About once a month I clean a bathtub that has never been used. Right now it's like a new car toy in a recent retirees garage. Only it smells like Fabuloso instead of Turtle Wax. I refuse to let my bathroom become a dust bunny cemetery. And it reminds me of some Sunday Funnies I get from home sellers.
"It has new carpet. I just put in upgraded carpet and pad a year ago."
I understand and appreciate when seller clients tell me things like this. It does have meaning and value. But what they hired me to do is let them know the meaning and value in the eyes of the buyer market. What the buyer thinks about "new" used carpet with pink KoolAid stain in front of the new TV is not really favorable. We have to consider the condition of things today, regardless of the date on a receipt.
"It had a new roof installed in 2010."
I understand how crazy it may sound to the average consumer when a 30-year roof is only 5 years old and I make a recommendation to call a roofer. But we have wind and hail storms in this area every year and have probably had them every year since before houses here were TeePees. But if you have a decent eye and homeowner's insurance, you can look up there, see cracked and bubbled tabs, missing composition, and understand what to do next pretty clearly. The new homeowner can't get their loan and insurance without a good roof. It's best to make sure what we are conveying isn't a 5 year old roof with a hole.
"This is brand new ceramic tile. I installed it myself."
I understand and appreciate the effort and value of new things. But sometimes what we install for ourselves is not the going style anymore or not a popular choice of materials for this market. Even the "economical" builders install granite countertops in this market now, so the brand new stuff we may have here isn't really helpful to sell. Or the DIY installation is great for the current homeowner, but not the quality of installation buyers expect in this market today. We have to be a lot more meticulous about our choice of materials and quality of installation when we prep for sales.
"I hired a professional cleaner before I put it on the market."
I understand it costs money for a detail make ready pro-cleaning and appreciate getting listings whose homeowners did clean! But vacated properties still get toilet rings, bugs on their backs, and filthy exterior windows. Showings lead to heavy foot traffic, dirty floors, leaves inside, and fingerprints on every switchplate, doorknob, door, countertop and windows. Potential buyers may skip making an offer on the home they perceive to be poorly maintained simply because it's grown to be dirty over a short amount of time, even while no one lives there post pro-clean. It's best to continue to take pride in the property to the end. Just Say No! to dust bunny cemeteries amid our selling process.
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