You need those glass railings in place before you show this house. They are an expensive and important feature that I don’t think buyers can appreciate if all they have to go on is a description. Don’t you think you’d get stronger offers if you wait to list the house until the glass is installed?
The economy is doing fine… The fed signals that rate hikes are on the horizon and this lit the flame under the butts of the buyers, at least here in my neck of the woods! A week of wait might work to your advantage.
I bought a spec house in your general price range in So Cal a couple of years ago and looked at a LOT of flips and spec houses.
Many were unfinished at the time of the showing (with stuff like the railings not done) and I ALWAYS assumed that that meant (1) that the developer had run out of money before finishing, (2) which made it likely that corners were cut near the end, BUT (3) signaled desperation, such that a lowball cash offer would likely be accepted. The idea that corners were likely cut made me so jittery that I talked myself out of a couple of unfinished places.
I’m relaying this to you just to give you a sense of the kinds of assumptions that at least SOME potential buyers will make when an unfinished property is listed. I would really encourage you to get the glass installed before listing!
I cannot imagine listing this house before the glass is in. Really. The decks and the views are the major selling point of the house. I completely agree with what notelling has said regarding decor choices and the glass and listing.
I think you would be shooting yourself in the foot, to put it mildly.
I agree that not having the glass railing installed prior to listing would be a HUGE mistake and really reduce the offers you get and bid prices. Please don’t do it!
If the only thing not finished is the deck railings, I think this is easily finessed by explaining there was a delay in receiving the glass. It’s not like the kitchen cabinets weren’t installed or the bathrooms weren’t tiled or some other substantive work wasn’t finished.
Why can’t some alternative nearly-invisible railing system like cables be used?
Adding to the choir…don’t put this on the market until the glass is installed. Order it ASAP.
*cb, please come back. Sorry I yelled at you . . . *
Cb is busy busy busy today but still loves us all :x . (I popped by today; the kitchen looks fantastic.) Delay on deck glass is pricing, not procrastination. Cb will solve this issue as she does them all!
Speaking as a person who has never seen tempered glass deck “railings” IRL, I would really need to see them in situ.
Besides which I bet that the steps and materials needed to install cables would be expensive and possibly damaging.
And i agree that listing the house without such a significant component just says “I’m desperate to sell.”
Pheww! What a day
Another glass guy is coming on Monday morning to give an estimate. Hopefully the glass will get installed week after Thanksgiving. My shower doors are getting installed the Wednesday before Thanksgiving
I had a 2 hour meeting with my agent today at the project. She helped with a lot of design decisions. We are going with a color in the powder room but not navy blue. I’ll surprise you all with the color chosen. We decided that the light hung in the upper staircase is too small so we took it down and back to the drawing board. Dining room light was blessed but we have to figure out exactly where to swag it because the room changed size and the wiring is in the center of old room size
The back bedrooms have their lighting up. Just semi boring stuff.
I tested some brushed nickel spray on the aluminum cabinet inserts and they are hugely improved…not bouncing shiny light everywhere. So they are keepers and will get installed on Monday.
Right now I moved my chair to back window and I have to wait for baseboard corners which are being delivered between 4 and 5pm and all the guys went home at 4pm. I’m watching the alley for the truck but my guess is he will come after dark:) baseboards are our critical path right now but we needed special rounded bullnose corners to finish the install
Started at 5:30am this morning and did not leave the project until 6:30pm. I have a lot of new pictures but they seem to be stuck in my phone and I can’t seem to get them onto my computer. I’ll try again tomorrow. By the way…the kitchen was very well lit with existing lighting and there was a gorgeous sunset
I hear you on the deck railings issue.
My agent came today with all kinds of data to discuss asking price, listing date and marketing strategy. Let’s just say we are pretty far apart on the asking price and I’m not the one that’s high. She said I’m the only seller she has ever worked with that always tries to recommend a lower asking price. Most sellers have an unrealistic view of their home’s value. We used to hit it right on target to drive interest and multiple offers but she has been too high the last two projects.
