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Most people enjoy a home remodel about as much as a root canal. So unless something REALLY bothers them, they often don't bother to change it. Let's face it, it's not fun trying to track down reliable contractors, and a lot of people don't have handyman skills so doing the work themselves may not be an option.
Now that is valid. Remodels are a pain. I get it. I would argue that putting it off until right before selling adds stress to stress. But yes, you have a point.
Not all work is difficult. Painting is pretty simple to do. Changing cabinet hardware super easy. Hanging lights in existing locations also easy.
I think I am just a weirdo. I change furniture, paint and and decor like my underwear. I switch rugs, sofas, paintings depending on the house, the season, or even my mood. With more permanent things like a kitchen, I might take my time to consider what I want as there are tons of options, but once I decide, its all systems go for a new look. It makes me happy to see how rooms can transform and look totally different with a few easy changes. I guess that isn't how most people see it.
Different strokes for different folks! We moved in here seven years ago, thinking we would paint as soon as we had time, and we still haven't gotten around to it.
We did just spend a LOT of money on our outdoors, replacing old deck and repainting and reROOFing. Lots of money. That has got us thinking the "outside looks so nice maybe we should do something about the inside". I just did replace our leather couch with a new one though, because the old one was really coming apart.
We replace stuff when it stops working. No sooner, no later.
This is the response of someone who is bitter because a nerve has been hit.
All I am advocating for is that people get the max enjoyment out of the places they work hard to pay for. That's it. I don't see a lot of that in these threads. If people love their place because it was perfect the first time they walked in the door, more power to them.
I was changing my decor and my residence long before HGTV was a twinkle in some exec's eye. Its just the way I am.
Hahahha, yeah a nerve. I think your posting history reveals where the nerve is.
Glad to see you know who gets enjoyment and who doesn't. Here's a hint...in general people post at places like C-D with problems or questions, not to say, "Hi, I'm here, love everything about my kitchen. OK, see ya."
The bolded is the part you seem to disbelieve is possible.
The rest of what you wrote is just the normal "am I going to be here in 3-5-10 years to enjoy something or will we be selling?" That tends to cause people to postpone work.
And it's a PITA doing major upgrades while you're living there...for many.
Ah, but didn't I get ripped a new one on another thread for suggesting people move out when selling? Didn't most people call me elitist then and imply that I was out of touch with what was humanly possible? You may have been among them-- I can't keep track.
So if you have to update before selling and you have to stay there because most people do that while showing a place, wouldn't it be like the 9th level of hell to have work time around that same time? Stress piled on stress?
We just bought a house, our sixth home in 35 years. This will be our last home purchase before retirement. Every home we've bought had some things about it we didn't like, mainly cosmetic, but we lived with it anyways, saying we would get to it.....later. Well, later came and went, and we adjusted around the features we didn't care for. Then, it was a mad scramble to fix it up to sell.
This time, I said we're fixing it up for ourselves.Although we closed two months ago, we have yet to move in. I REFUSE to move in until we fix it the way I want it. That includes new interior paint and hardwood floors and quartz counters. Like I said, this will be our last major home purchase. Next move, they will haul us off to the old folks home. Meanwhile, I want to fix up MY home for MY enjoyment. Once you move in, you never get around to doing it, especially paint and flooring. Its 10X harder to work around a house full of furniture. As we get older, we don't have the energy, strength, or flexible budget to do those things, especially as we continue to feed the medical industry. Hopefully our upgrades will add value to the home, but regardless, its for our enjoyment NOW!
BTW, we spent about 20K total for all upgrades, cash. At our age, 20K really isn't that much. If younger, and you save and invest it, well, that's another story. But our time horizon for investment payback is short. If we did hang onto that 20K for future gains, it wouldn't produce that much in the few years we have until retirement. Now's the time to reap the rewards of our working life. Its not like that's the last money we have! We might as well enjoy our "golden years" (geez, how did that happen so soon?) Whatever, I'm going out in style!
You never ever know what a buyer will like. Your gray paint may offend someone who loves color. Your granite counter may be too brown for the white kitchen enthusiast. So while I understand there is a cottage industry in making sellers do updates, I would argue that perhaps their best enjoyment might be had doing them before they are ready to sell.
No argument from me there. Which is why, when I sold my house two years ago, I didn't update anything. I just made sure it was very clean, everything worked, and that the yard looked tidy.
As for my current place, it's pretty much decorated to my tastes. I may eventually swap out the motorized blinds in the master bedroom in favor of drapes and sheers (less sleek looking, but more practical), and I may eventually swap out the overhead lights in the kitchen in favor of something brighter. But I'm in no great hurry to do these changes. What I already have will work for now. And if in the future I decide to sell my condo, I'm going to do the same thing I did with my house: get it squeaky clean and list it as-is. The new owner can do any repainting/remodeling he or she deems necessary.
Hahahha, yeah a nerve. I think your posting history reveals where the nerve is.
Glad to see you know who gets enjoyment and who doesn't. Here's a hint...in general people post at places like C-D with problems or questions, not to say, "Hi, I'm here, love everything about my kitchen. OK, see ya."
So ignore me.
You are clearly read to jump up and tell me that any point I make is unwelcome. Please add me to your ignore list so that you are no longer irritated. Everybody wins.
We just bought a house, our sixth home in 35 years. This will be our last home purchase before retirement. Every home we've bought had some things about it we didn't like, mainly cosmetic, but we lived with it anyways, saying we would get to it.....later. Well, later came and went, and we adjusted around the features we didn't care for. Then, it was a mad scramble to fix it up to sell.
This time, I said we're fixing it up for ourselves.Although we closed two months ago, we have yet to move in. I REFUSE to move in until we fix it the way I want it. That includes new interior paint and hardwood floors and quartz counters. Like I said, this will be our last major home purchase. Next move, they will haul us off to the old folks home. Meanwhile, I want to fix up MY home for MY enjoyment. Once you move in, you never get around to doing it, especially paint and flooring. Its 10X harder to work around a house full of furniture. As we get older, we don't have the energy, strength, or flexible budget to do those things, especially as we continue to feed the medical industry. Hopefully our upgrades will add value to the home, but regardless, its for our enjoyment NOW!
This actually disagrees with the OP. She(?) thinks after you move in you're not enjoying the home unless you refresh everything every 10 years or so while you're living there.
Different strokes for different folks! We moved in here seven years ago, thinking we would paint as soon as we had time, and we still haven't gotten around to it.
We did just spend a LOT of money on our outdoors, replacing old deck and repainting and reROOFing. Lots of money. That has got us thinking the "outside looks so nice maybe we should do something about the inside". I just did replace our leather couch with a new one though, because the old one was really coming apart.
We replace stuff when it stops working. No sooner, no later.
Yeah I know it can be overwhelming to do a house, a yard, the "nonsexy" repairs that go with owning a home and divert cash. My last house I put a lot of effort into the garden and still miss it-- probably more than the house as we knew it would be a rental eventually. But I just couldn't help myself. Landscaping is pricey! And very hard work. So it you were able to do that, painting will be a breeze
That's what I think, until I think about actually getting started. And I decide tomorrow would be a better time to start.
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