Advice For Selling Home

[Cobra9777]

I think it is very dependent on the market and what you're competing with. As pb4uski did, pricing the update in can be a good strategy, but a lot of folks can't see beyond that. I too would prefer to fix up a purchase to my taste, but DW is one who can be turned off by a dated home.

Taking all this into consideration, we're of a mind to do the updating now and enjoy it rather than do it in prep for sale. We have no idea when we'd move out of here, but figure the bath updates are good for 10-15 years and the kitchen we did in 02 still looks great. Just don't want to be doing updates that we wouldn't get to enjoy!

That's our thinking exactly. We will downsize at some point, but not sure if it will be 3 years from now or 15. There are some obvious updates that need to be made. So we will do the updates now, enjoy them for several years, and hopefully get some value when we eventually sell.

Ours is a very large house in a neighborhood with custom-designed homes on 2-3 acres, built in the late 1960s. It's a unique kind of place where buyers don't really expect it to be move-in ready. Almost everyone who buys in this neighborhood spends several months having the house remodeled to some degree before they move in. So yes... very dependent on the market and situation.

 

[timo2]

In my area, prospective buyers all want the sewer pipe inspected via a camera

 

[W2R]

In my area, prospective buyers all want the sewer pipe inspected via a camera

That's a standard inspection done here, to, but by the buyers as part of their inspections. Then if there is trouble, the sellers are expected to repair it as part of the repair list.

 

[Moemg]

The problem with remodeling to sell is everyone has different taste . I have been looking for a new house for about four months and I have seen so many bad kitchen re do's . They are nice kitchens just too modern for my taste .One kitchen was all industrial gray . The biggest mistake of all is putting granite counter tops on outdated cabinets.

 

[iac1003]

White is the new appliance color so buy a new stove/oven combination in your original color.

Our house went on the market 10/1. Many showings, all the feedback was good, we had an offer the 2nd week but the contract fell through due to some financial issues. We took it off the market the week before Thanksgiving. But a couple who saw it at an open house came back last week and again this week and now we are at contract again with an all-cash buyer.

We bought our house 6 years ago and renovated the kitchen and 2 of the 2 1/2 baths, enclosed our back deck to be a screened-in porch, redid electrical, some plumbing, had custom cabinets built, renovated our shed into a workshop/woodshop with a new electrical panel, AC and heat, etc. For this sale I turned the 3rd bedroom back into a real bedroom (have an aerobed on there), removed almost all our artwork, put the leaf in the dining room table to show how large a space it is, we repainted the house that ugly gray everyone likes so much, put everything away. We also went through every item on our previous inspection and fixed everything that we did not do upon buying. Our inspection yesterday passed with flying colors.

I think HGTV has given buyers and realtors unreasonable expectations. The shows are all rigged, so that's what makes it worse to me. Because we did not have the most up-to-date backsplash color and bathroom finishes one realtor told us our house wouldn't sell except for a very low price. We already put $50K into the house, I wasn't going to tear out tile for the latest fad which would be dated in 5 years. I also did a lot of yardwork outside, keeping the front plantings looking very nice and remulching our side yards.

Good luck!


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[karen1972]

Its not just HGTV, but that every person on TV lives in some crazy fancy over the top house. However, reality is most people don't actually know the difference, its really about getting the right "look". ie I spent $20/square for a backsplash with black onyx and quartz in it.. then bought black appliances to match the onyx and corian to match the quartz... even realtors were like.. this is corian?? yes yes it is. lets face it a nice colored laminate with details these days looks better than some of that cheap granite people have put in over the years. Honestly I've put in backsplash and changed out countertops and knobs in numerous houses and people don't even notice how ridiculously small the kitchen is or how old the cabinets are.. they just see shiny backsplash... same reason why I covered my basement (1000SQFT) in 99 cent laminate.. and all I ever got was compliments about how awesome the basement was.. it was too nice for a basement.

The trick to selling houses these days is assume everyone has ADD and put out some shiny... its sad but true. There are so few people that know or want to know the details of the home... I went to a new construction where they had two builders.. it was crazy how cheap the second builder was getting away with and people were paying the same price.. cheaper, less detail in the molding, got rid of spray foam and went back to the old kind. hardwood flooring went from engineered flooring to laminate. I'm like so I should pay the same price and get poorer materials and workmanship but I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who noticed the two "identical" units for sale were not at all identical.

