This is why you don’t remodel right before selling

The cost recouped numbers are very high in todays market. In todays market, you get little to zero on the dollar for a remodel. The remodel will only help in selling your house faster than the other properties in the same subdivision, and that is a maybe. I bought a model home over two years ago with 80k worth of upgrades (pool, fully upgraded kitchen and upgraded flooring), I am trying now to sell it for the same price as other properties in the same subdivision and so far no takers. As John said, do not spend too much money, just clean, paint and change the carpet.

huh. I don’t agree with this at all. The study doesn’t talk about how they got their numbers- but- in reality here in AZ, who spends $107,000 on a kitchen remodel? Or $48,000 on remodeling a bathroom? I mean really- these numbers are VERY Off to begin with. If you’re spending $48k on a 5×7 bathroom (as their info suggests), obviously you’re not going to recoup your expenses. HOWEVER- in this market, if you want your property sold, you have to offer the nicest home for the best price in the area. Give the buyers the best value for their dollar, hands down. Those are the properties that are selling right now. When you factor in holding time vs. remodeling costs- you’ll see a HUGE difference than the results of this study. If you can spend $5-10k remodeling your house, and it sells 4-6 months sooner than the average in the area, you’ve typically made money.

I agree- to some extent. Here’s the difference- if your house, without remodeling, looks just like all the others in the neighborhood- then you better price it considerably less than what the others are SELLING for. That gives you the best odds of being the ‘next one sold’ (all other factors omitted). HOWEVER- if you can drop $5k into the property, modernize it and make it above and beyond all the others- then you don’t have to price it nearly as low, since it’s now a better value home compared to the others actively listed. It’s a give/take of time and return the seller is looking for.

Ahhh- well, I flip houses. I’ve done some that needed $30k in rehab, some that needed $2k. Every property is different. Typically, you can paint/carpet/new fixture a house for around that much, give or take. Rehabbing kitchens/baths are a little more- just depends on the deal.

Kitchens and bathrooms sell houses. Bright, large open spaces sell houses. Clean sells houses. Modern sells houses. So- every property and neighborhood is different. Upgraded countertops are ALWAYS a bonus for a buyer- new appliances are a stepup (gotta go stainless). The days of the shower-tub are going away- less and less people want a tub, and actually use it. People enjoy large, 2+ person showers. I could go on and on- but it REALLY depends on the property, neighborhood, etc. If you’re in a 200k price range- granite countertops are a great asset. If you’re in a $500k price range and DON’T have granite, it’s a hindrance. Sometimes $500 in landscaping is all it takes. If you’re in an area with 30-40 year old houses, and the oven is puke green with dials and orange formica countertops- modernizing the house (fixtures, appliances, new 6-panel doors & hardware, etc) is a must to set your house away from all the others.

Typically, most people will only touch the cookie-cutter houses- built in 1995+, stucco, etc. When I walk into these, I can almost guarantee I’ll see the track mounted can lights, brass fixtures and door handles throughout. So, you can drop a little bit in modernizing hardware/fixtures for fairly cheap- and it goes a long way. Basically, no one wants to live in a 1990s era house. It’s got to be brought up to today’s style. I could go on and on, but I think you get the point. Again, every property is different, and every neighborhood/price range is different. But things don’t cost nearly as much as you’d think it does- and that’s hiring contractors to do the work.

“3k for granite time top is pretty pricey”, you need to keep you phone number or email handy so that we home owners can get a hold of you when we need to do a home upgrade. BTW, the page to your link http://www.reipipeline.com hangs when loaded, not sure why. Bottom line, the % cost recoupe in the table are not realistic in todays market, they would be in a normal market. BTW, if you want a laugh or two, check out this program on HGTV called, ” My House is Worth What”. It is about the increase in home aquity after a home remodel. They must have taped all of the programs in 2004 or 2005.

I am an Master Accredited Home Stager ASPM and noticed that Staging is mentioned very minimaly in terms of helping to get homes sold that stay on the market too long. Our statistics are showing that 93% of Staged homes are on the market and average of 31 days or less. Non-staged up to 160 days or more. I’ve recently moved my business here from the Bay Area. I would be very interested to hear your views about it. In the Bay Area, it’s vital to use Staging to get your property sold. Hope to hear from you.

John-
I could’ve sworn I just read an article last month on this topic. It may have been Phx RE Guy’s blog, not sure. Essentially, the focus was that there were no hard facts out yet about staging. Not saying it’s good or bad here, just that there were no proven, hard facts about it, and the author was suggesting the a home stager association be formed in order to provide some solid research. Personally, I’ve worked with buyers that go either way. Some HATE when a home is staged- it’s too tough to visualize their own stuff in it. Others LOVE it staged, as they have a hard time visualizing it. My gut says that staging it probably does increase the ’saleability’ of a home, provided it’s up to ‘model home standards and quality’. I would question the effectiveness across various price ranges, however. Upper level homes I can see benefiting from it, lower level homes would struggle. Again, that’s just my gut feeling on it. Obviously it would have to be worth the expense whether it’s securing a higher sales price, or drastically reducing the days on market.

Are there any unbiased studies out there to back up any of this theory? Or, why are you sold on staging soo much?
Thanks

I completely agree.