Question about home improvement in a bad real estate market for sellers.

[CTyankee]

Hubby and I want to downsize next summer from house to condo or apartment. Our house is in a middle class neighborhood, very quiet and has a nice, multi-cultural population.

We have updated the full bath and 1/2 bath. Ditto the kitchen, with really good appliances (but not fancy). New carpeting upstairs done in 2002. Screened in porch in good condition. We installed central air conditioning and put in energy efficient replacement windows.

The question is: what in this real estate market should we concentrate on to improve before selling? The outside is attractively landscaped. The house could use interior house painting but I wonder if that matters since new occupants might want their own color scheme.

We have one eyesore: a basement "rec room" right out of the 1950s. It's dark and depressing. I'm tempted to just paint it a soft white, put in track lighting, and recarpet in a neutral berber.

What do you think?

[MajorChode]

1. Painting is always the most bang for your buck thing you can do

People might want their own colors at some point, but most people simply want to move in without having to worry about such things in the immediate future. If the interior needs paint, go with eggshell as nobody is going to be put off by it.

I'm not sure I'd put that much effort into the basement. If you do, make sure it's one of the last things. Concentrate on what people are going to see first when they see your home from the street and walk in the door. First impressions are the most important. By the time someone gets to your basement, they will most likely have their mind made up if they are going to reject or consider your home.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

2. Usually it's the roof.

consult a realtor before you do anything.

[CTyankee]

3. I will definitely clean up the awful mess down there and maybe once it is

cleared it won't look so bad. It's important to me as I think it would be to many women looking at a house. The laundry room is in the basement (which I really hate) but if it is neat and clean, it makes it bearable. But my next home will have only one level and the laundry area will be more accessible!

[Hassin Bin Sober]

4. I think the show "Sell This House" (on A&E channel) should ...

.... be required watching for anyone selling a home. And for stupid realtors who let their clients list without any consultation on staging/de-cluttering/cleaning.


Their emphasis always seems to be cleaning, de-cluttering, staging and strategic painting. All on a MINIMAL budget in the couple hundred dollar range.

They stage rooms using some creative methods - I've them place a bedspread and pillows over empty boxes to create the illusion of a bed in an unfurnished spare bedroom. I've seen them use a card table and folding-chairs wrapped in sheets to create the illusion of nice furniture in unfurnished dining rooms. he likes those little up-lights you can plug in and leave in a corner behind a couch.

All this is done with before and after open houses. If anything, the show drives home potential buyer's reactions to poorly staged and de-cluttered homes. People just can't get passed stupid shit that should really not affect their lives but they do.


In fact here is the website where you can do your homework and watch the videos:


http://www.aetv.com/the-big-fix/video/index.jsp?bcpid=66988590001&bclid=68052545001&bctid=68200611001&paidlink=1&vid=AETV_SEM_Search&keywords=sell%2Bthis%2Bhouse%2Ba_e&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=sell%20this%20house&utm_term=sell%20this%20house%20a_e

[CTyankee]

5. Thanks for the videos! I watched all 3 segments and they were great.

I think I'll incorporate some of these ideas. I liked the change of wall color. The slipcover was a great idea, too...

As for the cluttered basement room, do you think clearing it out without investing in any painting/recarpeting/lighting would be sufficient? It seems like a lot to invest in a room that most people these days wouldn't use as living space...it was obviously put in in the 50s (the house was built in 1941). It has awful pecky wood panelling and even a little built in bar. The panelling makes it look even darker...what were people thinking in those days?

[Hassin Bin Sober]

8. I would definitely brighten up the place AND stage it.

Especially if it is a smaller home and/or potential buyers might have kids (or planning kids). Make it look like somewhere the buyers or the kids could spend some time away from the rest of the family.

[CTyankee]

9. It's what my dtr did with her basement. She painted it white, put in a neutral berber

(not expensive) carpeting and recessed lighting. Her 3 girls played down there all the time, until they got older and now they use it more as a teen hangout...

I'm now thinking that we might downsize to a rental apt. and completely move and do whatever is needed to an almost empty house, saving just enough furniture to make it look livable when it is shown. We'll be getting rid of tons of stuff accumulated over the years and it'll take a long time to get rid of what we have. With aging and some health problems, just the thought of doing all of the clearing out is almost unbearable...makes me tired just thinking about it!

[marybourg]

11. The same thing people are thinking today when they get black

refrigerators, laminate flooring, dark granite counter tops: being up-to-date and stylish! lol!