She had a full binder prepared with 5 comparable sales. They were
1314 Trieste 92107
1431 Froude 92107
4505 Newport 92107
1075 Sorrento 92107
4534 Santa Cruz 92107
I have an issue with Santa Cruz because agents and bank appraisers will not count it because it is over 6 months old.
I have an issue with Trieste and Sorrento because they are in a higher value neighborhood however Sorrento has similar charm and character. I won’t go into the boring details but I did a full plus and minus appraisal analysis to compare values to our property. I came up with X and she came up with Y. She is insisting that the property is unique and very special, flat usable very large lot, big garage and tons of bathrooms. Interesting note…none of the comparables had AC so I don’t feel bad about not spending the extra money
After much discussion, where I stressed I need to err on the fast sale side of the equation instead of the “test the market” strategy, we came up with a marketing strategy. She is bringing a professional photographer to the house next Thursday to take 4 or 5 key photos that will focus on character (living room), unique location (front gate to house, and the views. Probably the kitchen also.
These photos are going to be packaged into an email blast sent privately to key Point Loma agents as 'Coming Soon '. She is adamant that she wants it out there before Thanksgiving. These would be the agents that might have pent up buyers in the price range and are probably heavily employed and would be available Thanksgiving weekend. It will be discussed at her asking price. It won’t be on the Internet or listed for sale. If we get no interest in the 2 to 3 weeks I need to get done (and put those railings up!) we are going to market at my best guess for pricing. I want to avoid any appearance of constantly dropping price after its listed.
I think I’ll keep her price private right at the moment because I still think its too high.
Another issue I have with her price is I feel she chose high dollar comps and ignored some other properties in the neighborhood (like the black and white house) that sold for less. Bank appraisers would probably use these when calculating loan value for a buyer. And I’ll be amazed if we have an All Cash buyer for this one. Need to be careful that we are aligned with what a bank will loan on the house because that causes messy negotiations halfway through escrow
Shoot for the moon! I think you have a really special property and you would be wise to listen to your agent.
I also think you have an amazing property and like that she’s going to be doing the special preview to see interest level to help set the proper price.
I like the strategy of using the higher price privately to agents but not using that price (yet) to go on the market. It seems like a great way to test the waters at the higher price without having to potentially drop the price later.
This is getting exciting! We’re all eager to see the professional pix and to see what it finally sells for. I think you’ve hit this one out of the park.
CB…when you bought this property, you said it was going into new financial waters…much higher purchase price…and much higher sales price potential.
From what is posted here, you have an awesome property…and @Marilyn can vouch for that!!
I took some night time / sunset photos and finally got them loaded to the Flickr group. Enjoy
I am very worried about our Thursday deadline. All hands on deck! I want these photos to really emphasize how special the property is. It’s not that I think my changes or design are special, it is truly that the piece of property is very special in the neighborhood. Private entrance at the end of the cul de sac (we don’t have cul de sacs in Point Loma!), house is on 3 of the original parcels, the majority of the property is flat and useable (rare for large parcels in the neighborhood), basement (very unusual), large amount of off street garage and parking in back off alley (alley access is a big plus), and original character. However, a majority of these will not be looking good in the near future, especially the back yard and the basement!!
Today the roof is going on and the walnut flooring is getting installed on top floor. I had to call the roofer and change his priorities… the front original portion of the roof has to get done first for the photos on Thursday. Just in case they cannot finish today
That huge flat yard is such a plus! If it’s on three parcels would a future buyer be allowed to construct an additional dwelling unit?
I think your plan of just capping off the kitchen chandelier receptacle is an excellent one. Plenty of light, and the kitchen looks fabulous without one. If someone chooses to go with a work table or island, they can add the kind of light they prefer if they feel they need it. I really like the softer finish on the panels. The midnight blue uppers are gorgeous, especially from the DR. What a great kitchen!
Love the side lights on the stairs. The master bath tile looks wonderful. Love the little niche!
Everything is looking wonderful. I think you should be careful not to sell yourself short on this one. This property is special.