Prepping a home to sell

[cas]

I am about accept a transfer at work and we're going to have to sell our home. No biggie, I was ready to move anyway.

We live in an area with a fairly hot market, 2 homes near me moved in 3 days. My house is in ok condition, it's not a showpiece. Old, solid, etc. Anyway, here are my questions. No flames, this is more of an informal survey.

1) The attic was painted purple by the previous owners. I've cleaned most of it out (it's about 800sq ft). Should I paint it - or at least prime it - a less obnoxious color? I could finish it in 4 or 5 hours. When we first looked at the house I thought "jeez, that is ugly".

2) Kitchen. It's old, the cabinets are sorta cheap and while they look ok they aren't great. The SO wants to replace them, I'm really not up for a kitchen redo if I have to be out of here in 3 months. I was thinking of just cleaning them as best as I can, repainting the kitchen, etc. The kitchen is semi bright, it's well light.

3) Wallpaper. Gawd I hate this mess (esp when it's old as dirt). I'm now redoing the bathrooms. One of the bathrooms has a wall of wallpaper that isn't responding to any of the removers. Would it be tacky to just paint over it? It's smooth and there are no seams that are peeling, it's just - ugly.

That's it, thanks.

[scott21230]

The problem I see with a lot of the stuff you are doing is that if the prospective buyer doesn't like yout tastes, they aren't going to pay extra for new stuff that they don't like. However, I'd probably prime the attic and clean the kitchen cabinets real good. #2 is hard to say without a pic. And painting over wallpaper is a poor practice, but common. Actualy wallpaper in a bathroom period is a poor practive. It will peel eventually.

[cas]

I was going to prime the attic with white primer. To me it isn't a "let's wow 'em" but to remove the "damn, that is one ugly color" thought. :) The other rooms are going to be painted standard colors, offwhites and the like. I looked at a house last week that had walls that had been painted dark colors then "sponged" with lighter colors. Every room - and they had just done it.

I just read about using vinegar and hot water to remove wallpaper, I'll give that a go. I hate wallpaper anyway, whoever put it in these bathrooms should be smacked. Neighbors had theirs done, even with a vent fan it peeled in several years (I questioned the quality of the install, but paint at least holds up a while).

[marktx2006]

I bought a steam iron from walmart the kind you iron your clothes with. I filled it with tap water ,and steamed my wall paper off worked great.messy but works. you can reat a wall paper steamer.My way worked an the irons are cheap enough to throw away when they break. other then that it is another tool in my work shop /garage .

[KLS]

If I were you, I'd paint it a lighter color, for sure. If nothing else, it'll make the space look larger.

I agree, just clean them really well. Maybe change out the handles and drawer pulls if new ones would spiff up the cabinets.

Just don't overprice the house; make sure the house is value priced so it'll sell. A friend with a similar kind of kitchen has now had to drop her price $50k after 62 people went through the house over the last 6 months and not one offer.

*DO NOT* paint over the wallpaper. If you do, you will be consigned to Dante's fifth circle of hell or even circle 9.3. Actually, have you really exhausted all removal possibilities? Have you scored the paper itself and rented a steamer? That *ALWAYS* works if the water/vinegar (or DIF) soak isn't speedy enough for you.

You may think that just painting over the paper will be the perfect solution, but paint is wet and often will lift up loose areas of the paper underneath, creating a no-longer smooth surface, so best to just remove the wallpaper.

[Ed]

It has been my experience that you will rarely get your money back. A house will sell for the going rate in your neighborhood. Imagine if you spent time and money fixing it up and the new owners just scraped everything you did.

[hallerb]

Well having sold a home just over a year ago....

People TODAY want move in condition! About 90% want NO WORK AT ALL! Now if you want a fast sale then give them exactly that, a nice pristine turn key home. If on the other hand your willing to wait endlessely for the rare buyer who wants some work, then leave things as is, be prepared for a BIG price hit, and a longer wait for the right buyer:(

Most max out the monthly mortage wanting more home and wouldnt have money after the sale for remodeling, nor a desire to do it.:(

FIRST GET A HOME INSPECTION! Sure it will cost you $250 but it will alert you to things buyers will be looking at:( and demanding a price cut for repairs, lots of stuff can be fixed DIY, but once the buyers home inspector checks things out they will demand receipts from registered electricians, plumbers, etc.

so that flakey light switch or leaking drain can cost you a LOT:(

repaint the entire home in a nice neutral color like white or off white, fix obvious things that are broke, and declutter the house, make it look spacious even if you have to rent a storage bin somewhere during the sale.

