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central valley, ca between Fresno and Sacramento. Neighborhood has all grass yards, some trees
Do not put in river rock if grass is the norm in your neighborhood. You will stand out in a BAD way.
And doing cheap fixes will not get you top dollar.
If you really do not want to put any money into the house, then price it accordingly and be done with it. Focus on getting it as empty as possible (bonus: less to move!) and clean, clean, clean and then clean some more. Make it look well kept but priced to appeal to someone who wants to fix it up and get some sweat equity.
If you want to get top dollar, then you need to make it worth it to a buyer. Cheap fixes don't do that.
I had planned on just using a lava rock, or 2" river rock, whichever is cheapest for a yard.
So wrong.
Hire a landscape designer for 2 hours of advice ($200). Take lots of notes. Now, you know what to do. Plant trees/shrubs as soon as possible so they will be established and a bit larger in 2019.
You want someone to arrive at the curb and say: I want this house.
Cheap is not the way to go.
We are retiring January 2019 and plan on selling the house, then using the procedes to buy our retirement home. The house needs paint, flooring and a front yard. My question is this. Should I do this work, or either lower price by the amount of work needed, or give buyers back a "rebate" so to speak, after closing. My thoughts are, the buyers can choose what they like for these items,, not what I like. Or should I let the realtor advise me to use something they recommend?
I would definitely paint and in neutral colors. I would do the front yard. Curb appeal. I would put in inexpensive carpet, neutral, too. People decide on buying a particular house like in 2 minutes or something I read. First impressions are the only impressions that stick w/ a person. Why not make the first impression as awesome as you can?
Hire a landscape designer for 2 hours of advice ($200). Take lots of notes. Now, you know what to do. Plant trees/shrubs as soon as possible so they will be established and a bit larger in 2019.
You want someone to arrive at the curb and say: I want this house.
Cheap is not the way to go.
I agree. Unless the carpet is truly stained and horrible looking, putting in more cheap carpet isn't going to make people rush to buy the home. They might want to put in laminate or wood, so why waste money on carpet that the next buyer might not want. Just make sure the carpet and house are CLEAN. If the OP has lots of tchotchkes and stuff, that should be purged. If the walls are scratched, then they may need repainting. Magic eraser can get rid of lots of scuffs, however, if it is just a matter of a paint color not being "trendy" at this time. Not everyone wants World of Gray, so why waste money creating a World of Gray when you can just clean what you have to make it look presentable and get a nice lawn/landscaping out front to make people want to walk through the front door?
I agree. Unless the carpet is truly stained and horrible looking, putting in more cheap carpet isn't going to make people rush to buy the home. They might want to put in laminate or wood, so why waste money on carpet that the next buyer might not want. Just make sure the carpet and house are CLEAN. If the OP has lots of tchotchkes and stuff, that should be purged. If the walls are scratched, then they may need repainting. Magic eraser can get rid of lots of scuffs, however, if it is just a matter of a paint color not being "trendy" at this time. Not everyone wants World of Gray, so why waste money creating a World of Gray when you can just clean what you have to make it look presentable and get a nice lawn/landscaping out front to make people want to walk through the front door?
definitely needs paint, carpet thrashed, putting in laminate floors
One interesting thing our realtor (and some agents on the "caravan") told us was to take down our window treatments. This surprised me because all of them were neutral, simple, and the main rooms custom made. I asked our realtor about that and she said most younger buyers wanted uncurtained windows.
Our house was squeaky clean and we had fixed everything that was not in perfect repair. The walls and carpet were neutral. We had the carpet cleaned even though it was older. Realtor said not to replaced because buyers might want to replace with hardwood. One finished basement room needed painting, and we did that.
We cleared the wooded backyard of all vines, weeds, dead branches. We trimmed all bushes.
Another thing we did was replace all the doorknobs with new brushed nickel ones.
The house was 23 years old. We sold it in one day on the market with three offers.
Be aware you should do all this before you retire. It's hard to move and get a mortgage when you don't have an income.
When we fixed up one house, we charged flooring and installation on our Home Depot Card which is interest free for what. . . A year? It's easy to do. They handle all the ordering, measuring, and installing. I bet they'd also do all the painting. Just ask.
I would think the peak time to put your house on the market is now. People are done with kids in school and looking to move before school starts back up. At least that's the way it is in the Houston area. Homes are selling like hot cakes.
definitely needs paint, carpet thrashed, putting in laminate floors
Then definitely paint. And I would replace carpet with carpet, not laminate. Laminate just looks cheap. Yes, I know carpet can be cheap too, but new carpet doesn't feel that way. And if I want to replace one them down he road, it's easier to replace carpet.
just start watching your market. see what similar sized homes sell for the high-end, and on the low-end. As someone said earlier, go to open houses nearby - comparable to yours or not. See what sells and what doesn't.
Right now, yours will sell on the low end, unless you believe the value is in the land.
One interesting thing our realtor (and some agents on the "caravan") told us was to take down our window treatments. This surprised me because all of them were neutral, simple, and the main rooms custom made. I asked our realtor about that and she said most younger buyers wanted uncurtained windows.
Our house was squeaky clean and we had fixed everything that was not in perfect repair. The walls and carpet were neutral. We had the carpet cleaned even though it was older. Realtor said not to replaced because buyers might want to replace with hardwood. One finished basement room needed painting, and we did that.
We cleared the wooded backyard of all vines, weeds, dead branches. We trimmed all bushes.
Another thing we did was replace all the doorknobs with new brushed nickel ones.
The house was 23 years old. We sold it in one day on the market with three offers.
2nd paragraph was what im thinking, interesting about first paragraph, we have all custom shades, not the el cheapo white ones, either.
All good tips, much to consider in the next 12 months or so
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