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We had a slightly different situation in 2012 when selling my mom's house after she moved to assisted living, because when we listed the house it was vacant (but mostly furnished).
We did two things a few months before listing:
1. We hired a home inspector. He came in and told us the issues we might expect to arise when a prospective buyer hired an inspector. As a result, we were able to correct those problems (and not in a huge rush). Months later, the actual buyer's home inspector found very little to flag.
2. We interviewed four realtors. We only chose people who had been in business a long time and had significant experience/current listings in the neighborhood. (Note, not the zip code!)
Each realtor visited the house and gave us some recommendations about what we needed to do to get it in better selling shape. It was a 55-year-old split-level with Mom's "new" kitchen (mid-1980s) and 1950s bathrooms. We had said we'd like to keep the cost of prepping to sell to around $2,000. One of the realtors wanted about $15,000 of remodeling. One said we didn't need to change a thing. (That was what we wanted to hear, but not good advice.) If you've ever watched Trading Spaces or any of the budget-minded redecorating shows, you probably already know what you should do/change.
The realtor we chose had wonderful contacts for handymen who did a great job at a reasonable price and very quickly. My best advice is: RELY ON YOUR REALTOR to tell you what needs to be done! They are the pros and they have the best handyman contacts for what you can't do yourself.
We listed at the realtor's recommended price and had a cash contract in 30 days for 10% less than that. We thought it was about as smooth a process as we could ever have hoped for.
The keys: home inspection FIRST, and fix the problems! Then hire the experienced, well-recommended, full-time realtor.
We had a slightly different situation in 2012 when selling my mom's house after she moved to assisted living, because when we listed the house it was vacant (but mostly furnished).
We did two things a few months before listing:
1. We hired a home inspector. He came in and told us the issues we might expect to arise when a prospective buyer hired an inspector. As a result, we were able to correct those problems (and not in a huge rush). Months later, the actual buyer's home inspector found very little to flag.
2. We interviewed four realtors. We only chose people who had been in business a long time and had significant experience/current listings in the neighborhood. (Note, not the zip code!)
Each realtor visited the house and gave us some recommendations about what we needed to do to get it in better selling shape. It was a 55-year-old split-level with Mom's "new" kitchen (mid-1980s) and 1950s bathrooms. We had said we'd like to keep the cost of prepping to sell to around $2,000. One of the realtors wanted about $15,000 of remodeling. One said we didn't need to change a thing. (That was what we wanted to hear, but not good advice.) If you've ever watched Trading Spaces or any of the budget-minded redecorating shows, you probably already know what you should do/change.
The realtor we chose had wonderful contacts for handymen who did a great job at a reasonable price and very quickly. My best advice is: RELY ON YOUR REALTOR to tell you what needs to be done! They are the pros and they have the best handyman contacts for what you can't do yourself.
We listed at the realtor's recommended price and had a cash contract in 30 days for 10% less than that. We thought it was about as smooth a process as we could ever have hoped for.
The keys: home inspection FIRST, and fix the problems! Then hire the experienced, well-recommended, full-time realtor.
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Pocopsonite
We had a slightly different situation in 2012 when selling my mom's house after she moved to assisted living, because when we listed the house it was vacant (but mostly furnished).
We did two things a few months before listing:
1. We hired a home inspector. He came in and told us the issues we might expect to arise when a prospective buyer hired an inspector. As a result, we were able to correct those problems (and not in a huge rush). Months later, the actual buyer's home inspector found very little to flag.
2. We interviewed four realtors. We only chose people who had been in business a long time and had significant experience/current listings in the neighborhood. (Note, not the zip code!)
Each realtor visited the house and gave us some recommendations about what we needed to do to get it in better selling shape. It was a 55-year-old split-level with Mom's "new" kitchen (mid-1980s) and 1950s bathrooms. We had said we'd like to keep the cost of prepping to sell to around $2,000. One of the realtors wanted about $15,000 of remodeling. One said we didn't need to change a thing. (That was what we wanted to hear, but not good advice.) If you've ever watched Trading Spaces or any of the budget-minded redecorating shows, you probably already know what you should do/change.