 

[athena53]

The trick to selling houses these days is assume everyone has ADD and put out some shiny... it's sad but true. There are so few people that know or want to know the details of the home... I went to a new construction where they had two builders.. it was crazy how cheap the second builder was getting away with and people were paying the same price.. cheaper, less detail in the molding, got rid of spray foam and went back to the old kind. hardwood flooring went from engineered flooring to laminate. I'm like so I should pay the same price and get poorer materials and workmanship but I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who noticed the two "identical" units for sale were not at all identical.

LOL- I agree on the "shiny"! DH and I looked at some new construction, out in the middle of nowhere (likely former farmland, so no trees, either). One house had a glamorous kitchen with granite countertops, but the tub/shower was one of those nasty pre-fab enclosures. It was high-priced for the area, too. Not interested.

 

[45th Birthday]

In my area, prospective buyers all want the sewer pipe inspected via a camera

Around here, that's only done when you turn 50 and then every 10 or maybe 5 years. Oh, wait, I'm thinking of something else...

 

[urn2bfree]

I am sorry, but the realtor's commission is usually 6%, so he would only get 6% of the increase.
When I sold my house, there were 2 offers, and one buyer raised his offering price by $5000. The realtor got $300 of it, and I got the other $4700

But if the upgrades you had to make to get the buyer to pay $5000 more cost you $6000 ( and most renovations do not pay off at 85%) then the realtor got $300 more and you have $1300 less. If you paid less than $5000 to get the buyer to want to pay more, then the realtor still gets $300 more out of it and you get $4700 minus the cost of upgrades....see, no matter what the realtor gets the whole benefit no matter what happens to you...you take the risk, they reap the same rewards either way.


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[Souschef]

But if the upgrades you had to make to get the buyer to pay $5000 more cost you $6000 ( and most renovations do not pay off at 85%) then the realtor got $300 more and you have $1300 less. If you paid less than $5000 to get the buyer to want to pay more, then the realtor still gets $300 more out of it and you get $4700 minus the cost of upgrades....see, no matter what the realtor gets the whole benefit no matter what happens to you...you take the risk, they reap the same rewards either way.
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You would be correct if I had to upgrade, but this was an "auction" situation where 2 buyers wanted the property and one upped the offer by $5000. I had to do no addition work for the $5000

 

[athena53]

In my area, prospective buyers all want the sewer pipe inspected via a camera

DH and I had a bit of bad luck in that area just before we put the house on the market. The drain in the basement by the furnace had a bad smell. DH thought it might be a dead mouse and poured in some fluid meant to get rid of some of the rot and the smell. It wouldn't go down the drain. We called the plumber, who couldn't snake it out and brought in a jackhammer. $3,000 later it was cleared and snaked out to the street.

With the prospective buyers we had, the $3,000 would have been better spent on a new backsplash in the kitchen.

 

[urn2bfree]

But if the upgrades you had to make to get the buyer to pay $5000 more cost you $6000 ( and most renovations do not pay off at 85%) then the realtor got $300 more and you have $1300 less. If you paid less than $5000 to get the buyer to want to pay more, then the realtor still gets $300 more out of it and you get $4700 minus the cost of upgrades....see, no matter what the realtor gets the whole benefit no matter what happens to you...you take the risk, they reap the same rewards either way.


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Well, that's different than what my comment was about. I was pointing out that the realtor's have a perverse incentive to recommend upgrades and renovations as you pay all the expenses and they collect more based on your work, your investment.

It's just a special example of how the model of commissions on real estate is perverse in general. I find it hard to see how it takes twice as much work to sell a house valued at $600,000 vs a house valued at $300,000, but the realtor collects twice as much anyway. They collect more all because the person who worked and saved to afford the more expensive house has a more valuable asset. The higher pay is not really a result of any special effort of the realtor.


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[jfn111]

Well, that's different than what my comment was about. I was pointing out that the realtor's have a perverse incentive to recommend upgrades and renovations as you pay all the expenses and they collect more based on your work, your investment.

