Keystone Blog

Oromocto Ollie, the Groundhog, Predicts an Early Spring!

Spring is coming and many of our clients are starting and or considering, preparing their homes for sale. They will be considering renovations that will sell their home quicker and at the highest possible price. Many will have tuned into the home-themed television shows where a professionals comes in, spends thousands of dollars on usually kitchen and bathroom renovations and voila; multiple offers and the homeowner makes a huge profit on their hard earned dollars.  I love those ideal worlds. Unfortunately, so much depends on the market and more often than not, those expensive renovations cost more than you will reap.

The Appraisal Institute of Canada has developed RENOVA, which is an interactive web-based guide to give consumers a better idea of the return on investment they can expect for a variety of home improvements. It also ranks renovations trends, in term of which provided the highest payback potential. Beware though, it is only a guide and dependent on a variety of factors such as the market, location, quality of materials and workmanship.

This is when we, the appraisers, get called in by either the homeowner, or the financial institution that is financing the project. We can provide a projected valuation based on anticipated renovation plans.

The purpose of the renovation will also dictate the type of renovation, quality of materials and therefore cost. Homeowners who are looking at a lifestyle change, adding a mortgage helper, garage conversion or upgrades and are planning on continuing on living in the home will usually have a different focus and budget than on a homeowner wishing for a quick sale by making it more attractive to purchasers while adding market value.

For a pre-sale renovation, besides the obvious of de-clutter (in and out, and please take down the Christmas lights), sprucing up, cleaning to a sparkle, repairs (time to put in the washers on those leaking taps), the following will address the two areas where sellers experience the most pressure, and let’s face it, sell homes; the kitchen and bathroom.

Kitchen:

• Appliances: repair if not working perfectly. If your appliances are still harvest gold, avocado green or dingy considering updating with basic ones. Do not spend thousands of dollars on appliances. It is standard today to have a dishwasher, so if you can fit it into you budget please consider.
• Cabinets: are so subjective to taste; so don’t replace. Depending on condition and, of course, your budget they can be updated with paint or refaced. If countertops are in poor condition, they can be replaced at a reasonable cost while satisfying most palates. Don’t spend thousands of dollars on granite, marble or other expensive choices available out there.

Bathroom:

• Flooring: If there is wall to wall carpet, remove. Most purchasers are repulsed by carpeting in a bathroom. Bathrooms are typically small and a flooring remnant or other options can be added for little cost.
• Plumbing Fixtures and Other: Don’t replace plumbing fixtures unless absolutely necessary. If they are damaged, really outdated and/or cracked consider replacing but not with expensive ones that are so subjective to taste. Instead update shower heads, taps, lighting, mirror, shower curtain/door, towel bars, towels and bath mats.

One book that I would recommend is “Welcome Home: Insider Secrets to Buying or Selling Your Property – A Canadian Guide” by Sarah Daniels. If you're interested, I have a link to it on the home page of my website.

Good luck and if engaging in some pre-sale reno’s, let me know how you made out. If you have your own pre-sale renovation secrets or horror story, please share.