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just had a general question. I am going to be selling a condo in hagerstown, MD very soon. I bought it a few years ago in poor condition for $63k. I spent like $5k updating the appliances, and I am about to spend a few grand more to get new floors, cabinets, and countertops. this isn't a flip, I am just trying to do all the big stuff for the next buyer. after I get the big stuff done, the place is still gonna need cosmetic repairs and paint. my question is should I spend money doing minor repairs and painting the place, or should I offer cash at closing for those tasks. I would hate to spend a grand pretending I knew what colors the prospective buyers would like.
Make it look nice and well maintained, first impressions matter . It sets the tone of what the rest of the house is like in the prospective buyers mind.
Make it look nice and well maintained, first impressions matter . It sets the tone of what the rest of the house is like in the prospective buyers mind.
I just didn't want to go too overboard on a condo that's probably going to sell in the $80k range. but making it look presentable is probably the best bet.
Not to be overly pendantic but curb appeal is literally that - what people can see from the curb. Meaning from the outside and if it looks bad on a drive by, they might not even bother with a showing.
But as to whether first impressions matter, they do. A house that looks shabby may also be presumed to be in bad repair. And particularly at a lower price point, when you say it would sell for about 80K, the accurate way to determine comps will be for units in a similar condition. A unit in poor condition will sell for less than one that has been fixed up a bit. And unfortunately, even if you've taken care of the pick ticket items, your condo won't show as well if it still needs fresh paint and carpet. It sounds like you are going to be spending somewhere around 8,000-10,000. It's kind of foolish to hold out on another 10% which is going to make your condo look fully done over. Just go with neutrals, and someone who has very specific tastes can do things over to their own style. But if you want to get top dollar, people will be expecting a move in ready unit, where they don't have to do anything.
Have your future listing agent take you around to a few other condo units that are currently listed, so you can see how your unit measures up to those.
just had a general question. I am going to be selling a condo in hagerstown, MD very soon. I bought it a few years ago in poor condition for $63k. I spent like $5k updating the appliances, and I am about to spend a few grand more to get new floors, cabinets, and countertops. this isn't a flip, I am just trying to do all the big stuff for the next buyer. after I get the big stuff done, the place is still gonna need cosmetic repairs and paint. my question is should I spend money doing minor repairs and painting the place, or should I offer cash at closing for those tasks. I would hate to spend a grand pretending I knew what colors the prospective buyers would like.
Make it move in ready but don't spend a fortune. Use neutral colors. Whites, off whites, tans, beige.
Curb appeal means the outside.
If it's not a flip and the area hasn't gone up in value and you have to sell don't throw any money at it.
Personally I'd suggest you reverse your order of changes. Spend the money on neutral paint and fix the minor things. Floors, cabinets, and countertops are pricier and involve more "pretending" you know what a prospective buyer wants than neutral paint and minor repairs.
I'd say repair any glaring problems. If the price is right buyers are willing to overlook some flaws but if the problems pile up suddenly their potential new home turns into "what else is wrong with this dump" ?
Painting is cheap if you do it yourself and a clean neutral slate is what buyers are looking for.
An easy way to gain curb appeal or in your case interior appeal is to clean up any clutter and essentially stage your condo.
Remove personal photos etc.. and turn your home into the cover of a magazine. It is not easy to live like that but it will give a wow factor for your buyers.
Bedding is also important. Silly yes but if someone sees a well made bed it makes them want to jump in for a nap.
If your agent is good they can tell you what to do and not to do for a quick sale at the terms you want.
Curb appeal DOES NOT apply to "interior items" BUT if the CONDO COMPLEX looks shabby from the outside there IS NOTHING that an individual unit owner can do on their own to fix that problem!
Biggest "bang for buck" is always from CLEANING THE PLACE UP!
After cleaning the place it makes sense to "freshen up" the interior with NEUTRAL paint and maybe minor surface changes (replace WORN OUT carpet / flooring).
The money on "new appliances" sounds like it was already spent and thus can't be undone but the OP needs to STOP THINKING about "doing all the big stuff for the next owner" if they really care about getting positive return on their expenditures!!!
The OP is 100% correct that it is impossible to know about things like favorite colors of prospective buyers a few years down the road. That said if the place CURRENTLY "needs cosmetic repairs and paint" it ABSOLUTELY MAKES SENSE to prioritize those things that are UGLY / BROKEN / EASY TO FIX!!! Paint colors that are "overly personalized" means it if is not "light and bright" you will turn off buyers so by all means, change to neutral colors!
I also know that what is one person's "cosmetic" repairs could very well be a deal killer for an inexperienced buyer and frankly even professionals that buy condos as investment will use the obvious "cosmetic issues" to get BIG price reductions from sellers. It thus makes no sense to put off such things especially if the OP has a bug up their butt to do things like floors / cabinets / counters which will show wear pretty quickly and massively dilute the value of such upgrades.
FINALLY the OP really needs to STEP BACK and make some hard decisions about WHO IS LIKELY to be shopping for this place when the OP is ready to sell -- the fact that is was a very modest sum to spend on the acquisition could be a RED FLAG -- that might mean they got a heckuva a deal but more likely it means this whole complex is simply NOT very desirable and ANYTHING they do might be a terrible use of their hard earned cash. I have seen many foolish folks fail to understand that condos are often TERRIBLE INVESTMENTS because the relative "premium" you can get for a "move in ready unit" is constrained by the competition of the WORST unit for sale in the complex! There are some exceptions, like for resort area condos and high rises where a unit with "skyline views" might be worth turning into a showplace, but in general the smart move for a low priced condo is to try to keep it AFFORDABLE for the next potential modest buyer...
Make it look nice and well maintained, first impressions matter . It sets the tone of what the rest of the house is like in the prospective buyers mind.
When I bought my house, I did a drive by of every house I might be interested in.
Many houses got eliminated because of poor "curb appeal".
Once a house got scratched from my list, it no longer was one I wanted my realtor to show me.
"curb appeal" helps get people to step their feet into a house for a further look.
Maybe flippers couldn't care less about "curb appeal" but most people buying a house of their own might.
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