Wednesday, October 16, 2019

To Renovate or Not To Renovate- That Is The Question

Whether you're actively house shopping or not- touring homes can be an incredibly fun activity.  Comparing designs and finishes, weighing the pros and cons of location, envisioning what life would be like if you lived there- it's an incredible opportunity to redesign your day to day.  As you get more serious about the possibility of a new home one of the biggest questions that faces buyers today is do we want a "new home" - one that's either new construction or has had a major renovation already done- or do we want a home we can fix up and customize?  

After a few years now of the market being on an upward swing, we're seeing a lot of options facing our buyers today from homes that have been "lovingly cared for", to moderate renovations, to "down to the studs" renovations, to entirely new buildings.  So the piece that buyers really need to consider is do they want to leave their mark on the property or are they excited to move in and just live?  

You guys may know that my fiancĂ© and I have gotten into doing major renovations on homes and reselling them.  We love being able to redesign a house from scratch, re imagining the space to today's standards where we crave open rooms and clear lines of sight through the house rather than separate rooms and a more closed off feel.  We can (and do) spend hours in tile stores finding complimentary shades and taking risks on new styles or colors.  We spend weeks debating kitchen appliance placement and what pieces of the original home should remain intact (I love me some fancywork).  Selling these homes is my greatest joy- watching the potential new buyers walk through, hearing their excitement (or dismay) in our choices, and observing them decide that this should be their home.  

When I'm working with new buyer clients its one of the first questions I ask them- what are you looking for?  Do you want a project or two or are you looking for "turn key"? Knowing this up front helps me to be a better resource in the search.  Renovated properties often come at a premium for the convenience so we may be looking for something with a little less square footage, or in a more up and coming neighborhood.  On the other hand, if you're looking for something you can put some work into, we can often use your budget to get something a bit larger, or closer to the action that has to be "discounted" in its price tag due to the work that needs to be done.  

Either option is solid and really depends on the preference of you, the buyer-and that is the best part.  Home buying should be all about choices and finding what is best for you and for your family- whether that choice is ALL of the decisions, or if its just a matter of neighborhood.  

Restaurant Reviews: A dead art?

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