Not every dime you put into your house are you going to get out - there I've said it honestly. Some people think that for every nail, piece of putty and shingle they add to their purchase price and voila - your future sales price. This couldn't be further from the truth. This thinking is perpetuated by Lowes, Home Depot and a handful of others that are nothing more than in the business of selling you things.
In this market, conservative is the word. Granite counters are nice but can I get you an extra $10,000 at selling time? I doubt it and don't you believe those boneheads on HGTV either. They are TV personalities not Realtors for heavens sake.
If your home looks good with a $6,000 roof why upgrade to that $12,000 roof if you're not going to get your money out of it? All homes need roofs but do they need the $12,000 roof? Watch out how you are being sold. Watch out who's telling you what buyers are willing to pay for.
This is a great post from Doug Rogers and agent in Pineville, LA - Enjoy!
One of the joys of the listing presentation is going over "updates" the seller has performed over the years. Sellers are often shocked that just because something cost "X" it doesn't mean you can add that to the value of the home. Here are some of the more interesting updates I have seen.
1) The forty thousand dollar pool-- This pool was Awesome! I wanted to shuck down to boxers and go swimming right then! But...There was no backyard, literally you open the back door and there is the pool. Also, houses in the neighborhood were selling for the 150's. Some of them had pools. the odds of convincing a buyer (much less and appraiser) of a 190k price was slim. Not to mention about 1/2 my buyers won't even look at homes with pools.
2) Converting the garage-- Click your heels together three times and presto! Your garage is now a game room! More often than not these look terrible! Nothing like stepping up to go into the kitchen! And my personal favorite...when the updates end in the garage. Nothing like modern features in one room and wall to wall shag in the rest.
3) Do it yourself and save a buck---Love the grout lines that don't quiet line up. Nothing says class louder than laminate floors with 2 inch gaps! Most folks are FAR BETTER off updating one room at a time with a professional than doing it themselves.
4) The leaning fence--I love the wood privacy fences that resemble a scoliosis victim! A crooked fence is about as useful as a crooked politician! Again, save our money and hire a professional when you can!
In today's market few /if any upgrades offer a dollar for dollar return on imvestment. Upgrade because you want to, not to enhance your bottom line. And by all means, call a professional!
Very well said. I always tell sellers that the high end upgrades will make their home more marketable but not necessarily more valuable. It breaks their hearts eveytime..
Mike: It's true. Not every dollar in is a dollar out. Don't know where that mentality started. If you put new tires on your car is it worth $500 more? Or, as you say just more sellable because it's part of general good maintenance.
Lyn, if we could get sellers to believe this, our jobs would be SO much easier! I love your car metaphor, and I plan to use it the next time I get an argument from a seller who added a bathroom grotto :)
Good luck with it Gwen.