Prepping For Sale: What to Spend $$$ On — and What NOT To

Criterion:  “Context, Context, Context” (and Consistency)

One of the biggest decisions would-be home sellers have to make — besides choosing a Realtor and a list price  🙂 — involves what to spend money on getting ready for sale . . . and what not to.

The trick to making that decision is applying the right criterion.

Mine:  cost-benefit.

Case-Specific

So, Sellers are well-advised to tackle any repair-or-replace items flagged by a city inspection.

That’s because for every $1 in repairs that Buyers assume, they’ll typically deduct $4 – $5 from their offer.

Similarly, in a home with all newer windows, it makes sense to spend $1,000 replacing one damaged window.

That’s because bringing the one substandard window up-to-snuff lets the seller trumpet the condition of all the other windows.

Contra Examples

Now, however, imagine that all the windows are older, and — while in working order — in relatively poor condition.

Simply replacing one window isn’t going to alter Buyers’ perception that the windows are dated.

Instead, Sellers are better off simply pricing for that.

Similarly, I wouldn’t selectively update a home that has a consistently dated feel.

That’s because, instead of giving the seller credit for any updates, Buyers are invariably going to focus on everything the Seller didn’t address.

Call it the residential real estate version of “no good deed goes unpunished.”



from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230700 http://ift.tt/2rhTiLT
via IFTTT

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Estimating the Discount for a Busy Street (or Not)

Image
The Art of Comp Selection One of the trickier home features to account for in a Comparative Market Analysis (“CMA”) is a busy street. For a family with little kids, a busy street may very well be a deal breaker — in which case the discount is theoretically infinite. At the other extreme, an investor looking for a rental property may see the location as a plus: free advertising! Of course, not all busy streets are created equal: depending on how far the home is set back; elevation differences; the individual home’s layout; and even landscaping and other topography, and the noise level/loss of privacy can vary significantly. Two Strategies Faced with so many variables, Realtors and Appraisers can always simply choose an average discount — say , 10% off. Strategy #2? Choose as Comp’s (Comparable Sold Properties) only homes that are also located on busy streets. Even better: the same busy street. Then, there’s no need to make any adjustment, because all the home...
Read more

“What’s the Highest Point in Hennepin County?”

Image
There sure seems to be some confusion on that, umm . . . point. I’ve now encountered at least three different properties — none close to one another — that all claimed that status in just the last month. For the record, according to Hennepin County’s website, it’s on Williston Road near High Point Road in Minnetonka — 1,131 feet above sea level. See also , “ Florida’s Tallest Point (and how to get there) .” from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230700 https://ift.tt/2Pq1ndL via IFTTT
Read more

“Are You a Realtor?” “Why, Yes I Am!”

Image
“There Goes My Realtor!” Admittedly, the intended effect is for clients who see me in and around the neighborhood where I live (by Cedar Lake in Minneapolis) to see my car on the road and say, “There Goes My Realtor!” But, my custom license plate (above) is also a conversation-starter when I’m parked. Like today, in Linden Hills, where a builder who has an upcoming listing saw my car and asked if I was a Realtor. I know what to do from there . . .  from RSSMix.com Mix ID 8230700 http://ift.tt/2glixp5 via IFTTT
Read more