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Where I see non-updated houses not moving is when sellers don't get it and are pricing it wrong.
Around here, as an example, a 90s house, 3000 sf, with an updated kitchen, hardwood at least on the first floor and an updated master bath, will get a solid $100,000 more than the house that hasn't had those updates
Sellers see that someone down the street got X for their house and think they should get that. But they ignore the updates that were done
People also become blind to how out of date their own houses are. It's kind of like your high school reunion...."How did all these people get so old and I am still so young?"
Assuming you are correct in your figures...
What are the retail costs in your area for the following:
"Updating" the kitchen in this 3,000 sq ft house to current standards. $__________
New hardwood floors to current standards in this 3,000 sq ft house. $_________
"Updating" the master bath in this 3,000 sq ft house to current standards. $_________
Total cost of updates above. $________
Subtract this number from the $100,000 increase in selling price, then subtract the additional $6k to $7k that the sellers will pay to their RE agent in increased commission, and tell me how much additional money the seller made by performing these updates.
My point wasn't that sellers make money off of updates. They seem to break even on some updates, not all
My point is sellers who don't have updated houses look at sold comps on Zillow or wherever and think they should get the same but don't factor in the updates
So they insist on overpricing
Move-in ready houses that are priced right sell around here. Regardless of updates or not. The ones that sit are overpriced
Some things you can't "update". As a home shopper now I'm looking for a vibe first. Does the home feel happy and airy. How's the natural lighting in the home. What are the views out the window. If my view from the living room looks at the wall of the neighbors house than a $75,000 kitchen update wouldn't matter How's the flow of the space and the sounds of the neighborhood?
Roofs, AC, Windows, exterior then kitchen, baths and floors
I've seen homes where sellers ticked all the boxes but the house still felt wrong. However there is a lid for every pot and someone always comes along to buy it eventually.
We are currently renting while we home shop and are in a "affluent" community that is all the rage in Orlando and this community is noisy, aggressive and very busy. If you look at the tree lined streets you imagine a Norman Rockwell peaceful hood but it's the opposite. Those types of vibes don't always reveal themselves till it's too late.
In my last home sale which was in DC we got a dollar for dollar return on our renovations to bath and kitchen. In our market and price range, this is absolutely what is expected.
Like it or not and agree with it or not, HGTV has made a big impact on what buyers expect. This may not be true in every market or every sale, but realtors giving the advice to paint and do some updates to get the house ready are spot on in my area. I think it depends, but this is the way the wind is blowing.
It can make a big difference, although it's hard to put a monetary value on it. The fact is that a dated-looking home will not fetch the same price as an updated home.
Friends of ours tried to sell their 1970s house 3 years ago with a kitchen that had been remodeled in the 90s but was certainly not up to modern expectations. It sat there, in a very hot market, for 3 months with more than 100 showings and 1 offer, which they did not take.
They pulled the house, remodeled the kitchen, lived there three more years then recently sold it in 24 hours in an even hotter market, with more than 11 offers all above asking. The selling price was $30K over their previous list price, and while the market had improved since then, it hadn't improved THAT much.
Buyers do weigh the "cost" of changes they will have to make to your home to make it livable for them. Different things matter to different buyers, but on the whole, changes that don't disrupt their lives too much (floors, kitchen, bathrooms) that are already done will certainly make selling your home easier.
Your post--I can't disagree with really anything--
But the timing of your friends attempts to sell shows how timing/location affects any market
Realtors want to make a sale and they get their commission--
If you put money into a house and make it more attractive to buyers plus have a higher price point after remodel than before then the realtor makes more money and has less risk--
Of course a realtor would suggest that sellers make improvements to capture attention of buyers and put more money in THEIR pocket...but that does not always work out that way in real life
Read the thread on this forum about house appraisal that came in 37K UNDER contract price==because the seller has put money into the house and had inflated the list price over comps in the area...
The buyers wanted the house--their realtor apparently didn't tell them to question the price and the seller's realtor was happy with getting an inflated price...
There are many people who don't want to buy a home and spend money to update it---
The factor that pushes offers for an outdated home is just market pressure--
If YOU don't buy it (even outdated) then someone will--
In my area of DFW there is very strong market to buy homes in the 250-350K niche in good school districts...
Many, many of those homes are dated---they might have functional kitchens and bathrooms but have not seen much updating or the finishes just might be in poor taste...
They are being bought anyway if the comps reflect the value...
In 2008 we bought a home in town next to our 20+ yr old home...we had debated for year or more whether to remodel that house or buy another...there were some aspects that we had lived with for decades that were not easy fixes...so we finally decided to move but then the market went into the crapper...