I heartily recommend you watch some shows like BUY ME, and HOUSE HUNTERS, and designed to sell!

Just a few episodes will give you a idea of what your up against:(

I think your wife is right, redo the kitchen, thats the first thing buyers look at, bad kitchen not interested:(

Oh yeah start preparing your disclosure list:( EVERYTHING that has ever been a issue and not exactly perfect, if you leave anything out the buyer can come back and sue you for the cost of repairs.

That happened to a old neighbor here. She sold her home and didnt disclose tree roots she knew were in sewer. new owner moved in and had clog:( Happened to call the same plumber , who had changed jobs but snaked the sewer for the old owner.

old owner paid 8 grand for all new sewer line including under basement floor all because she didnt disclose a year earlier it had been snaked. I heard the original owner spent 2 grand on lawers fees too but dont know for certain.

Things have changed GREATLY in real estate in the last 10 years, people USED to look at homes and see possibilties:(

Now they want a PERFECT HOME:(

If your lucky the buyer will accept your home inspection and not pay for a second one, but even if they do you will know what to expect...

[hallerb]

Well having sold a home just over a year ago....

People TODAY want move in condition! About 90% want NO WORK AT ALL! Now if you want a fast sale then give them exactly that, a nice pristine turn key home. If on the other hand your willing to wait endlessely for the rare buyer who wants some work, then leave things as is, be prepared for a BIG price hit, and a longer wait for the right buyer:(

Most max out the monthly mortage wanting more home and wouldnt have money after the sale for remodeling, nor a desire to do it.:(

FIRST GET A HOME INSPECTION! Sure it will cost you $250 but it will alert you to things buyers will be looking at:( and demanding a price cut for repairs, lots of stuff can be fixed DIY, but once the buyers home inspector checks things out they will demand receipts from registered electricians, plumbers, etc.

so that flakey light switch or leaking drain can cost you a LOT:(

repaint the entire home in a nice neutral color like white or off white, fix obvious things that are broke, and declutter the house, make it look spacious even if you have to rent a storage bin somewhere during the sale.

I heartily recommend you watch some shows like BUY ME, and HOUSE HUNTERS, and designed to sell!

Just a few episodes will give you a idea of what your up against:(

I think your wife is right, redo the kitchen, thats the first thing buyers look at, bad kitchen not interested:(

Oh yeah start preparing your disclosure list:( EVERYTHING that has ever been a issue and not exactly perfect, if you leave anything out the buyer can come back and sue you for the cost of repairs.

That happened to a old neighbor here. She sold her home and didnt disclose tree roots she knew were in sewer. new owner moved in and had clog:( Happened to call the same plumber , who had changed jobs but snaked the sewer for the old owner.

old owner paid 8 grand for all new sewer line including under basement floor all because she didnt disclose a year earlier it had been snaked. I heard the original owner spent 2 grand on lawers fees too but dont know for certain.

Things have changed GREATLY in real estate in the last 10 years, people USED to look at homes and see possibilties:(

Now they want a PERFECT HOME:(

If your lucky the buyer will accept your home inspection and not pay for a second one, but even if they do you will know what to expect...

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Ever watch the TV show "Sell This House"? Amazing how much return there is on a couple of hundred properly spent dollars. Who cares if the new owners re-paint the day they move in, as long as they liked the house and paid top dollar for it.

I'd pain the attic, spruce up the kitchen. I'd not replace cabinets, but I'd paint, maybe add a shelf or planter if needed, maybe a new light fixture or under cabinet light on the counter if you have none. Light, bright, colors everywhere in the house.

Remove any clutter you may have lurking in the garage or basement, even some furniture if crowded, to give the illusion of being a large house.

As for the going rate for the neighborhood, you want to be on top of it or even exceed it if possible.

