Home Defects: Why You Should Resolve them Before Selling

It's a uExpress postcard!: "Smart Moves

HOME DEFECTS: WHY YOU SHOULD RESOLVE THEM BEFORE SELLING

The white stucco bungalow with the forest green shutters was rented to a parade of tenants during the last half-decade. In all that time, the owner scarcely opened his wallet to repair or remodel the place.
Now the owner wants to sell; however, he knows it's time to spend the cash needed to restore the battered property to its former condition. In fact, the seller has agreed to spend $25,000 for renovation work before the place goes to market.

The bungalow's owner, a number-crunching tax specialist, knows he will more than recoup his renovation expenditures. His real estate agent, Gregory J. Pawlik, of Coldwell Banker, thinks that with the improvements, the house will command $75,000 more than if it sold in "as is" condition.

"The moral of the story is that a small investment is going to make him a much larger return," Pawlik says.

Why are home buyers willing to pay a healthy premium for a place in superior condition when they could oversee the same renovation work themselves for much less? The answer has more to do with psychology than mathematics, says Bill Sloan, a Re/Max broker-associate, who has sold homes for 20 years.

"When they walk in the front door, most buyers don't have the imagination to look beyond what's in front of them. They can't picture the house as it could look. They can only see the reality now," Sloan says. "Selling a house is like selling any commodity. Buyers want a house as close to mint condition as possible."

Here are four tips for home sellers seeking to maximize the cash they get out of their property through pre-sale improvements:


NO. 1: Spend your money in ways that will make the best impression.
No, this is not the time to add that luxurious sunroom you've been contemplating for the past 10 years. Chances are that you will recoup only a fraction of the cost of such an addition.

Generally, you'll want to concentrate only on necessary repairs and cosmetic improvements. For instance, Pawlik advised the tax specialist selling the bungalow to start with a "punch list" of minor repairs, such as loose doorknobs. He suggested that the home's three bedrooms be re-carpeted and that new appliances and floor tile be installed in its kitchen. He also recommended that new sod be brought in for the yard.


NO. 2: Take an especially careful look at a home you've inhabited for years.
Before you put your property on the market, Pawlik suggests you go from room to room, doing an inventory of defects that may normally escape your notice. Perhaps you have sliding glass doors that no longer move with ease, or a noisy garbage disposal that's clamoring to be replaced.

Sometimes longtime owners are simply unaware of hidden problems. Until they check, for example, they may not be aware that a living room carpet has sustained an unsightly water stain under a large potted plant. Likewise, the owners could be oblivious to problems within a fireplace, unless they call in a chimney sweep.

It is better for a home's owners to discover defects before a potential purchaser finds them because small discoveries -- like the water stain under the potted plant -- can lead to major suspicions on the part of a purchaser, explains Sloan, the Re/Max broker-associate.


NO. 3: Disabuse yourself of the notion that your 20-year-old decor is ok.
The lime-green shag carpeting you selected for your living room may be just as acceptable to you now as it was when you picked it in the 1970s. And since that part of the house is rarely used, the carpeting might still be in decent condition.

But chances are good that a prospective buyer will find the lime-green carpet both unappealing and an indication that the home is outdated in functional as well as decorative ways.

"Buyers paint sellers with a very broad brush," Sloan cautions.


NO. 4: Consider hiring an inspector to search for ghosts and goblins.
Perhaps the home you're selling was to have been a vacation getaway, though you scarcely stayed there. Or maybe you once lived in the property but later converted it to a rental, meaning that it's become an unfamiliar habitat.

In such a case, the findings of a home inspector you hire could be very revealing. He might crawl up into the attic area and observe water stains due to a leaky roof, for example. Or perhaps he'll discover that your garage is settling in such a way that it's parting company from the house, requiring a structural remedy.

It's uncommon for a homeowner to spend the $200 to $400 required to engage a professional home inspector before marketing his dwelling. Yet it's much better to uncover and rectify serious problems before your buyer spots them with the help of his own home inspector, Pawlik contends.

More than 90 percent of home purchasers now engage home inspectors, says Sloan. And it's a rare purchase agreement that gels readily when the home inspector hired by the property's purchaser discovers serious problems. Many buyers seek to re-negotiate the terms of a deal -- or walk away -- after they get a negative report from their home inspector.

"Paying for a pre-inspection can be a very good idea," Pawlik stresses.

COPYRIGHT 1999 ELLEN JAMES MARTIN
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