[Warpy]

6. Painting the rec room won't cost a fortune

especially if you do it yourselves. Ask yourself if the carpeting is the problem before you replace it, or if brightening up the walls with a coat of paint will do the trick.

Painting and decluttering are always the best ideas. Learning how to place furniture to point out the features of the house is also a good idea, especially making sure windows and fireplaces aren't blocked.

Other than that, just price it correctly.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

7. About 10 maybe 15 years ago,

different market of course I worked on a house to get it ready for show & sale. Some new windows, repair on porch and railings ,some interior painting. The client downsized kids grown up ,divorce all that. And what she was doing was painting up the place the way she always wanted it to be with her very own colors to suit herself only ! Waste of time and money. But it is a big old house with many rooms and commanded far far more than they paid. So,she could certainly afford her whims.

The basement however was a partial finish and that is how the realtor listed the house after the market appraisal.
The client asked me several times as work was progressing if I thought doing something about the basement would help sell or perhaps get more money out of it. There was a lot of little reapir work that is timely.

The stair case going down was rather rough, I beams unpainted and some poor lighting.
The finished side all looked good exception to some areas with unfinished baseboard molding. . The unfinished side was as you would expect a older house to look like down below !

When I got around to addressing the basement there were two days left before the showing. I told her I can bring the basement in before the showing, she figured impossible but said go ahead.
All I did was throw up some sheet rock on two walls -fire tape and mudded those walls than blew in texture.
Finished the molding than the next day painted all the bear wood, the walls, some of the ceiling and the stair case. Used a paint compressor of course. .Added two lights .

It was actually no big deal. On the second evening the client came home from work shouting the Realtor is coming over to do a final walk through. Than she opened the door to the basement and saw the painted stair case and steps. She walked down stairs and was very surprised at the end result ,and so quick !
She was a banker ,so house sales was nothing new to her, in fact her Realtor was very surprised she didn't just sell the place herself.

Anyway, the Realtor dropped by ,eventually got to the basement and saw what she thought was a completely finished basement. The showing was canceled for two days while she re listed the house with a fully finished basement.

The $20,000 more money the basement brought to the sale paid for her eccentricity and some reality fees'
When a house goes for some odd $500,000 $ \20,000 don't seem like much but it is really.
When I worked on her next home after the kids were in school and the devoices settled up ,she told me how handy it turned out to be.Those unforeseen bills and expenses you know ?

So, $20,000 on under $1,000

I told her if it doesn't work,she didn't have to pay labor on the basement,It was a hunch .She said just do it!
It worked !

The finished basement means a lot more than you might think. Just the same consult with a Realtor.
The realtor might say do nothing to it.

[CTyankee]

10. my basement is finished in terms of walls, ceilings etc. It's just dingy and dark.

I figure it could be done for about $3,000. At this point my house is not worth more than about $250,000. It's a small colonial, 3 BR, 1 1/2 BA. So obviously I don't want to spend $20,000 fixing it up.

I am, however, considering waiting out this bad selling time and just getting rid of junk. As soon as hubby is fully recovered from his spinal surgery, we can move forward, but we're stuck right now. I'm doing everything now and until he's all better. There's no more energy left for me to do much, since my caregiver role is so demanding at present...

[Warpy]

12. Painting is actually easier than it looks

and there are sites that will give you a list of what you need, what you need to do to protect woodwork and floor, and how to get it done with a minimum of effort and do-over.

Paint really does give you the most bang for the buck, just keep it light and neutral.

As for staging, you're going to want to get some floor and table fixtures in there to throw as much light around as possible. A few splashes of bright color in pillows, throw rugs and/or wall art should do it. You just want to suggest possibilities, not duplicate House Beautiful.

Anything bright and clutter free will do the trick. A dungeon won't.

[CTyankee]

13. Pretty much what I envisioned. The only question I have is what about balancing

what you spend on say, a dining room "staging" or a living room "staging" versus a basement room "staging"?

With limited funds, you have to make choices....

[Warpy]

14. That's why I suggested paint, only, and not replacing the carpet

unless it's got massive stains, rips, or other things like strong colors that a lot of people don't like that make it completely unsightly. Likely the new owners will replace it, but let them absorb the expense and suit their own taste.

