be a home stager?
The short answer is no, you do not.
There simply isn’t a certification or accreditation that’s required in the home staging industry.
But as a new professional starting out, you’ll find that certification can definitely be a useful marketing tool.
Some agents that you network with might ask if you’re certified, but most home sellers will be more concerned with your professionalism and your portfolio rather than which specific accreditation, designation, or credential you have earned.
These credentials can help your business by boosting your confidence and helping you feel like you’re really ready to go pro. Which home staging certification course you take is really up to you.
What is a certified home stager?
Home staging certification is not standardized across the industry.
Different schools have their own standards for certification programs, therefore the training varies from program to program. The standards by which students are evaluated also vary from program to program.
A school might certify a student for attending and completing the program, without carefully evaluating the student’s work. At SHS we make sure students are ready for the field with our final exam process. No matter where the certification comes from, the term “certified home stager” refers to a student who has received a certification from a staging school.
How much can you make as a home stager?
You can also earn a very good living as a home stager. Home stagers generally charge $75 per hour and up for their services. Rates vary depending on your area and can be as high as $150 to $200 per hour.
You don’t have to make it your full-time job to reap the financial rewards that this business offers. If you decide that you just want to take on a few staging jobs or consultations per month as extra income, your earnings can add up quickly.
If you want to go big with your business, you can make it happen with home staging. Here’s an article for inspiration.
Is the certification recognized in Canada?
Yes, the certification is recognized in the US and Canada as well as other countries.
How much does it cost to become a certified home stager?
You don’t have to overspend on your certification. While there are good programs for you if you’re able to spend $1000 or more, it’s not necessary to spend that much money on your certification.
Who is the instructor?
SHS founder and instructor Carrie Miller was one of the first to be involved with online home staging training starting back in 2005.
Seeking to design a new program and re-brand, 2016 Carrie sold her top-ranked online home staging training company, which had built a reputation as one of the most established and well-regarded staging schools on the internet.
Running her former school was fun, busy, and very demanding, and eventually a change was in order. Having taught thousands of students, she put her knowledge and experience into designing a new program.
School of Home Staging launched in 2017 with the goal of providing more individual time per student. SHS takes on a limited number of certification students per month in order to maintain the level of personal attention that we provide.
Carrie still loves going through the entire training process with new stagers and has taken a lot of pride over the years in watching students blossom and then go out and crush it with their new skills!
One of her favorite stories is about a student who had staging work shown on an HGTV show within weeks of completing training. Student success stories are one of the reasons she loves being an instructor.
Is this a webinar-based course?
No, there are no webinars in our program. The course material is delivered via a PDF document that you can easily read on your computer, tablet, or smartphone.
How long does it take to complete the course?
Our courses are self-paced. Students who use evenings and/or weekends to move through the course have an average completion time frame of 2-3 weeks.
What do I need for completing the certification exam?
To complete our certification course, you’ll need access to room in your home or a friend/relative’s home that you can use for completing staging work for before and after photos. Note: during the current pandemic situation we understand that you may not be able to leave your home. We want you to stay home and stay safe. You can submit your before and afters using your own home and if you don’t have enough rooms to work with to meet what the exam asks for, just let us know. We’ll work with whatever you’re able to do.
You will need a camera (cell phone cameras work great) so you can photograph your work. And you’ll need email access for submitting your exam for review.
More information on our home staging certification course.