When you show off your house, you want to make sure to put your best foot forward. Houses that are cluttered with dated furniture can really hurt a houses' ability to sell quickly. Clutter also makes your house seem smaller than it truly is.
Some people make the executive decision to clean the house, declutter and remove extra furniture and equipment because it makes their house seem more open, more fresh, and up to date, given that their furniture is not very outdated. Others chose to remove all furniture and move out of a house to make it look more like an open book and they feel that a house without furniture allows people to use their imagination to fill a space. It can be hard sometimes, however, to visualize what a room would look like without a little furniture, so having something in a room is often better than nothing. While others choose to go the route of staging their house so that their house has a well decorated, up to date look for showings. 77% of buyer's agents would say that staging or some sort of furniture helps their buyers visualize the staged property as their future home. The downside to staging is that there is extra cost involved to go this route. It doesn't hurt to get a couple opinions about what choice works best for you. One way or the other, Sage would tend to lean towards having some furniture in the house over having an empty house because it gives the buyers and idea of how people live in it. At the end of the day, this is a decision that the seller must make. Regardless, you should at least clean the house and declutter to make it look its best for the professional photos and for showings. That way, you are putting your best foot forward and presenting your house in its best light.