You can paint it yourself for under a hundred bucks. New pillows will run maybe 20 bucks apiece at Wally's. A piece of colorful fabric stretched over a thrift shop picture frame can be colorful wall art. If there's a nasty, stained couch, a premade slip cover at Wally's will cost under a hundred bucks. Finished basements are great if they're sheetrocked already, you can do them very cheaply.

Just keep it light and neutral so people can see it as a TV room, play room, office, or whatever.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

15. The $20,000 more came out of the change in the listing

from partial finished basement to complete finished basement. It was about six sheets of sheetrock ,some tape,mud.texture and paint ,plus two lights at about
$22.00 bucks a piece. So at that time it was $4.00 per sheet of sheetrock ,$44.00 for a five gallon bucket of paint ,about $5o.oo bucks fer moldings and about 25 hours labor. The bear beams painted gloss white actually looked great ! Using texture made it possible to complete it in two days.

Warpy's point is that you would be surprised at what a good coat of paint will do to a room.
On the sale after the expense the client picked up $19,000 on $1,000 investment.Just because of some paint and a little sheet rock,some texture.

What I wonder about is have you had a market appraisal done on your house and property ?
The Realtor comes out and looks at the house,walks through the rooms, you do not have to do a thing or move anything. And in about a weeks time you will get a full market appraisal of you home. It comes with advice about what you should do to get full market value out of the sale.

And you will most likely do better to wait it out. For example, you think painting the upstairs rooms will help. A Realtor may advise you not to paint there. In the market analysis you will be shown houses similar to yours in your area and what those homes sold for . And you will be shown what yours will sell for.

And what to do to get it ready. From what you describe the front of your home by it's landscape is perfect-big selling feature. Realtors just love that !

What you saw in the videos,that is what Realtors do. I think you are right about the empty house,but let the Realtor advise you.

Here is the good point in the market analysis, you want to sell eventually and they want your business.

Since you want to sell, the market analysis will most likely be free,and you do not have to commit to that Realtor or that agency.

I have one here in front of me, and it is indeed quite handy. I've looked at many of those over the years,some people hire all that out. That is what I do.

And I'll tell you something else, It is better to know than it is to think that you know !
Let a local Realtor help you with this. They know the market in your area. And they know it better than you do.

California is a very different market,very different.

I'm just a contractor,! but somebody has to know something where Realtors are not at all sure.
All that basement needed was a little sheetrock and some paint ,two lights, thats all.Oh some molding.

Let them help you, ! It doesn't cost anything ,! Start calling around. Do you plan on selling the house yourself ?

[CTyankee]

16. No, I won't do try to sell it myself.

I've given up thinking I can "do it all." At my age, I have to be realistic. My priorities now are just day to day caregiving. Once my husband is back to normal with his activities, that will change. But I can think about how I can maximize my property's worth.

You are absolutely right about the outside landscaping. We've done a lot to make our front area appealing and it looks very nice. I like the way it looks when I drive into my driveway!

And we have a real plus with our porch. It sold us on the house so we have kept it up. The backyard is just grass, but we keep it mowed and we have it fenced nicely. There are some very big trees that line the back of the fence, so the view is one of leafy calm in all but the winter...

[Mist]

17. The "show" rooms (dining, living rooms) are important to put some work into. First

impressions and all that. Putting work into them doesn't have to be expensive or even involve a lot of your labor. If you're unsure of the best arrangement for these rooms, ask friends and even realtors what might work best to show the rooms' features and floor space off to best advantage. One thing I notice in all these "tart your house up for sale" shows are that they often have less furniture than people will actually have in those rooms when they move in. The idea is to show rooms as airy and spacious. The designers on these shows don't cram the corners with furniture because it makes a room look crowded. They often remove anything other than table and chairs from a dining room, and many living rooms can seat only 5 people comfortably. People tend to concentrate on all the floor space available in such rooms.

I'm with Warpy--paint the 50s rec room! (Full disclosure: I HATE HATE HATE dark old paneling, so my first instinct is to want to see it painted!) I actually think if you can manage to prime and paint those dark old panels, it may make a difference in selling sooner, and getting a better price. As the house-selling shows say over and over, the less you leave for new owner to have to do, the better. Painting is relatively cheap, thought I understand it's a lot of labor for you in your situation now. Do you have friends who would help you out? Or do you know some college students who might do it for a pizza and beer party afterwards? Young folks have so much energy--what's a big drag for us "elders" is barely an hour apiece for a crew of 3 or 4 of them!