The End of 46 Years; The Beginning of a New Era

After almost 46 years, my parents made a move. Not to downsize, but to a little larger place. Some people may think that's odd, but for them, my dad's health necessitated the move to a house with an open floor plan, a larger and private bath, and just one step off the ground. That translated into a little more space.

Today we're blessed because they were able to sell their 1220 square foot home for top dollar. They only came off $5,000 off their list price and sold the house in five weeks in a buyer's market.

Before the house was listed, my parents and I talked about what needed to be done to the house to get it ready to sell. They had already renovated their kitchen with custom maple cabinets and new appliances, covered all their exterior trim with vinyl, installed all new windows, and added central air to the house.

Since all of those things had been taken care of, then what really needed to be done to get it sold? There were three main things and several minor changes that we did to get the house sold for top dollar. Here's what they were:

MAJOR:
1 - Removed the old carpet and pad (27 years old) and refinished the hardwood floors.
2 - Painted the entire house with updated neutral colors. They painted the walls beige and trim was painted semi-gloss white.
3 - Staged the house. We removed oversized furniture out of the house and de-cluttered the accessories. We also removed most family pictures. This gave the house an open and airy feeling.

MINOR:
1 - Changed out all door knobs. The original brass knobs were severely worn.
2 - Changed one ceiling fan out to a smaller, more proportional one.
3 - Changed the dining room chandelier out to a smaller light fixture because the room was only 10x10 and the new light was more proportional.
4 - Removed all cornice boards/valences and replaced those with single rods and sheers on all the windows.

Built in 1952, this all brick house had been taken care of very well over the years. Removing the carpet and repainting it updated it considerably. By spending about $3,500 to take care of all of the major and minor things, our parents made an additional $37,000 on the sale. Was it worth it? We think so.
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In this market, you need a real estate agent who knows what to do to get your house sold for the price, terms and conditions acceptable to you. If you are looking for an agent who knows how to get a house sold, give me a call.