It's just a special example of how the model of commissions on real estate is perverse in general. I find it hard to see how it takes twice as much work to sell a house valued at $600,000 vs a house valued at $300,000, but the realtor collects twice as much anyway. They collect more all because the person who worked and saved to afford the more expensive house has a more valuable asset. The higher pay is not really a result of any special effort of the realtor.


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I'd agree with you if it works both ways and we can up the low end.
I recently represented one of my investors on a $30,000 fire damaged house. The amount of phone calls and chasing around for what ended up to be a $660 commission. ($30,000 * 2.75%) - (20% to the Broker).

 

[Meadbh]

I read somewhere that realtors selling their own houses wait longer for a good offer than their customers do, and get higher offers on comparable properties when they are their own. They have an incentive to get your house sold ASAP so they can bank the commission and move on to the next sale.

 

[jfn111]

I read somewhere that realtors selling their own houses wait longer for a good offer than their customers do, and get higher offers on comparable properties when they are their own. They have an incentive to get your house sold ASAP so they can bank the commission and move on to the next sale.

Just remember that the home owner sets the price. The Realtor will suggest a price but the owner has the final say. The same goes for accepting offers. The Realtor, by law, has to submit all offers to the owner. The owner makes the final decision.

 

[kaudrey]

I am in the camp of "it depends". If it is in a desirable area and there aren't many comps, you can probably sell it with minimal work.

When my grandmother died, we sold the house that my father/aunt grew up in - my grandmother lived in it for 43 years. I didn't think it would ever sell. This was in 2001, and the carpets and kitchen were probably from the 70s. But it was a relatively inexpensive house in a town with lots of new McMansions, and a younger couple bought it as is for much more than we ever expected.

On the flip side, I live in a townhouse community with 100 similar or identical units, and there are always at least a few for sale. When we go to sell, we will definitely do some sprucing up, because if buyers don't like ours, then can buy the one down the street instead.

 

[athena53]

It's just a special example of how the model of commissions on real estate is perverse in general. I find it hard to see how it takes twice as much work to sell a house valued at $600,000 vs a house valued at $300,000, but the realtor collects twice as much anyway. They collect more all because the person who worked and saved to afford the more expensive house has a more valuable asset. The higher pay is not really a result of any special effort of the realtor.

I've sold houses in the higher end of the range locally and have seen some realtors do more. Most recently, our realtor brought in a professional stager and a photographer at her own expense. The stager didn't actually bring in new stuff (I bet they do for the really expensive sales), but made a ton of great suggestions for removing some furniture, rearranging what was left, "editing" the books on the bookshelves and putting in some of our interesting bowls, vases, etc. The photographer took a lot of time and used tripods and a high-end camera. Her pictures were beautiful. We never saw a bill for any of that. When I sold in NJ, the realtor first held an open house for realtors only, bringing in munchies from a caterer. She did it to publicize the house and also to get feedback on the pricing.

I'm sure that the extra expenses didn't eat up the additional commission, but in both cases we got extra services.

 

[kcowan]

When we sold MILs townhouse, we wanted to repaint and change the curtains and floors. Realtor said no, let her try to sell it as is. Turned out she was right. Full price offer in 3 weeks.

 

[Persn]

We sold our home of 20+ years this summer. It was in a very hot market with great schools. We had remodeled the kitchen in 1998 and the rest of the house in 2008. When we did so we were not planning to move, so we had "overimproved."

We took our realtor's advice on almost everything and were very happy with the results. She was a real go-getter and a top performer over her career who knew our area very well. We did not know her before hiring her.

First we did the three D's: de-clutter, de-personalize and deep clean. We took down stained drapery leaving the window bare and removed furniture, arranging the rest the way a family with young kids would be likely to want it. Removed 90% of the books. We did not hire a stager but did spend about $700 on accessories, pillows and things to make everything look current. Both DH and I worked our butts off for about 3 weeks getting the house ready to show.

We got a thorough home inspection and addressed everything on his list before going to market; probably about 5K due to having to tear up the patio to fix a sewer pipe with tree branches growing through it.

Our realtor paid for a great photographer and had both a broker's tour and a neighbors' open house before the weekend open houses.

