It’s never too soon to start looking for your dream home. Touring houses and neighborhoods helps you better understand condition, style and price, and what you can expect to find that meets your specific needs and budget.
In today’s fast moving real estate market, this is particularly helpful because you will need to react quickly and confidently to submit a winning bid, when the right home hits the market. For this same reason, it is critical to work with an experienced local Realtor right from the start!
Beware: “Perfect” is relative and can be hard to find in any market. If you do extensive house hunting and consistently fall shy of finding the “perfect” home in your dream neighborhood, it may be time to be creative. Ask yourself: What would it take to get that near perfect home to be perfect – and is that something you’re willing to tackle?
Here is a great example of how basic changes to an otherwise pristine home can make a big impact.
Within the last few years, we’ve represented the sale of the same property twice, most recently this past Spring. In the intervening time between sales, several big-impact changes modernized the home. The result was inspiring and attracted many offers.
It helped that the home not only presented well the first time it hit the market but had also been well maintained. That meant that the new homeowners could focus their budget on cost-effective cosmetic changes to align the home to better suit that owner’s lifestyle needs without running into costly nightmares.
First and foremost, the home benefited from new interior and exterior paint, which almost always makes the biggest impact for a low dollar investment. If the only thing between your near perfect home and a perfect one is a paint job, do not hesitate. This is an easy fix.
More significant changes to our example home, though, involved more time, effort and money:
(1) Better Space Use – Two Rooms in One
By taking out a long, built-in storage bench under the bank of windows, the homeowner freed up valuable floor space – enough to create two distinct living spaces where one had been before. This means that in addition to the formal living room, the home now has a dining area and a secondary entertaining zone.
(2) Modernized Living Room Style
Changing the fireplace surround and hearth, and integrating built-ins modernized the style of the living room and improved storage.
(3) Bathroom Update
The yellow tile and countertops dated the original bathroom. Rather than make minor changes, the homeowner opted for a more extensive remodel. She kept the floor plan of the original bathroom but changed flooring, tile, vanity, countertop, fixtures and paint. While a bathroom remodel can be a short-term hassle, keep in mind that the final cost depends on your choice of materials. Plus, an upgraded bathroom is always a positive selling point of a home.
What’s on your wish list?
Are you ready to consider buying a house that you feel needs simple updating to match your wish list? The key to success is starting with a home in otherwise pristine condition. As such, your patience for evaluating homes and spending the time to find the right fit is critical. When you take that time, you can enjoy the process and find success.
What does this really mean in practice? Let’s talk about it. Please contact me directly at (925) 339-1918 or Dana@DanaGreenTeam.com