We’re starting to do some long-delayed work needed to get our house ready to be put on the market. For a variety of reasons, we haven’t done all the maintenance work the house deserved over the last ten years.
We have two main issues. One is finding out how to get a diagnosis for a water infiltration/dampness problem on one side of the basement. I haven’t a clue where to start with that. The other is prioritizing the (infinite) list of things we could do to make the house most saleable. Would it make sense to bring in a broker to look at the place and advise us on that score?. I’m afraid a broker would push us to overspend because the more we did, the easier it would be for the broker to get it sold. How about hiring a broker for a fee just for advice, with the understanding that he/she would not be the selling broker? Does that make any sense?
Any recommendations for a website/discussion board that focuses on this topic?
Start with a plumber. Get several estimates of what the problem could be and how much it would take in money and time to fix.
Then ask neighbors who have done maintenance what they would recommend.
If you’ve been in your house a good amount of time, a number of your neighbors would have experiences. We meet at the mailboxes to catch up.
@MommaJ - Five years ago my parents decided to leave NYC and move to a CCRC in Maryland near some other family members. They met with a realtor in August to do a walkthrough of their house in one of the NYC boroughs and she was able to point out various things to fix/paint/declutter, etc. as well as what to leave alone, in their case the kitchen which was old but bright and immaculate with newish appliances. She said the buyers would undoubtedly want to make their own choices. They spent the next six months working on her list and then put the house on the market in late February. The house sold quickly and they were pleased with the entire process. I think if you can find a realtor you trust, that would be the way to go. Maybe find out who seems to be the in-demand agent in your area.
We’re in the same position and are in the process of meeting with 3 realtors to get their suggestions and market analysis of our house. We’ve met with 2 so far who have different ideas of what we need to do - not very helpful. We’ll see what the 3rd one says and then decide which realtor we’ll work with and what work we’ll do. DH says the ultimate decision about what work to do is up to us, but we want the house to draw interest.
And, yes, this is overwhelming. I read somewhere that it’s reasonable to spend 3% of your list price on improvements, but I don’t know if that’s too much, too little, or accurate.
Would it make sense to hire a home inspector that works with realtors in your area? That person could highlight issues to you and help you prioritize which are the more important ones to focus on, give you an idea what buyers would be seeing. I don’t think it is too pricey.
I found that when meeting with a realtor that they are interested is getting a listing and fast sale. I’ve never had them tell me that I needed costly renovations, more putting lipstick on a pig than redoing everything. They have mostly recommended decluttering and simple fixes as far as cosmetic changes.
It may be different in other parts of the country, I’ve only ever lived in the Midwest. Also I’ve always had a couple of realtors come in and give me an idea of fixes and prices.
Saying all that, I would fix the moisture problems in the basement. Water is something that has to be fixed and something buyers are very wary of. It could be as simple as drainage issues or a more complex issue but IMO would have to be addressed.
Talk with a realtor. They want the house to sell quickly (that’s how they make a living). They can spot the things that might stand in the way of that.
A while back, my mother wanted to sell her house, and the realtor told her that the one change she needed to make was to paint over the wood paneling in the living room. She was appalled by this; it was very nice paneling. So she didn’t do it. She put the house on the market but it attracted no interest. After a couple of months, she gave in and painted over the paneling. The house sold immediately.
I would call in 4 realtors. Check them out first for most sales in your area. Each will tell you what needs to be done. Keep a notebook of things they say. Go back and see what is on all of the lists. Also, pick one of them and go forward with progress. If you are sincere about giving them the listing, they will help you. Also, it doesn’t make it easier for the realtor to sell the house if you are listing it in good shape, it makes it easier for a buyer to put a bid in. Big difference. All realtors have told us, people are too busy to fix things so it’s less about the price of fixing and more about the time. A good realtor will also have a list of people who help them ( including plumbers, stagers, painters etc). This folks probable will respond quicker and do a good job. Give yourself at least 6 months or maybe 9 months.
@MommaJ - I would begin with a landscaper or foundation guy for your dampness. It is likely from ground water settling in on that side or a sump pump discharge line not being far enough away from your house. Also - gutters discharging close to the house could lead to this. If thats not the problem call a HVAC guy to see about installing a whole home dehumidifier.
The realtors we’ve met with do have contractors/vendors they work with. Otherwise we’d be even more overwhelmed about how to go about getting everything done.
