By spending $100 or less, a home owner could improve their home and make their surroundings more enjoyable. Since it is winter and colder outside, this is the time of year when more people focus on staying home more and inside home updates.
Here are a few ideas to get you started:
1. One thing my family always enjoys is new bedding. Now is the time to pickup a new "bed in a bag" for your master bedroom and change your look. With places like Walmart carrying brands like Better Homes and Gardens bedding and pillows, you can pick up a complete bedding set plus some extra decorative pillows for under $100.
Picture is Walmart.com, Better Homes & Garden Bedding Set Spice
2. Update your bathroom faucet to a more modern one. It may take you a little time looking online to find a style you like that is under $100, but is can change the entire look of your sink. Most home owners are able to change out a faucet on their own since all the existing piping is already there.
Picture is from HomeDepot.com, Pegasus 9000 Series Faucet - $99
3. Update all the towels and bathmat in one of your bathrooms. This is another great way to completely transform the room with an entirely new color scheme for a relatively small amount of money.
4. Paint your walls a different color. This is the easiest way to have a huge impact in a room. A gallon of Benjamin Moore interior paint runs between $30-$40 in my area and is a fantastic paint. Color can influence mood and make a small room look larger (by selecting a light, reflective color).
5. Hire an interior decorator or home stager for 1 hour to come to your home and help you decide on what needs to be done. Most decorators and home stagers charge under $100 per hour and can give you invaluable information such as what paint color to use on your walls or where to position your extra large sofa. Believe me, this will be the best money you spent because the results will have a lasting effect in your home.
Kate
Kate's Home Staging and Redesign, specializes in home staging, interior design, home decorating, home decor discounts, semi-custom window coverings, and color consultation. Call Kate for your design consultation at 845-538-3623 or visit www.kateshomestaging.com
Hi Kate, Great ideas for some relatively inexpensive winter "pick-me-ups" for our homes. I just purchased some new bathrugs in a golden yellow and I love them! I also purchased some new bedroom lamps for $30 each at TJ Maxx, one of my favorite stores.
Thanks Kate. You share some great tips.
Hi Kate,
I ma be prejudiced but I think you get the biggest bang for your buck by hiring a stager/decorator.
You hit the nail on the head, Kate. I have had a professional stager on my team for 6 years now. and the 3 hours that I pay for her to stage a new listing is the best money I have ever spent. My listings sell within 1-14 days and for more money than other agents' listings. Before we take photos or enter the property into MLS, I have her go to the property, meet with the homeowner and write up a room by room list of things the owner can do for very little money. Sometimes it may be "major" such as painting out wallpaper, but I just tell my owners that wallpaper is like trying to pick out a dress for a woman you don't know. It is just too personal. Most of my sellers say after their home is staged to sell, "wow, I wish I had done this while I lived here".
I can usually tell a staged home when I walk in the front door. They always present themselves well and the reduced clutter reduces my home inspection time. Win-win!
Kate, congrats on your featured article! These are some great, thrifty tips. It's amazing how if you know where to look, there are some amazing deals with such high impact. The bed in a bag is one of my favourites. As you say, for only $100 or less, you get a designer duvet, plus all those coordinating designer pillows. Instant glam.
Kate, great suggestions. Staging a home to look like a million bucks doesn't have to cost that much, it just takes some effort and some creativity. Congrats on the feature.
Great ideas, love your pictures that you found as examples of what you're talking about, people really need to see...Although, one of the most important things you left out was paint. Painting a room can make the most dramatic difference for the least amount of money. Many people are afraid of color so they should, as you recommended, hire a design consultant or stager for an hour to help them out with a direction.
Katie: I also love the clearance items at TJ MAXX!! They usually have some item(s) I can use.
One of my favs is to re-arrange furniture. Stagers usually have a great eye for that, too. But my first thoughts were things like, "New faucets? How about just cleaning the faucets they have?"
Great suggestions, everyone can always use a little pick me up whether it is winter, spring, summer or fall.
Great ideas....I have a list of things I give sellers as "sprucers" some of these I have on it and the rest is going on right now. Thanks
Great Ideas!!!!
Juan Carlos Cabrera
Oikos Realty™ – The First Virtual Real Estate Brokerage in South Florida™
www.oikosrealty.com
Alas! Most of us get so used to our surroundings we fail to see what others see. Good advice Kate and quick and easy on the budjet.
Great ideas Kate. Start the new year with a winter pick me up! A win-win for sure!
Thanks for the great ideas!
very nice ideas! and all very simple and cost effective. thanks for sharing.
