Which renovations are a smart investment before selling? (Framingham: power lines, selling a home)

[msRB311]

I noticed light blue cabinets has been popular as well.

[G-fused]

Do not listen to people here about this question! Ask your realtor and listen to them. A good realtor will look at your place and know this much better than any of us, it is what they do for a living and one of the values they provide. They are in tune with what buyers want so let them advise you and stage the place.

Best of luck.

[Beachcomber4]

Depends on your price point. What someone is willing to take on at $450K is different than what is expected for $500 K +.

People want clean. They also want to be able to move right in.
If you can do LVT flooring and paint, do it.

[msRB311]

Originally Posted by G-fused

Do not listen to people here about this question! Ask your realtor and listen to them. A good realtor will look at your place and know this much better than any of us, it is what they do for a living and one of the values they provide. They are in tune with what buyers want so let them advise you and stage the place.

Best of luck.

People who have been through the buying and selling process certain know what’s up. Realtors aren’t the only ones who know. They also don’t always have the seller/buyers best interest so this is strange advice.

[BostonMike7]

If you are in a condo building, there's likely 1 or 2 realtors who tend to sell/buy in the building you are in.

I would speak to them. They know what is selling, and what buyers are looking for. You really need a custom tailored answer to this in terms what units are selling for what money with what upgrades and such.

It doesn't make sense to drop $50k on a new kitchen if it only makes you another $10K or so of asking price. Or perhaps the building is all original and having an updated unit would be an outlier and allow you to get more money on your sale.

A realtor who has knowledge on your building will have these answers.


If it was me, I wouldn't put a cent into the place and just keep your money in your pocket and sell.

[G-fused]

Originally Posted by msRB311

People who have been through the buying and selling process certain know what’s up. Realtors aren’t the only ones who know. They also don’t always have the seller/buyers best interest so this is strange advice.

Definitely not strange advice. Realtors are the experts on this, not the Buyers and Sellers. A realtor's job is to represent their Buyer/Seller. Taht's like saying if you know how to add you can give better advice than an accountant.

Yes, they have their own interests too for sure but those interests align pretty well with their clients' interests. And the key is having a good realtor, one that you trust. There are realtors who now come in with their own furniture, light fixtures, artwork, etc. to stage a house for their client and those places end up selling for a lot more than expected because they know how to stage a place for what is attractive to Buyers.

OP, listen to your realtor they work with Buyers and Sellers every day and know what will work best. You don't have to take their word as gospel but their advice is valuable.

Best of luck.

[johngolf]

I say do noting but deep clean and declutter. Maybe touch up some paint but little else. Let a buyer make their own decisions.

[OutdoorLover]

Landscaping work usually gives very good value for dollar, though spring is the best time for e.g. pruning and making new plantings at least. There may still be some things to be done here though.

Exterior paint doesn't need to be perfect, but if you have significant peeling paint on that siding, I'd at least get prices on an exterior paint job - which can *really* improve that crucial first impression. Same goes for roofing - it doesn't need to be just done, but if there are obvious/significant condition issues, I'd evaluate them.

Interior paint can probably be left alone, but if it's possible to touch up any marks or dings with matching paint, that is also fairly easy/cheap. If there are any questionable color decisions that you now regret, like those wine/blood red walls - it might be worth getting those fully repainted with more tasteful treatments that will appeal to a wider variety of buyers. I am not one who says that colors need to be trendy - there are interior wall colors used 100+ years ago that look nice today, but there are also colors that sort of came and went as whims and look bad when you really look at them now.

It's true that kitchen and bath remodels can really help a lot, although they also happen to be the most expensive home projects besides a major remodel like an addition! So, to me you consider the existing state - if the aesthetics and the condition are poor, then yes, I'd look hard at your savings and get some estimates to see if you can swing the corresponding makeover - because you should get a big bump in resale value from a big improvement. But if the kitchen and baths are presentable as they are, even if they're not the latest and greatest, then the incremental improvement in resale value that you'll get from doing the makeover will be smaller, and I'd be less inclined to do it.

Stuff like all new windows - fugettaboutit... you do that if you're going to live in the house for another 20+ years, because that's how long it will take for the outlay to pay for itself. Buyers will appreciate them, but they won't give you anywhere near what you paid in incremental cost increase.

[OutdoorLover]

Originally Posted by BostonMike7

If you are in a condo building, there's likely 1 or 2 realtors who tend to sell/buy in the building you are in.

I would speak to them. They know what is selling, and what buyers are looking for. You really need a custom tailored answer to this in terms what units are selling for what money with what upgrades and such.

It doesn't make sense to drop $50k on a new kitchen if it only makes you another $10K or so of asking price. Or perhaps the building is all original and having an updated unit would be an outlier and allow you to get more money on your sale.

A realtor who has knowledge on your building will have these answers.


If it was me, I wouldn't put a cent into the place and just keep your money in your pocket and sell.

I agree that sounding out your realtor is a good idea - you'll make any final decisions but it's good to get their input. They after all normally play the leading role in determining the asking price - which means if they're competent to do that, they should have a good read on what changes may increase the asking price enough to be worth it.

I agree with BostonMike's general view that you need to be careful about spending real money on projects that you'll never get to enjoy yourself, and may only return a fraction of what you're spending... and sometimes there can be disagreements on taste as the OP pointed out. In my opinion though, the priority of any changes depends upon the corresponding current state - look everything over and focus on the worst elements first prioritization - and ask if they can be addressed in a way that fits within your budget and that you think will sway the buyer on making a decision and on valuing the house as "nice"?

[mdovell]

Paint, landscaping. Small things like replacing knobs with levels. I tend to think more on elderly and Ada. Ask an agent how much more a FHA inspection is