Real Estate: Pros Make Homes Move-In Ready

At a recent open house, a real estate agent raced ahead of visitors to make a client’s bed. A possible turn-off and not a good thing if you are the seller. Because today’s real estate market is so competitive, real estate agents implore sellers to get their homes in shape. 

What this means varies by residence, but professional home makeover firms demonstrate how it can be done at several remodeled character homes now on the market. 

Flippers in the best sense, these renovated and spotless older homes give insight and inspiration to future sellers who can see firsthand what shape their property needs to be in before it is listed for sale.

Fixes for a Faster Sale

With most buyers working full-time jobs, few have time to oversee the work required in rehabbing a house that needs major updating. 

Bettershelter is a local firm that specializes in renovating properties in Northeast Los Angles; designer Steve Jones is respected for his thorough makeovers and carefully considered details that appeal to the modern buyer. Those attributes can include built-in shelves in the bathroom to tankless water heaters to a farmhouse sink in the kitchen.

Once a home is fixed up, there are advantages from a seller’s viewpoint.

“The house will likely have a quicker sale with a higher price if the buyers have fewer objections,” advises realty agent Courtney Poulos, who represents bettershelter homes in Los Angeles. Costs for repairs can quickly add up in buyers’ minds, not to mention the unknowns in buying a fixer home or one that needs cosmetic and/or major repairs.

A house that is turn-key sells faster and the list price should reflect those repairs and updates. “The buyers move in having improved their leverage: mortgaging the improvements over 30 years, rather than paying for them in cash upfront,” Poulos points out.

Science Behind Home Staging

Alexandra Becket and her partner Greg Steinberg of ModOp Design aim for quality in their residential renovation projects.

“We try and create something effective that looks tastefully done but not in an expensive way,” explains Becket of the firm’s remodels.

An Echo Park bungalow makeover earlier this year demonstrated their aesthetic. Walls were opened up to the outside via a sliding door, the wood flooring is now consistent throughout the house and a signature mid-century chandelier was added to complement other new fixtures in the house.

Before putting the home on the market, the design duo outfitted the house with mid-century furniture, Becket’s own textile designs and found objects. The re-dos take time (three to six months), and while the average homeowner may not have the time to initiate a complete makeover, homes that are ready for move-in have added curb appeal.

In a study by a Andrea Angott of Duke University, recently reported by the Los Angeles Times, the researcher surveyed what impacted a home buyer psychologically when looking at a potential residence. Buyers negatively responded to personal clutter and odd layouts. Per the research, the most important thing a seller must do is remove their personal items from the bathroom; the second, was to use their rooms as intended.

Angott found that buyers really had a difficult time visualizing rooms differently. Successful home staging and renovation makes it very clear to a buyer why they should feel as though they could live there.