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All very good advice here...I too have been updating my home for 2 years...We have made some mistakes in our selection of materials. Most notably we went with Pergo laminate flooring in the den kitchen and dining room...big mistake. It looks awful and the individual boards do not stay together at the ends...So my advice is to go with a much higher end laminate if you decide that route at all. Another point no one has mentioned is that if you are having a realtor sell your home,they typically know what colors and materials are most desirable. In doing my home I did it with the idea of what I liked and not so much what others might like. Your home is really very nice and looks to be in pretty good condition overall... Your price is similar to what we are looking to spend once we move to Raliegh. Although I have heard taxes are higher in Wake county than they are in surrounding counties like Johnston...
All very good advice here...I too have been updating my home for 2 years...We have made some mistakes in our selection of materials. Most notably we went with Pergo laminate flooring in the den kitchen and dining room...big mistake. It looks awful and the individual boards do not stay together at the ends...So my advice is to go with a much higher end laminate if you decide that route at all. Another point no one has mentioned is that if you are having a realtor sell your home,they typically know what colors and materials are most desirable. In doing my home I did it with the idea of what I liked and not so much what others might like. Your home is really very nice and looks to be in pretty good condition overall... Your price is similar to what we are looking to spend once we move to Raliegh. Although I have heard taxes are higher in Wake county than they are in surrounding counties like Johnston...
The realtor has suggested some of the color ideas, but not as many as I'd have hoped. I'll press him some more.
Yes, Wake County taxes are higher than some neighboring counties, but it's all relative. Coming from Joisey, you might find them all to be "insanely cheap."
The realtor has suggested some of the color ideas, but not as many as I'd have hoped. I'll press him some more.
Yes, Wake County taxes are higher than some neighboring counties, but it's all relative. Coming from Joisey, you might find them all to be "insanely cheap."
Indeed we will but we are so leary and weary of taxes that we want to lower them to the extent possible...We very much like Clayton or Angier and we have found many homes well within the $160K limit we have set for ourselves. For the short term we plan to rent a beautiful apt. in Raleigh and use that as our base of operations. Good luck on selling your home..I dont think you'll have much trouble doing so.
All very good advice here...I too have been updating my home for 2 years...We have made some mistakes in our selection of materials. Most notably we went with Pergo laminate flooring in the den kitchen and dining room...big mistake. It looks awful and the individual boards do not stay together at the ends...So my advice is to go with a much higher end laminate if you decide that route at all. Another point no one has mentioned is that if you are having a realtor sell your home,they typically know what colors and materials are most desirable. In doing my home I did it with the idea of what I liked and not so much what others might like. Your home is really very nice and looks to be in pretty good condition overall... Your price is similar to what we are looking to spend once we move to Raliegh. Although I have heard taxes are higher in Wake county than they are in surrounding counties like Johnston...
I think the OP is getting some pretty darn good advice from two Realtors already!
I just wanted to post an update for those who were curious. So far things are going well. After talking to the company doing the carpet for me, I decided to go with a solid, neutral (and nicer/fluffier) carpet than the "speckled" look I had wanted before. The realtor concurred.
Also, I decided to replace the vinyl in both bathrooms, the entire 55 square foot hardwood floors in the foyer (the stuff I put in is nicer than what was there, and of course not scratched up like the old stuff either), and repaint the entire interior from floor to ceiling and fix all nail pops, holes, etc.
The exterior fascia boards are next, along with a full exterior repaint including all windows, window trim, siding, house trim, doors, shutters, and even the mail box. Tomorrow I'll go over and try to work the oil stains out of the driveway, pressure wash the deck and HVAC compressor unit outside, and take notes for replacing all of the interior light fixtures and knobs.
We are going to try and list it on MLS before Thanksgiving to hopefully get more traffic. Judging by the other two houses for sale in the same neighborhood I think I have a winner here, especially after what will end up being a full "refresh" except for the kitchen floor and counter tops.
I'll post some fresh, shiny pics when everything is done.
I just wanted to post an update for those who were curious. So far things are going well. After talking to the company doing the carpet for me, I decided to go with a solid, neutral (and nicer/fluffier) carpet than the "speckled" look I had wanted before. The realtor concurred.
Also, I decided to replace the vinyl in both bathrooms, the entire 55 square foot hardwood floors in the foyer (the stuff I put in is nicer than what was there, and of course not scratched up like the old stuff either), and repaint the entire interior from floor to ceiling and fix all nail pops, holes, etc.
The exterior fascia boards are next, along with a full exterior repaint including all windows, window trim, siding, house trim, doors, shutters, and even the mail box. Tomorrow I'll go over and try to work the oil stains out of the driveway, pressure wash the deck and HVAC compressor unit outside, and take notes for replacing all of the interior light fixtures and knobs.
We are going to try and list it on MLS before Thanksgiving to hopefully get more traffic. Judging by the other two houses for sale in the same neighborhood I think I have a winner here, especially after what will end up being a full "refresh" except for the kitchen floor and counter tops.
I'll post some fresh, shiny pics when everything is done.
You and me both. I've negotiated some excellent pricing for the work I'm hiring out and doing quite a bit myself, but it's still several thousand dollars for all of this, so I hope I get some of that back in a quick sale for a good asking price. I am sure the new buyers will love the place, and I'm still leaving some room for reasonable upgrades if they want.
My wife and I love the house and would have no problems living in it ourselves. It's got a great floorplan. I will miss it - it was my easiest one to rent, never on the market very long and always renting for the most $ per square foot of my houses.
The house has now sold, so its now acceptable for me to post the follow-up photos of what I did to renovate and update the house. The major points are all new carpet, new foyer hardwoods (upgraded to nicer quality), all new light fixtures and fans, all new cabinet knobs, new bathroom vinyl floors, full interior trim and wall and ceiling paint, full exterior siding and trim paint, including new fascia boards, landscaping (tree and bush trimming, etc), and pressure washing of rear deck and driveway/walkway. I think it came out very nice. Sold in under 3 weeks for full asking price, too!
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