To remodel or not for sale

Hello.  I've been a long time lurker here, almost bought Juniper ~2 years ago and decided to bail since my wife got pregnant so requirements changed! I'm thinking we'll probably be looking to move in about a year's time now, so we are starting to wonder how to maximize resale value of our townhouse in West Irvine.

We replaced the floors a few years ago to wood look tile, but the rest of the house is pretty bare bones.  Thoughts on remodeling to maximize sale price?  Is now the time to do it since we're pretty sure we won't be going anywhere for a while?

I personally want to find a place that *isn't* remodeled so I can pick out things the way I like it, but I'm getting the sense that more and more buyers just want a place they can move into and not have to worry about that.
 
If its functional and not extremely dated, just spotless clean and maybe neutral paint.  Maybe move most of your stuff into storage to declutter.

If anything is a project the new owners have to do now, do those but leave any project that is a someday upgrade.

The only other thing is if low hanging fruit like faucets scream builder cheapie, replace.
 
Paint. If you have white walls... some color (not too outrageous) makes a big difference.

How is the kitchen and bathrooms?
 
I'm looking for a small house mostly.... but I can tell you one thing that's

any grout in rest room, kitchen tile, floor, etc, that looks dirty is a big no.

 
I'm going through the same exercise right now.  Windows/Sliding doors and interior paint are a definite.  I'm considering outside paint as well just to modernize the color scheme. 

@irvinehomeowner: what's wrong with white interior walls?  It seems like white is making a comeback recently, especially with smaller rooms/homes.
 
woodburyowner said:
@irvinehomeowner: what's wrong with white interior walls?  It seems like white is making a comeback recently, especially with smaller rooms/homes.

That tends to be "builder's grade". All I know is every house we've sold, the buyers comment on the fact that it had nice color interior walls. It's the cheapest "upgrade" that can be done.

I think most new homes now have some type of color as the "builder's grade"... but it depends.
 
irvinehomeowner said:
Paint. If you have white walls... some color (not too outrageous) makes a big difference.

The walls were painted when I moved in ten years ago to a very light 'sand' color.  Probably need a professional touch up here and there.

irvinehomeowner said:
How is the kitchen and bathrooms?

The kitchen and bathrooms are bare bones lennar base stuff. Cabinets look OK, but the countertops are cheap plastic looking stuff, bathrooms are all similar.  I can't imagine upgrading bathrooms will be a positive ROI, but I was thinking kitchen perhaps?

nosuchreality said:
The only other thing is if low hanging fruit like faucets scream builder cheapie, replace.

Faucet, oven, microwave have all been replaced in the last five years, but nothing fancy. 

Innosint said:
I'm looking for a small house mostly.... but I can tell you one thing that's
any grout in rest room, kitchen tile, floor, etc, that looks dirty is a big no.

Hah, that's interesting.  When I bought this house, the reason I was able to get it was that it looked like a shitshow when it was being shown (was a short sell).  Very dirty, paint was messed up, flooring etc.  I probably saved 30k because it needed new paint and was messy!  :)
 
Hire a stager and they will look at your house and tell you what you can do for the best "ROI".

Staging, to me, is one of the best tools you can use to sell your home. It makes it look better in pictures and in person.

Unless you already have the Williams-Sonoma/Pottery decor going on. 😁
 
ThirtySomethingWEquity said:
Hello.  I've been a long time lurker here, almost bought Juniper ~2 years ago and decided to bail since my wife got pregnant so requirements changed! I'm thinking we'll probably be looking to move in about a year's time now, so we are starting to wonder how to maximize resale value of our townhouse in West Irvine.

We replaced the floors a few years ago to wood look tile, but the rest of the house is pretty bare bones.  Thoughts on remodeling to maximize sale price?  Is now the time to do it since we're pretty sure we won't be going anywhere for a while?

I personally want to find a place that *isn't* remodeled so I can pick out things the way I like it, but I'm getting the sense that more and more buyers just want a place they can move into and not have to worry about that.

Hard to answer without really knowing more.  I would hire Martin (USCTrojan) and have him come by and tell you what you need (or don't need) to do to maximize price.
 
ThirtySomethingWEquity said:
Hello.  I've been a long time lurker here, almost bought Juniper ~2 years ago and decided to bail since my wife got pregnant so requirements changed! I'm thinking we'll probably be looking to move in about a year's time now, so we are starting to wonder how to maximize resale value of our townhouse in West Irvine.

We replaced the floors a few years ago to wood look tile, but the rest of the house is pretty bare bones.  Thoughts on remodeling to maximize sale price?  Is now the time to do it since we're pretty sure we won't be going anywhere for a while?

I personally want to find a place that *isn't* remodeled so I can pick out things the way I like it, but I'm getting the sense that more and more buyers just want a place they can move into and not have to worry about that.

Do it when you have 50 Millions out of works. You will get the most for your money and enjoy it while you there.
 
Here are the biggest "bangs for the buck" in terms of maximizing sales price for a seller...

1 - Paint the interior to a white color (white is very in now and makes the space look larger) as was recommended to me by 2 stagers in the past few years where I was going to list a few vacant listings

2 - Declutter...less is more and will make the space look larger

3 - Stage if the home will be vacant and one of my stagers will do specific staging pieces for a home that is still occupied

4 - CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN...do a deep cleaning, clean your grout, steam clean your carpet areas, and get the windows professionally cleaned (nothing turns a buyer off more than a dirty home)

5 - Install recessed lights in living areas and master bedroom and add ceiling fans if there is a j-box (a bright home is an attractive home)

6 - Take down personal pictures and other items that display your name (degrees, certificates, etc)

7 - Buy scented candles and use if you cook very rich foods for a more pleasing scent to the buyers that enter your home

8 - Replace old worn out bathroom lights, faucets, and/or door fixtures
 
USCTrojanCPA said:
1 - Paint the interior to a white color (white is very in now and makes the space look larger) as was recommended to me by 2 stagers in the past few years where I was going to list a few vacant listings

Wow...there you go... I guess white is the new tan/grey. :)
 
irvinehomeowner said:
USCTrojanCPA said:
1 - Paint the interior to a white color (white is very in now and makes the space look larger) as was recommended to me by 2 stagers in the past few years where I was going to list a few vacant listings

Wow...there you go... I guess white is the new tan/grey. :)

Yeah, I started noticing that a lot of new model homes use a variant of a white color on some or most of their walls.
 
That's really weird. I still prefer color on the walls... white just reminds me of a hospital... or like I said... builder's grade. :)
 
irvinehomeowner said:
That's really weird. I still prefer color on the walls... white just reminds me of a hospital... or like I said... builder's grade. :)

The white colors that I'm talking about have a softer creme tone in them so it's not the hospital pure white color.
 
I'm not sure if I'm remembering this correctly but even back in mid-2000s, builders were already using an off white as the base paint for new homes... I think it was called Ivory or Swiss Coffee.
 
Swiss coffee is a safe choice, but the pure white will be more modern. Seems like older people don?t like it because it reminds of hospitals, but with white kitchen and white oak floors, they will come pretty Scandinavian look. It might not go well with carpets though. It also depends what furnitures you have. Light gray will also look pretty modern and clean, but that trend might go away soon.
 
We had grey in our previous home and a slightly different shade of grey in our existing home.  We have no problems with it, maybe in 5-10yrs I'll think different.  House will probably be due for new paint in 5 anyways with the younger kids always banging toys against the wall even as I tell them not to. 
 
Now that I have your attention IHO and USC, how much do you think 3 car garage homes in Tustin Ranch are gonna come down in the next year?  ;D  Any chance my townhouse drops a smaller % than those houses? 
 
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