Sellers, I want you to get your home sold for a price that keeps even your neighbors happy. So this advice will help you get the best price with the least investment.
Buyers, when I work with you I want you to avoid the knee jerk reaction of the statistical majority. That way, if budget is important to you, you will see the value in homes others miss. Remember, if you do buy a house, then all this home improvement advice applies to your new purchase.
Once again Remodeling magazine has concluded that the home improvement projects that produce the best rate of return ratio between cost and sales price are exterior projects. Making your home scream "pride of ownership" gets you more visitors. The more visitors the more likely you will get a good price.
I have a web page up right now with NO Exterior Pictures. That is because the yard had too much ground cover and unkempt trees. The site is www.greatgrannyunit.com. It would be incompetant to put the exterior pictures now since the Seller is willing to fix the "Welcome Mat".
The seller has had the landscaping cleaned up. Gotten professional advice on how to formalize the paths on this large lot. Ultimately, buyers are going to feel like they are on a trip to a Napa Valley Winery.
We want people to see it; just not on the mls until we have the Curb Appeal to make people stop and visit.
Now here is how this works for buyers. I had a Great Property priced as a Screaming Deal because I listed it just as it was 5 days from foreclosure.
The seller stayed home from work and cleaned house. We came in with the lights, cameras and staging props and had a beautiful set of interior pictures in one day.
Over the weekend, while I worked the open house, I watched buyers drive up to the house and make the decision to enter or drive away. It was easy to read their minds because the home was on a cul de sac.
Over 50% of the people drove on! The price was under 380,000 for a 3 bedroom house in the Rosegarden. Why didn't all of them come in?
Negative Curb Appeal; the home was dowdy. It was a little bungalow shape that made it look smaller than it was. The nice front door was hidden behind an ugly metal screen. The lot was 100% flat and there wasn't a bush or a flower in the yard!
This home was not at all neglected. The seller was planning to build a front porch to give it curb appeal and a place to sit in the evenings. Then the recession hit and the project died. The lawn was green and weed free. The paint was is great shape and the home had been remodeled around 2003.
The lesson for sellers is invest in a great front door, flowers, lawn, bushes, a deck and exterior paint BEFORE you consider more expensive projects like kitchen remodels. You still won't get all your investment back in increased sales price. But, you will improve your chance of getting a price that will let you sell.
The flip side of this, is that a smart buyer will smile when he or she sees a house in the right neighbor hood that has Zero Curb Appeal. Get out of the car and Investigate. You just might find a pearl inside the dowdy oyster.
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