The result was a dozen offers after the first weekend. Obviously that was in large part due to the market, but we did better than other houses in our immediate neighborhood due to the condition of the house. We also set our asking price based on comps and not on what we spent on improvements. Our realtor was superb in negotiations.

In summary, have your house looking its best so that prospective buyers know you cared about it. Hire a great realtor and price the home based on comps, not what you think it should be worth; in all likelihood you would overvalue it due to emotional factors. Then let the realtor do the rest. Good luck!

 

[Dog]

Thanks all. I definitely plan to remove clutter and extra furniture that just eats space. Also to do a deep clean, paint and possibly upgrade some hardware on cabinets. We have hardwoods throughout the main floor, but have carpet covering hardwood in the living and dining rooms. I would like to remove the carpet and have the hardwood refinished, but DH just wants to have carpet cleaned. I will defer to our realtor on that one ;-) Not many houses for sale in the area now, but I love going to open houses and looking at homes for sale online, so will definitely be aware of comps in the area. Ours is an older home in a desirable area, so I'll let you all know how this goes.

 

[kgtest]

One thing I don't get. Most experts say you do not recoup the cost of most renovations, with kitchen and bath getting a higher percentage recoup but not over 100% recoup. Given that any increase in the sales price is also just more money for the realtor, aren't the realtors operating with an inherent conflict of interest? Why not tell the home seller to spend their money in hopes of making more? Whether the home seller recoups their investment in those upgrades or not, any increase in sales price goes to the realtor!


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I know once the home is listed the realtor might not recommend you start any projects. The potential buyers will give your realtor feedback so you know what people like/dislike.

It all depends on the buyers, but curb appeal matters, clean good smelling open and bright spaces help show a home. At the end of the day, the listing price and comparables will likely dictate the selling price.

 

[spncity]

Don't clean the carpet if you are contemplating replacing. Get the realtor involved. We spent money cleaning carpets and now it is looking more like we'll replace...

 

[45th Birthday]

We have our previous summer house in a desirable area on the market. Not much competition, but prices there are high and people don't have to buy unless they like it. It was shown to buyers, but they said it wasn't special and appeared dated. We knew it was, but preferred to live in it for the 10 weeks a year we were there rather than spend time fixing it up.


So, based on feedback and advice from our agent we are repainting the entire interior (exterior has always been well maintained-a necessity or it starts to rot). We are also refinishing the hardwood floors to a darker, more modern color, adding crown molding through the entire first floor, replacing all the brass window and door hardware and most hanging light fixtures with brushed nickel, and replacing all the kitchen appliances with upper middle grade brands. $50K investment is better than taking a $100K price cut, which would be the minimum needed. Will be fresh for spring/summer buyers. Asking price is around $2.4 million, so not a huge percentage of that.

 

[Sunset]

I read somewhere that realtors selling their own houses wait longer for a good offer than their customers do, and get higher offers on comparable properties when they are their own. They have an incentive to get your house sold ASAP so they can bank the commission and move on to the next sale.

I also read a study like that, after all a 3% selling commission is nearly the same on selling a 300,000 house at full price or 90% of full price.

Sure the homeowner decides, but is depending upon the "professional" advice and is therefore vulnerable to sell lower.

 

[haha]

The problem with remodeling to sell is everyone has different taste . I have been looking for a new house for about four months and I have seen so many bad kitchen re do's .

First, where I live almost anything in the central city will sell and sell quickly and for a top-end price. The key is that our location has become very desirable since so many young people want to live car-less. To my thinking almost all the traditional SFH around here will never work out investment-wise. They are old, with much deferred maintenance and basic problems like unsafe wiring, old iron water pipes, etc.

I know an old blind guy who sold a condo in this area and moved to some sort of place designed for older people maybe 10 miles or so from ground zero of Seattle CBD. Within 6 months he was back, this time getting an apartment so his eventual executors would have an easier time. This guy blows my mind, he goes confidently about the streets,has coffee out, etc. He just hated the outer neighborhoods. He is 87 years old, and long time divorced.

I do think there is much to be said in favor of renting in a well managed building over owning, but sometimes it will be more expensive than owning. It all depends on sales prices when you are looking for a long term place to live.

A question for you Moemg- why are you moving from that very beautiful home in a beautiful place?

Ha