The housing market has always been competitive and, though Lexington is still in positive territory compared with much of the nation, many sellers are looking at methods that might help them sell their home more quickly or for a higher asking price. Professional remodelers and home stagers offer approaches that might be worth considering when trying to make a home more attractive to buyers.
Many people in Central Kentucky haven't heard of home stagers, except on HGTV. However, it is quite possible that the tricks of the trade particular to this profession might be what homeowners need in order to finally post that "Sold" sign.
Enter Stage Right
"People still think, 'Well, I'm not going to spend $300 for you to come do this for me,'" said certified home stager and re-designer Melanie Johnson. "But then again, they'll drop the price of their house $10,000, when if they had just had a stager come in and help them, then it might have sold more quickly."
Home stagers rearrange the contents of a room and add accessories to increase its visual appeal, utilizing its strengths and downplaying its negatives. The objective is to sell a home in the least amount of time, getting homeowners the highest possible return on their investment.
Johnson is one of only a handful of stagers in Lexington. She says there is a misconception about what she does to a room. The few people who have heard of stagers think they simply de-clutter or clean, and while this is necessary to achieve the ultimate goal, a stager takes what is already available in a person's home and offers a fresh perspective.
"You kind of have to have an eye for it," Johnson said. A trained eye.
Johnson was certified via Home Staging Resource, which offers an online professional staging and redesign program.
"People get attached to their things and put everything out that they have," Johnson said, which makes it difficult to look at a room they see everyday in an objective manner. A common problem is too much furniture, often occurring when homeowners are hesitant to part with furniture that has been passed onto them from family members and to which they feel a meaningful connection.
The solution, according to Johnson, is to "get rid of it, and then rearrange it so you have maximum flow, so it looks like the room has more space and people feel like they can move around. You still want it to be welcoming and comfortable, but most people could take out most of what's in their room and do a lot better, in terms of showing it and having it look nice to buyers."
The result is a newer, cleaner, more modern arrangement that is universally appealing to buyers. A crucial rule home stagers follow, and a rule of which many homeowners in the selling process are unaware, is that a home should not reflect its owner in any way. The ideal situation is for a prospective buyer to walk in and see a neutral environment, one in which they can see themselves living as opposed to being aware of who lives there already. For stagers, depersonalization is golden, and modern design is key.
"Most of the buyers are in their mid-30s, and young people kind of like modern design, although most people wouldn't say they like modern," Johnson said, as modern design is often mistaken for cold, sparse minimalism, when it's really just clean design. In general, a staged room should look warm and spacious to the buyer.
According to U.S. Housing and Urban Development, on average a staged home sells for 17 percent more than an un-staged home.
Staging is an excellent option for anyone putting a home on the market soon, but if a homeowner wants to make improvements to a home that they can enjoy while living in the house, but also wants to consider the ultimate resale value, remodeling may be a good option.
Lifestyle Modifications
"Buyers want simple. It's all about lifestyles," said Lexington Remodelers Council Chair Chip Crawford. "When you're talking to a younger family, they definitely want things to be more open and contiguous for more of a family feel."
The Remodelers Council is a national organization for registered builders and remodelers and is part of the National Association of Home Builders and a component of the Home Builders Association of Lexington.
The council is what Crawford calls an "industry advocacy organization" committed to promoting professionalism in the remodeling field. This includes insuring that each of its members follow professional business practices and meet continuing educational requirements. The remodelers council also negotiates with insurance companies, all of which protects the consumer.
Remodeling is another option homeowners have to secure the best return on their investment. It is a more expensive, grander-scale approach to the selling process, and owners can have their homes remodeled, staged or a combination of both to best achieve what is necessary for the enjoyment and eventual sale of their home.
"It all depends on what's going to fit their lifestyle the best," said Rob Hundley, a remodelers council member.
"And their budgets," said Tom Sheeran, also of the remodelers council.
The remodelers council agrees that when it comes to fetching the best investment returns, it's best to start with smaller renovations and focus more on cleaning a home up rather than making drastic changes.
"The worst you can do is a swimming pool, as far as return on investment," Sheeran said. "Kitchens and baths are your highest returns on investment."
Crawford says that pool installations and major exterior landscaping have caused homeowners to lose money in some instances. The footprint of a bathroom, whether or not it is going to stay the same size, is the first issue a homeowner should address. Should they choose to stay within the confines of an existing space, Hundley says, a clean, fresh, highly functional bathroom is what's important.
And while extensive landscaping may prove to be a mistake, a generally fresh curb appeal is vital, as the impression of this, coupled with that of the first room the buyer walks into, is most often the deciding point.
A common renovation that the remodelers council finds increases quality of life now and sale value later is a two-story addition, with a family room and kitchen on the lower level and a master suite on top, which is known as a family room master suite.
In Hanley Wood's Remodeling Cost vs. Value Report 2007, in the midrange project section, costs recouped for bathroom remodels were 78.3 percent, major kitchen remodels 78.1 percent, minor kitchen remodels 83 percent and two-story additions recouped 73.9 percent.
For each homeowner, preferences and budgets are personal decisions, but there are certainly facts and figures to consider that may help increase the value of the home-for living in it a little while longer or to sell quickly.