Great tips, thanks Kate!
I agree that staging is key. Your ideas are valuable, and I will include them on my "getting your house ready for sale" flyer I provide with my listing paperwork.
For ourselves, it's also nice to do a little staging. I have grown children, and we are getting rid of the "clutter" accumulated over the many years, donating to charity, towels and blankets to our local animal hospital or homeless shelter, etc. I asked a stager friend of mine to take a fresh look at my house, and I love the results. It didn't cost much (a new slip cover for a very comfortable couch was the big ticket) and we are very happy with our new look!
Kathleen Barnato, Prudential CA Realty
Serving the South Coast of Santa Barbara county - Hope Ranch, Montecito, Santa Barbara, Beachfront.
I definitely agree sellers should spend a little to get their homes market ready. My average days on market for my listings in 2008 (I haven't calculated 2009 yet) was just 14 days, and I'm absolutely positive staging made that happen. One home spent just 4 days on the market and sold for the highest price per foot of the comps. Sure, I convinced the seller to paint the entire house including the kitchen and bath cabinets and change the light fixtures, but it was well worth it. The seller also changed the kitchen counters to granite (for only $1200). I'm sure that got the home off the market quickly. Even after adding the cost of the improvements the seller netted more in a shorter time period than the other homes in the subdivision.
On the flip side, last year I had a seller who wouldn't do any updating. I gave her a $5,000 plan to update her kitchen (including granite and new appliances - hers were almond if that tells you anything). She never agreed to anything. She said she would replace the appliances and I told her it really wouldn't matter with the old cabinets and counters, so she didn't. She didn't even change one light fixture. When I initially took the listing I told her we'd re-evaluate periodically to determine what updates were needed based on showing feedback. She was very agreeable, but when the time came, it never happened. We parted ways on the listing. Her home sold finally with another agent - for $30,000 less than her home could have sold with the kitchen update... and actually for an offer price that I had previously gotten her.
There are a lot of houses on the market, and a lot of them are on sale. Sellers really need to set their homes apart with staging. In the last seller's case it effectively meant getting $25,000 less for her house. It's no longer "at what price will this home sell?" It's now "Will this house sell?"
I do what call 'staging light" in my investor auction bought vacant homes and it makes a difference. I add to the kitchen and bath only....towels, candles, light decor for the kitchen, less than $100, thrift store vases etc. I keep the items to use in the next home after I go in to escrow....Thanks for the post
Great tips and AMEN to all of the comments! Too bad Sellers don't spend a little to make a lot. It is hard for them to understand that people really don't want to get an ALLOWANCE these days...they want to move in and feel comfortable on day one!!!!
I had a listing that had light pink walls and pink carpet throughout. When I went to see the listing I asked what the feedback was on the previous showings. IT'S TOO PINK! Was their answer. When I suggested that they change out the carpet or paint the walls a nice cream or taupe, they balked and said that they weren't going to spend any money up front. They would give a carpet allowance...but I couldn't tell anyone until they were interested that they were willing to do that.
Against my better judgment, I still took the listing. The feedback I got was,It's TOO PINK! Again I made my suggestions and again was met with resistance. They proceeded to tell me how much money it was going to cost them if the listing hadn't sold by a certain time, and no matter what I said; they wouldn't spend that money up front and get it sold before then. Lesson learned...Never again!!! I'm reblogging.
These are very good tips and should be at the top of every sellers to-do list. Thanks for sharing!
Great tips, too bad some folks can't see behind all the clutter!!
A spare closet has a lot of little things I've picked up inexpensively at yard sales, thrifit shops or from clients who didn't want something I think someone else could use. Items go from house to house, as do the boxes that fold flat and don't take up much room but are welcomed over and over. A dust ruffle makes a big difference when things can be stored under the bed. Lazy susans make small cabinets work better and seem more spacious. An extra lamp, vase of flowers, place mats or tablecloths, plants, etc. can make a difference. These things didn't cost much, are easy to transport, and can help a lot when sellers aren't in a position to do much fixing up themselves. A family quilt has even gone to special houses for a while - a light use doesn't hurt them, and they're just stacked in my closet otherwise.
Whether or not the clients actually use anything from my stash, they appreciate the offer and may well contribute something to it eventually.
I use finding these things as an excuse to go to an occasional yard/garage sale - telling the sellers that I'm getting that ..whatever... to help a client get a house to present more attractively. I always ask the people having the sale (often a group of people) if any of them are getting rid of stuff because they're thinking of moving. Surprisingly often, I make a friend and sometimes get a listing.
