How much does a Home Staging Business cost to buy?

A typical Home Staging Business sells for 2.1x to 3.5x seller's discretionary earnings. With estimated SDE of $137K, expect to pay roughly $287K to $478K before adjustments for assets, debt, growth, and local market quality.

How much does it cost to start a Home Staging Business?

Startup costs range from $40K to $250K depending on location, equipment, and scale.

Service

Home Staging Business

Q: What are the profit margins for a Home Staging Business?

The average profit margin for a Home Staging Business is around 21%. Key costs are inventory purchases, storage, movers or installers, vehicles, cleaning and repair, and account-management labor. Returns improve when inventory turns quickly and high-performing realtor channels stay active.

Furniture in, photos out, house sold, repeat

Bottom line

Worth studying, but do not buy without strong local proof.

Home staging businesses furnish and style homes so listings photograph better, sell faster, and support higher asking prices. While it looks design-heavy, the real engine is logistics, warehouse inventory, realtor relationships, and repeat local deal flow. BizQuest and BizBuySell both show active demand for established staging operators, and the surprising angle is that this niche behaves more like an inventory-light logistics business than a creative agency once systems are in place.

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Acquisition score

Fair

Avg Revenue

$650K

Profit Margin

21%

Acquisition Multiple

2.1x - 3.5x

Startup Cost

$40K - $250K

How It Works

The company builds referral relationships with realtors, builders, flippers, and homeowners, then stages vacant or occupied homes using owned inventory and warehouse stock. Revenue comes from staging fees, monthly furniture rental extensions, consults, and occasional furnishings resale when inventory is refreshed.

Revenue Range

Low End

$250K

Typical

$650K

High End

$1.5M

Real Acquisitions in This Category

SBA 7(a) change-of-ownership loans · NAICS 541410 · Interior Design Services

Deals tracked

25 in last 24 mo

Median loan

$496K

$220K–$1000K p25/p75

Implied deal size

$583K

median · ~85% LTV

Charge-off rate

—

not enough resolved loans

Deal Size Distribution

<$150K

$150K–500K

$500K–1M

$1M–2M

>$2M

Deal Flow Over Time

12-month momentum

-33.3%

deal volume vs prior 12 mo

Median loan Δ

-56.7%

10 recent · 15 prior

Financing Profile

Median rate

9.65%

4% fixed · last 24 mo

Median term

120 mo

standard 10-yr

Collateralized

of loans secured

Median jobs

supported per deal

Top lenders in this space

Live Oak Banking Company4

Firstrust Savings Bank2

First Internet Bank of Indiana2

The Bancorp Bank National Association2

Fulton Bank, National Association2

Where deals happen

OH6

VA4

FL4

WA4

CA3

TX3

AZ3

DE3

MD2

TN2

Recent Comparable Deals

Closed	State	Loan	Implied deal	Jobs	Franchise
Jan 2026	TN	$301K	$354K	7	—
Dec 2025	WA	$1.2M	$1.4M	7	—
Nov 2025	AZ	$3.4M	$4.0M	25	—
Sep 2025	TX	$531K	$625K	5	—
Sep 2025	FL	$1.2M	$1.4M	8	—
Aug 2025	CA	$330K	$389K	5	—
Jun 2025	VA	$777K	$914K	8	—
Jun 2025	DE	$233K	$274K	3	—
Jun 2025	DE	$50K	$59K	3	—
May 2025	TX	$307K	$361K	3	—

Volume rank #126/544Deal-size rank #402/544Momentum rank #280p90 loan: $1.9MData as of Mar 2026

Source: SBA 7(a) FOIA dataset, filtered to acquisitions (loans where business age is "Change of Ownership"). Implied deal size assumes an 85% loan-to-purchase ratio, a common SBA change-of-ownership structure. Charge-off rate shown only when 10+ loans have resolved (paid in full or charged off). Interest rates reflect last 24 months only. Actual deal values vary with equity injections, seller financing, and working capital terms.

Pros

+Strong referral loops with local realtors and brokers
+Inventory can be reused repeatedly across projects
+Benefits from housing turnover without heavy fixed labor
+Easy to see before-and-after value in marketing

Cons

-Housing slowdowns can reduce volume
-Warehouse, delivery, and damage management matter
-Can look creative but actually requires serious operational discipline

Best For

Operators who like local referral businesses with logistics and visual marketing leverage

Operating Costs

Key costs are inventory purchases, storage, movers or installers, vehicles, cleaning and repair, and account-management labor. Returns improve when inventory turns quickly and high-performing realtor channels stay active.

SBA Financing Estimator

Adjust the deal — see if it cash flows after debt service

$-185/mo

after debt service

Deal price — $1.0M

Range: $1.0M (2.1×) to $2.9M (3.5×+)

Down payment — 15% ($156K)

SBA minimum equity injection is 10% for change-of-ownership

Interest rate — 9.75%

SBA median for this category: 9.7%

Loan term — 10 years (120 mo)

SBA median for this category: 120 months

Down payment

$156K

15% equity injection

Loan amount

$884K

85% SBA-financed

Monthly payment

$12K/mo

$503K total interest

Monthly profit

$11K/mo

at 21% margin

Monthly cash flow after debt service

$-185/mo

Margin does not cover debt service at these terms. Lower the deal price, increase the down payment, or extend the loan term.

Estimates only. Excludes owner compensation, capex, working capital draws, and taxes. Margin assumes average occupancy and volume. Actual SBA terms vary by lender and borrower profile.