The realtors we’ve met with so far are mainly recommending cosmetic changes, but have vastly different opinions on which things and how much we need to cosmetically change.
Interview several realtors and go to a few open houses in your area/your price range and see what sells fast.
Moisture and drainage issues absolutely need to be fixed because at least in my neck of the woods, this is the stuff that freaks out buyers. The rest of the fixes is discretionary.
I’d be hesitant to hire a home inspector because he will create a written report which could reveal problems that you are not aware of but may now have to be disclosed.
I totally get how overwhelming it is. I started doing the same thing last summer and we are now under contract to close in July. My recommendation is to look for a home stager in your area rather than a realtor at this point in the process. I found one very close to me using the “find a professional” function on the Houzz website.
The stager charged about $250 for a consultation where I could furiously take notes of her suggestions. For a little more she sent a detailed report with photos of each room and her lists of what must change and what would be nice to change. Have an idea from the beginning of how much work/money you are willing to invest and use the list to priortize the efforts. I didn’t take all her suggestions by any means but we did manage to make a significant improvement in how the house shows. Much of what was changed only required a little muscle and time–moving art and mirrors, taking up rugs, rearranging furniture.
As expected, she recommended de-cluttering, de-personalization and changing to neutral colors in some spaces. What was surprising to me was how much furniture she had us move into the basement to open up the rooms and make the house feel larger. It felt a little bare at first but I can see how it allows buyers to come in and focus on the house and not all our stuff.
In today’s market it’s crucial to have a good photos on the internet. Find a realtor who will spend some money to get a professional photographer. Those 25 shots that go into Zillow and all the other sites is what is going to draw people in. I paid our stager to be at the house the day of the photo shoot and she helped arrange every shot. She arrived with a car full of accessories and she ran around setting up little vignettes to give the impression of how easy and spa-like it is to live in our house. She also gave me good guidelines and examples of things I could do the day before the shoot so there were just the right flowers on tables, platters of fruits and veggies artfully arranged in the kitchen and the deck set up for a cookout. It all seems over the top but, boy, the pictures turned out great.
I am totally convinced that the stager was a big factor in us finding a buyer. The market is extremely tough in our neck of the woods with very few sales at all this year in our price range. There are 8 listings (some are well over a year or two) in our neighborhood of just 42 homes and we got an offer within 3 months.
We have been doing things WE want to enjoy in our house for about 8 years. New appliances (white…next owner can get stainless), granite counters in the kitchen, full interior and exterior painting, wood floors refinished.
We will be doing upstairs carpet this year sometime.
We have custom, stained (medium color) wood trim, and we are not getting that painted. Next owner can do that too!
Things like stained vs painted wood work trends seem to come and go. We live in New England! Not on the beach where white woodwork would be essential. Our house is a traditional colonial and stained woodwork isn’t uncommon in this type of home.
We have been very good about things that we know need to be done. Had roof replaced, and will get the 24 year old boiler replaced before this winter even though it’s efficiency is fine.
We figured if we were going to spend money, we should have the chance to enjoy the things we are getting done. Plus…we really don’t have a firm plan to sell…yet.
Maybe there are differences in local area laws, but we were told last year that we could hire a home inspector for our own information. As long as the inspection was prior to putting the home on the market, the report would not have to be disclosed.
Ditto. Anything a buyer can discover through an inspection of her own needs not be disclosed with the exception of a few specific line items required by the local laws (like roof leaks within the past 5 years even if they were fixed). Our quite liberal state Supreme Court sided with the sellers in RE disputes, so SOL for buyers that don’t do their homework.
In CA we disclose (eg do you know of any whatever, or have you ever whatever, etc). I would encourage any serious buyer to pay for home inspection. If they find something, we can tell them no, we wont fix it; or we can get problem fixed or agree to leave an agreed amount in escrow or adjust price), but as a seller I’m not going to have a home inspector go on a presale hunt for problems/issues.
@thumper1 We are doing the same thing. We are updating for our enjoyment before we decide to sell. Now I am enjoying the house so much that selling is becoming a more distant goal
What are people’s thoughts on putting a house for sale with no furniture? Empty rooms.
Stainless steel appliances in the galley kitchen, granite countertops.
We plan on selling next year and will get the house fixed and cleaned up after everything is removed. We’ve lived in the house 20+ years.