Replacing the old handles and knobs on cabinets can make a huge difference and costs very little. Removing all of the empty hangers in a closet frequently makes the closet seem much, much bigger. Removing a rug can lighten, brighten, and expand a room.
Sometimes the investment, and the potential profit, supports significant changes like putting in granite counters and hardwood floors. Sometimes the dollars just don't make sense.
As several people have commented, good staging does not look for ways to spend money. Good staging looks for ways to protect or increase profit. Sometimes, frequently, as with so many things, it comes down to good old 'sweat equity' - store some furniture, pack the collection of antique tea cups, clean, clean, clean.
Good points. Many stagers are also willing to work with the seller's own furishing, rearranging, adding and removing items to makes rooms show better.
It is amazing how just a little bit of money can make your property look like a home!.................chris
Lots of great suggestions.. and it is important for people to know they don't have to spend a fortune.
Great tips, Kate. Worthy of a reblog. Just one thing, if you do all of them, shouldn't it be "under $500?" :)
Kate, excellent post! Why don't all home sellers take these types of suggestions to heart?
I'd add one more: switch out that nasty wood-grain toilet seat for a nice new white one!
Congrats on the feature. Keep the ideas rolling.
Kate, congrats on the feature! If you think that all of the things you mention is under $100, it's not so overwhelming for sellers.
Thank you for the reminders. I too keep a stash and my husband never knows when he'll reach for something that is temporarilyin someone Else's home. I'm not above taking down my own art and carrying it where it's needed.
Great tips! Especially #1, what a deal!
GREAT tips....and looks like you have alot of others that AGREE!!
What great and inexpensive tips. I like that you added the where and how much. It's one thing to say the fix is inexpensive but the extra step to show it should help it sink in!
Fabulous tips and great post! I love to read posts showing the potential sellers and realtors, too, just how simple some improvement can be to bring huge return. Thank you for sharing your expertise to eloquently.
Great post Kate! I wish every homeowner would read this and take the advice as a complimentary money making plan, rather than an insult to their taste, as I often hear from other Realtors around town.
Loved the comment regarding wallpaper being akin to picking out a dress for a woman you don't know...that's right on target!
It's amazing to me that folks often hire a professional to sell their home, willing to pay commission, escrow and associated costs, but won't spend a few dollars to repaint the entry door!
Most Sincerely,
Broker-Granny
www.ActiveSunshine.com
All very true and good ideas. These things can go a long way towards making the home look much nicer and sell quicker.
I would like to thank everyone who took the time to comment on this blog and to read all the great comments too. After reading all the comments, my initial list could definitelyhave been made much longer - from adding new lamps from TJ Maxx, checking the clearance items, to good old elbow grease, to furniture re-arrangement, wallpaper removal, simply removing items from a room, to a simple color consultation - it does not have to cost much money to have a huge impact on a home.
My favorite line from all the comments was regarding wallpaper and how it is equivalent to selecting a dress for a woman you have never met! How true this statement is!
If home sellers would spend a very little bit of money to ready their homes for the market, the transformations could be dramatic. Thank you all for your support and great comments, Active Rain is a great community ;-)
Great ideas. Any suggestions on how to deal with sellers who complain it is not my house anymore.
Oh Golly, the first thing I talk about in the first consultation is the difference between a home and a house. If sellers cannot take the emotional step of 'my things are packed, my memories are put away and waiting for me when I reach my new home, my home is gone and I am living in a house that is for sale' then there are probably going to be problems all through the selling process. Then, during the consultation, I go back to that again and again. Preparing a house for sale can be very traumatic (duh). I know I have succeeded when the sellers start volunteering things to put away, and talking about how they can live furniture arrangements that do not quite match their normal lifestyle.
I guess, if I were dealing with someone who had not gone through my whole 'let go' spiel, I would look for a away to say, 'You are absolutely right. It is not your home anymore. It is the house you are selling. And, because it is staged, congratulations, you have taken an enormous step in marketing your house!"
Kate, you're right, a good can of paint will do wonders to uplift the spirts and the room's atmosphere.
Great tips Kate. I also enjoyed the comments you inspired.
Nancy ~ Great points, a seller really does need to understand the difference a home and a house.
Bev ~ I love using paint to completely change the feel of a room.
Wayne ~ I really enjoyed all the comments on this post and how everyone contributed; I could probably go back and add another 10 items to my list.
yep gettin' rid of granny's quilt off the bed and putting a bed-n-bag is great...also..the pink and purple shag bath rug is OUT....get rid of it
Dana ~ The shag has got to go ;-) Thanks for posting.