3 Common Renovation Mistakes Home Sellers Make

When I take clients to view potential homes to purchase there are 3 common renovation mistakes that home buyers notice which they can use to their advantage.

Note to Sellers: Begin by focusing on the goal of the renovation!

These 3 common renovation mistakes occur in the following scenarios:

1. When a seller decides to renovate their home prior to putting it on the market

2. When a seller decides to renovate their investment property prior to putting it on the market

3. When a difficult to sell property gets a makeover after it's been on the market forever

Sellers, you need to begin by focusing on the goal of the renovation!

The goals of the renovation should accomplish the following:

a.) Attract buyers by increasing the likelihood they can see themselves living in the home.

b.) Increase the number of potential buyers. Few buyers want to do renovations unless it's a fire sale.

c.) Not to decrease the number of potential buyers. Few buyers want to redo a poor renovation.

d.) Get yourself the most money possible from the sale. Reduce the buyer's reasons to offer less.

e.) Get your property sold sooner rather than later so you can move on.

Keep this in mind: When buyers are looking for a home to purchase they are eliminating homes from their list of potential homes in order to find the home they will buy.

The 3 common renovation mistakes include appliances, countertops and flooring.

Making choices that don't help to accomplish the 5 goals above is where sellers fail. Choosing cheap is money lost. Poor workmanship is money lost. Going too high end is money lost. Choosing wisely will help you accomplish your 5 goals and reap the rewards.

Appliances:

An error in judgement is to install low cost white appliances. Although they may be better than what was there previously, homebuyers will still be intent on replacing them. They are just plain ugly to the majority of buyers. It's likely the buyer will factor the cost of replacement into their decision which reduces their offer price.

Solution: Choose good quality stainless steel appliances. They don't need to be top end, although they will cost more than those cheap plain white ones you will have accomplished what you set out to do which is to attract the buyer. This will work in your favour. Stainless steel appliances are what most buyers want, they are attracted to them. I never said that it was going to be logical.

If I could show you videos of buyers bee-lining for the stainless steel appliances and touching them you would understand. I've also seen someone hug a stainless steel fridge. Just ask anyone with stainless steel appliances how many finger prints they have to polish off their fridge after each showing.

As of today's date stainless steel is still a good bet. It will be a while until North America gets hooked on those coloured SMEG fridges.

Countertops:

An error in judgement is to install arborite counter tops. Home buyers are repelled by them it's one of the first things they notice. They immediately think ugly and quickly calculate how much it will cost to replace them. Note: They always calculate more than it would have cost you to install decent countertops in the first place.

Arborite also has a way of turning people right off. The property down the street sold because it had beautiful countertops, oh and a really great tile back splash. The property with the arborite countertops hasn't sold yet.

Solution: Choose current & good quality countertop materials. Quartz and granite are popular however be wary of colour choices since some may already be considered dated. Consult a professional designer, stager or kitchen consultant. Ask your realtor to point you in the right direction.

Flooring:

An error in judgement is to replace or install carpet. The majority of buyers want to rip it out. Many newly carpeted abodes have had the carpet ripped out as soon as the new owner had a chance. Yes the buyer will calculate the time, hassle and cost to get rid of the carpet and factor this into their offer.

Note: If the target audience to buy your property is aged eighty or older carpet is usually considered a good flooring option.

Solution: Engineered Hardwood or Laminate. Laminate is typically the most cost effective and there are good and bad choices of course. You need to educate yourself so don't hesitate to consult a flooring specialist. Choose wisely since cheap options look cheap and potential buyers will judge harshly. You guessed it, a lower offer since they will immediately want to replace it.

Have you ever walked into a home with cheap laminate and watch people react? I have seen potential buyers get so fixated on how cheap the laminate flooring looks. I can see it in their eyes before they tell me. They can't imagine entertaining in the space let alone live there. Cheap laminate in one condo just helped to sell a competing condo for sale in the same building. In other words the potential buyer bought the property with a more attractive floor choice instead.

Good luck with your renovations and stay focused on your goals!

There may be instances where it does not make sense to do upgrades prior to selling residential real estate. Consult your realtor prior to making a decision to renovate so you can make an informed decision.

I'm here to help you take advantage of your real estate opportunity.

Increasing your security by reducing your risk is one of the most important jobs I do as your realtor.

www.JoeMaez.com