The realtor we chose had wonderful contacts for handymen who did a great job at a reasonable price and very quickly. My best advice is: RELY ON YOUR REALTOR to tell you what needs to be done! They are the pros and they have the best handyman contacts for what you can't do yourself.
We listed at the realtor's recommended price and had a cash contract in 30 days for 10% less than that. We thought it was about as smooth a process as we could ever have hoped for.
The keys: home inspection FIRST, and fix the problems! Then hire the experienced, well-recommended, full-time realtor.
I agree with painting the walls an antique white, cleaning everything, decluttering, and staging. I even staged all of the closets and kitchen cabinets. I asked our agent to walk through the house with me and tell me what needed to be done in each room to make it better. I took notes and taking care of these items became my life's work. It really paid off. We sold within five days when nothing in our area was selling. Of course, we priced aggressively and everything was done.
We're going through the same thing ourselves' s on pretty much the same timeframe, and I'm of the opinion you could go two ways. Either price it low and sell as is or clean it up to move in condition. I would agree with what other posters have suggested, work with your realtor because they know what you're competing against.
Are you painting yourself or hiring it? That makes a difference. I think painting is a good idea because psychologically some people can't get past that slightly old/grubby look that old paint can give. But if you have to pay someone a lot then that figures into the equation of price low. Painting yourself can mean not having to price as low even if you don't do anything else. Don't paint the cabinets! Clean them really really well after taking off the hardware and put on new updated hardware - can make a big difference! After painting, maybe a new toilet if you have one of those old pink ones or something old toilets can be so depressing and are actually pretty cheap. And if your carpet isn't too bad after cleaning maybe offer a carpet allowance in your listing versus replacement. That signals to buyers that you know its old and are letting them choose their own carpet. And make sure your listing agent does a good job selling the fact that all the updates have been mechanical/structural so the new buyers can "pretty" it up to their desires. Good luck.
Hahaha, I hear ya. However, this "white" is actually actually an off-white so not so antiseptic-looking. I was thinking nobody is going to like the color anyway, so I might as well make it something that's easy to paint over.
Wife had our oak kitchen cabinets painted an off white after spending months drooling over that "HOUZZ" site on line. White is still very "in" as it appears as every other kitchen remake on there was white. I must say, it's a great improvement. Also, we put up new lighting fixtures. And spiffy hardware.
We heard dont paint oak, but the update looks great, glad we did it.
I agree that a paint job on the walls and new hardware on the cabinets are cheap fixes with big impact.
If you're in an expensive area you should easily recoup a couple of thousand dollars worth of carpet. What you're aiming for is an overall feeling of clean, fresh, comfortable. If the carpet is 70's shag people are going to feel icky, whether that's true or not (although 40 year old carpet is pretty darn icky!).
If you're not good with colours, spend $100 on a decorator to come in for an hour or two and tell you what colours to choose for paint and carpet. Not only can they help you make it look fresh, but also cozy and appealing. They'll know what people in your area like, too. I spent that much on plants for staging last time we sold.
IMO, don't mention a carpet allowance in the listing. When we listed our last residence, imo, there needed to be a carpet allowance. We did not mention it, but, was willing to give it. Our house sold within the first few days....full price, and they asked for nothing. I was willing to give a carpet allowance, and a home warranty. Boy, am I glad we didn't mention that in the listing! Btw, my house was sparkling clean, decluttered, and staged nicely. We worked like crazy getting it ready. I told my dh it would be worth it, and it was. We've sold around five homes, and all sold within the first week. CLEAN and decluttered is KEY, imo.
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old toilets can be so depressing and are actually pretty cheap. And if your carpet isn't too bad after cleaning maybe offer a carpet allowance in your listing versus replacement. That signals to buyers that you know its old and are letting them choose their own carpet. And make sure your listing agent does a good job selling the fact that all the updates have been mechanical/structural so the new buyers can "pretty" it up to their desires. Good luck.
