7 Features That Date Your Home

There’s a fine – and often subjective—line between “vintage” and “dated” when it comes to home features. Buyers tend to be willing to pay more for a contemporary-looking property. But how do you determine whether to invest in an update? Here are a few features it’s pretty safe to say are long past their expiration date.

1. Popcorn ceilings
Also known as acoustic, or cottage cheese ceilings, they were styled using a popular spray-on ceiling finish for decades. Fortunately, the finish is easy enough to remove using a variety of DIY methods.

2. Tiled countertops
Even if they’re not from the 40s or 50s, once you’ve wasted time scrubbing grout clean, you’ll understand why these should go.

3. Brass
Back in the 80s, brass fixtures shone from everywhere they could be screwed or plugged in. That kind of home bling worked back when everyone wondered who shot J.R. To appeal to today’s buyer, update to a more neutral shade such as black or gray, or you can go with the very trendy copper.

4. Mauve
Also known as dusty rose, in the 80s this color infested everything from walls and carpets to Don Johnson’s “Miami Vice” blazers. Try swapping out for more neutral colors.

5. Short backsplashes
Popular in the 90s, colored glass and funky tile short backsplashes added color to kitchens. But they also visually shortened the kitchen walls. Replace them with tiles that reach all the way to the ceiling to make the space look larger.

6. Light wood cabinets
They were everywhere in the 90s, but are a quick, inexpensive update. Just grab some paint or stain from the hardware store.

7. Wood paneling
Generally speaking, if you can envision Marsha, Cindy and Jan giggling in front of it, it needs to go.

Not sure what to scrape, paint or replace? I can help suggest what updates may be worth the investment. Call or message me today.

4 Things (We) Agents Consider When Setting Listing Prices

There’s no online calculator for setting the perfect listing price for your home. It takes experience, market savvy, and even a bit of psychology. A strong listing agent can help you set the right, most competitive price for your home. Here are a few things they might look at:

1. The competition
Your agent will look at the prices of similar homes in your area that either are currently listed or sold during the past few months. They’ll take into account how many days the properties were on the market, and how the listing prices for those homes differed from the final sale prices.

2. Market trends
What’s affecting the market in your neighborhood, and your region? Your agent will consider national factors that shape the real estate market, such as possible rising interest rates, as well as local factors, like whether the average home price in your neighborhood has been rising or falling. They’ll also think about things such as new companies moving to the area in the near future, or plans for improving local amenities, like parks and shopping districts. All can increase the value of your home to a buyer.

3. Your neighbors
Although a home the same size and age recently sold for a high price, your own place might not fetch the exact same fortune if, say, junky cars continue to proliferate in your neighbor’s driveway. On the flipside, if the grass is in fact greener on the other side of the fence, your home’s value may be higher due to your neighbors’ curb appeal.

4. The Goldilocks price
Listing your home at a price that’s “just right” from the start is critical to selling it quickly, for the best price. Overpricing your home, and then dropping the price a few times while it sits on the market, could lead to a lower final sales price than if the home was priced appropriately from the beginning. And, of course, setting a price that’s too low leaves money on the table.

Wondering how much your home might be worth in today’s market? I can explain how these and other considerations could factor into a pricing strategy for your home. Call or message me today.

To Stage or Not Stage {your home for sale} - That is the Question

Top Ten Reasons You Should Professionally Stage Your Home

1. You Will Make More Money – U.S. Housing and Urban Development reports that a staged home will sell, on average, 17% higher than an unstaged home.
2. Your House Will Sell Faster – Real Estate Staging Association released survey results proving staging sells homes faster even in a down market.
3. The Cost of Staging Doesn’t Cost a Dime – In a 2012 HomeGain Survey of over 2000 Realtors, it was discovered that sellers recovered almost 350% of the cost of staging in the sale of their home!
4. Home Sellers Cannot View Their Home Objectively – Emotional attachment precludes viewing your home as your most valuable asset.
5. Less Guesswork and “Do It Yourself” -A Professional Home Stager can manage your projects from start to finish.  Or they can give you a detailed report based on their extensive knowledge and training to have you DIY.
6. Only 10% of Home Buyers Can Visualize the Potential of Their Home – not good odds.
7. The Longer Your Home is on the Market, the Lower Your Selling Price will be.
8. The Money You Make is Tax Free! Take Advantage of your tax-free capital gain by getting every dollar possible.
9. Leaving Your House in “AS IS” Condition Will Help to Sell the Competition.
10. Better Photos Bring in More Buyers - Over 85% of home buyers search online BEFORE visiting the home. Your Professional Stager will transform your rooms, take photos to capture the results and pass them to your Real Estate Agent to use in their marketing campaign.

 Lisa Poundstone of Design Smart Home Staging & Redesign is a local expert: http://www.designsmartstaging.com/About_Us.html