[hallerb]

Lowes sells very nice low cost kitchen cabinets, that along with new countertops and sink can pay back more than they cost.

a couple more great tv shows

Flip THIS house

Flip THAT house

the names similiar and both explain what sells and why

flip this house often says new kitchen 6 grand payback 13 grand in added home value

[Ed]

True, but you aren't going to re-d9o a kitchen, cabinets and all, for a couple of hundred.

[Steven L Umbach]

I agree with ED. My neighbors keep their houses pretty nice and anytime anyone moves just before the new owner comes in you find all the carpet and flooring out on the curb with perfectly good appliances and sometimes even cabinets. It seems like with cheap mortgage rates people have no problem adding another 10 - 50 thousand on to get exactly what they want.

All the ROI for remodels is hype in my opinion propagated by those that can profit from such. I have a perfectly fine kitchen with oak cabinets but everything is not the latest or greatest. If I spent 40 thousand on a kitchen remodel it "might" add 10 thousand to the value of my house. Where you can get great ROI is when you can do the labor mostly yourself for areas of the house that really need it such as an outdated master bath. One of our neighbors bought every conceivable upgrade/option to their house when the neighborhood just started believing the salesperson that they would recover all the costs at resale and to their living experience. They took a huge beating when they sold a few years later getting just a little more than the same model without all the upgrades.

Of course when you sell a house it should be neat, clean, and uncluttered and most everything in good working order. I am not saying that you should not put any money into getting a house ready for sale. Light fixtures are one way to really spruce things up for not much. Fresh paint is well worth while if you can do it yourself if any rooms need it as are some plants/flowers. If you have too much stuff [like me] consider renting some storage space to get the junk out before putting it on the market. Good luck. --- Steve

[hallerb]

You dont want to over improve, but if the kitchen cabinets are shabby nice low cost ones might be in order.

I suggest the original poster go look at a few homes in their existing neighborhood that are for sale, lie and say your checking for a out of state friend:) Check condition price etc, see what others are up to.

You can be checking out realtors while your at it, if your going to use one to sell your home

the more educated you are + better sales!!

[bambam]

Sure, prime it twice. "Ugly is a turn off."

Cleaning. Get rid of clutter. Nothing on the countertop for showings. Make sure everything works. Going further than this will bring ever diminishing returns.

Get it off and repaint. Or, leave it.

If the market truly is hot, any house in a desireable neighbourhood will sell, provided it's priced into the market.

Ours is a hot market right now ... even less desireable homes are drawing six and seven bids and sales are generally for 110 to 120 percent of asking price within a couple of days.

Ken

[BobK207]

On the stuff you asked about

1) The attic

Prime w/ Zinsser Cover Stain & then top coat white or off white

2) Kitchen.

Clean & repaint MAYBE new pulls.............keep it simple

3) Wallpaper.

Remove it or leave.

DO NOT PAINT OVER! Gives the impression that you cut corners & brings up the question where else?

This stuff works like magic.....almost fun to use (in a sick sorta way)

?ProductID=18 cheers Bob

cheers Bob

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Sure, an expensive kitchen is a poor upgrade, but a few hundred bucks to freshen a house is a sure winner. That has been proven many times.

[Mark Lloyd]

The house I bought had wallpaper in the bathroom. Most of it peeled off and there was more wallpaper under that.

There was also the stinky carpet...

[Marc_G]

This is a great reason to sell As-Is, if your market is at all hot.

We just sold a house in Columbia, MD over the summer. The house was in great condition but the last thing we wanted was some disclosure issue to come back and bite us later. In hot markets, most people sell as-is for this reason.

In slow markets, such as where we bought, this isn't an option, though. People will make an assumption that there's something wrong with the home.

Customs vary widely from market to market, so rely on your sellers' agent to advise you.

Marc

[hallerb]

For whatever its worth I watched flip this house tonight, as part of the flip renovations they installed a entire new kitchen cost 10 grand. said it would return 20 grand in added value.

flip this house always installs new kitchens because they say they get back more than they spend.

[Oren]

Master baths are next.... IMHO.

Oren "My doctor says I have a malformed public-duty gland and a natural deficiency in moral fiber, and that I am therefore excused from saving Universes."