Our original home (with its dated interior) we just kept empty for almost a year--then we had an HVAC problem w/serious water damage...we took that as impetus to do remodel and get house ready to sell...
We figured we would lose too much money trying to sell dated finishes in lagging market...
We also owed the house some deferred maintenance---had two windows that had to be completely replaced, others that needed new glass because of condensation damage...
After the water damage was taken care of -- including new Sheetrock in some areas-- we redid the 2.5 bathrooms, new carpet and tile, added granite countertops in kitchen and baths but just cleaned up cabinets--
We spent more than we intended initially because our son was divorced in middle of rehab and wanted to move back into this house...so we made it nicer for him... He was there for little over 3 yrs until he married again and bought home in different area...
We put home on market which was getting stronger and had offer within first 2 wks---should have held out for full price but husband and realtor hated to play hard ball...
We sold and made somewhat of a profit--but the realtors' fees and the cost of the remodel took up most of the gains...
But I don't know that we would have sold at all if we hadn't done the upgrades...
In my last home sale which was in DC we got a dollar for dollar return on our renovations to bath and kitchen. In our market and price range, this is absolutely what is expected.
Like it or not and agree with it or not, HGTV has made a big impact on what buyers expect. This may not be true in every market or every sale, but realtors giving the advice to paint and do some updates to get the house ready are spot on in my area. I think it depends, but this is the way the wind is blowing.
This is different for every area. DC is a HUGE metro. What works in DC isn't going to work in Rochester, NY or Santa Fe, NM. And vice versa.
In my area, HGTV hasn't made an impact. I don't live in a highly populated area. It's not a metro. Our city has 15,000 residents. The town I live in, there's 3,500 of us. One street in DC has 15,000.
People are far more concerned about taxes here than they are what's popular on HGTV. Our taxes are among the highest in the nation. People want to see what those horrible taxes get them.
LOL @ people razzing on 90s homes. Our home is a custom home built in the late 80s by a local builder who has since retired. I'd take a home built by him any day over the newer stuff churned out with all of the sparkly stuff. Our house had minimal recent updates and yet we still didn't get much of a discount because a) the house wasn't tract, b) large lot, c) pool, d) mature trees. you don't need to update your home in our neighborhood for it to sell. updates help, but aren't the end all be all
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
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Eh, I think it's still all about price and location. I carefully watch prices and trends in my neighborhood and days on market. Homes in certain neighborhoods go for x amount of dollars and there's not that much variance.
The are some predictors that have been proven again and again: the houses that sell the fastest are extremely clean (not necessarily updated) and have far less furniture than you'd imagine, absolutely no clutter or personal items, and NO carpet or very little carpet (buyers here want vinyl or laminate). White kitchens are also huge as are light (shades of white) walls.
Granite and stainless steel seem to be on the way out in my neighborhood. There's a preference for white paint over gray.
Every buyer I knows has big plans for the house they buy anyway. My neighbor had replaced all of her cabinetry, counters, and flooring in her kitchen before ilsting. It looked really nice---she did the usual granite, stainless steel, etc. My new neighbors ripped it all out within the year. I could not believe it.
I don't think buyers necessarily want updated. They just want what they perceive to be a blank canvas so that they can
make it their own.
Eh, I think it's still all about price and location. I carefully watch prices and trends in my neighborhood and days on market. Homes in certain neighborhoods go for x amount of dollars and there's not that much variance.
The are some predictors that have been proven again and again: the houses that sell the fastest are extremely clean (not necessarily updated) and have far less furniture than you'd imagine, absolutely no clutter or personal items, and NO carpet or very little carpet (buyers here want vinyl or laminate). White kitchens are also huge as are light (shades of white) walls.
Granite and stainless steel seem to be on the way out in my neighborhood. There's a preference for white paint over gray.
Every buyer I knows has big plans for the house they buy anyway. My neighbor had replaced all of her cabinetry, counters, and flooring in her kitchen before ilsting. It looked really nice---she did the usual granite, stainless steel, etc. My new neighbors ripped it all out within the year. I could not believe it.
I don't think buyers necessarily want updated. They just want what they perceive to be a blank canvas so that they can
make it their own.
So what is replacing stainless steel and granite in your neighborhood?
Location: Stuck on the East Coast, hoping to head West
4,641 posts, read 11,945,828 times
Reputation: 9887
Quote:
Originally Posted by emm74
So what is replacing stainless steel and granite in your neighborhood?
All white kitchens are really big in my area right now. White cabinetry, white appliances, and counters are usually butcher block or some man-made material, light in color. The overall feeling is bright and white.
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