Julpost Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 I don't know if we should spend the money now and fix up our house since houses don't seem to be selling in our area OR lower the price to an irresistable level and just get out from under this fixer upper. What classifies as "only cosmetic" anyway? Our berber carpeting is a little ragged along the edges, I'm sure that should be replaced. The cabinets are older and the countertop is that formica from the 60's w/the gold specks. New coat of paint, some updated lighting fixtures, probably updated paneled doors, and the wood floors could use some refinishing-I'm just brainstorming here. That's an awful lot of work and I'm really, REALLY not up for it. I'd like to sell and rent a nice house for several years and then maybe buy a newer house then. How do I price it so a "flipper" would be interested in it? I'm perplexed here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 I have a 5 year old house that needs carpet, paint, and landscaping. It is priced at 40% less than it was valued at when we built it and not selling. However, it is too far from jobs for most people - if your location is good and it is priced very low it might sell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Our house is an in-process fixer upper. We had a realtor look at it and she basically told us it would be fruitless to put it on the market as is. Most people want to move in and be done. Flippers are looking for bargains, dirt cheap. My dh has worked on several flip homes, he's a carpenter, and most were bought well below market value. Our house needs only cosmetic work as well and half of it is done, but countertops, lighting and cabinetry are still major project and expenses. We decided to stay one more year and work hard to finish our projects. I got new bathroom counters for Christmas, no more 70s Formica, yeah! The kitchen is next. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 Put away the "stuff", paint the walls and give it a try. 3 years ago the people who owned the house across the street spent a lot of money fixing up the house and were not able to get the money they wanted. They would've made the same amount dropping the price. You can compare housing prices in your area on the web. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon in SC Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 We had a realtor look at it and she basically told us it would be fruitless to put it on the market as is. Most people want to move in and be done. Flippers are looking for bargains, dirt cheap. It could depend upon your geographic area but, fwiw, our market is like what elegantlion describes here. Buyers won't look once at a fixer upper, generally speaking. (I'm sure there's the exception, of course). We just sold in our market. Literally, the buyers wanted the sun, the moon, and the stars for a song. As an example: the home we sold was in as like new condition as any 20yo home could be (new carpet, refinished hardwoods, new roof, new never been used appliances, new paint, epoxy garage floor coating, etc, etc, etc). Our buyer initially offered us $30K LESS than our asking price and he wanted us to clean the gutters! Another example - there's a "fixer upper" on the market in our area. It has been for a very long time now. It's a huge home (perfect for a large family) and the price on it now (after having been dropped repeatedly) fully fills the definition of a steal for the sq footage. Yet, it has yet to sell. Got to agree with other counsel you've received to fix it up first, based on our experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyof4ks Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 We are looking for a fixer upper, but it has to be a really good deal. People in our market are not looking to fix anything up, so we painted and made everything 'look new'. The fixer uppers around here are sitting around and dropping in price. FWIW our market is still fairly good around here, because there have not been lay offs and such around here like in bigger areas, so it is just the times right now. We have found also that newer homes are cheaper these days (not well built, just cheaper), so people are flocking to those. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaKinVA Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 A fixer upper (unless DIRT cheap) won't sell in our market, either -- even in the historic district it has to be really, really cheap. If I were in your situation, I'd take advantage of the low-cost of materials and rehab your home so that you can enjoy it for several more years, than try to sell a home in distressed condition. Rents in our area haven't really "come down." For example, a 2000 sq. ft. townhome rents for about $1500 a month. A 2000 sq. ft. single-family home in our market (NEW) is for sale for about $185,000 (this is w/o acreage, standard "city" lot). The mortgage on the purchase is not much more (or may even be less) than the purchase on a new home. Anyhow, my advice is to stay where you are and fix your home up so that you can enjoy it (yes, it's work), but it may take awhile for the housing market to start going "up." I expect that our area will remain flat for several more years at least... we still have more housing available than people who can rent/purchase it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon in SC Posted January 9, 2009 Share Posted January 9, 2009 FWIW our market is still fairly good around here, because there have not been lay offs and such around here like in bigger areas, so it is just the times right now. The same can be said for our area as well. Homes have actually appreciated in our area, believe it or not. Our home appraised last week for $15K MORE than it did two years ago. As you say, "it's just the times right now" in terms of buyer expectations..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julpost Posted January 10, 2009 Author Share Posted January 10, 2009 Well, we have one person I'm exchanging emails w/who is asking lots of questions. I'm trying not to get my hopes up...yet..yet, it only takes one person to want the house. I've already found the rental I want! :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommyof4ks Posted January 10, 2009 Share Posted January 10, 2009 Well, we have one person I'm exchanging emails w/who is asking lots of questions. I'm trying not to get my hopes up...yet..yet, it only takes one person to want the house.I've already found the rental I want! :-) You're right, it does only take one person! We are counting on that right now to sell our house as well. Hopefully it will sell soon! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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