I kind of left you all hanging on the sale of our last house. It’s one of those things that’s probably not great to blog about during the process, so I wanted to wait until after it was all a done deal. We listed the house in late June and didn’t end up closing until mid-November. We had expected/hoped it would sell a little more quickly, but there was some environmental related stuff going on in the general area (and in the media) that didn’t do us any favors. We took a leap of faith taking on two mortgages so that we could get moved in before the school year started. But, it all worked out, and He was faithful to take care of us.
So, back to what this post is actually about. . . I received this question from a reader and thought it could be a good topic:
I would love to hear how buyers viewed the home you just sold, with all of the customizing/personalization of the home you had made. The green bathroom vanity, for example. The space you established as your office, etc. As we work on updates/renovations to our home, its something I think about when we go to sell. Will anybody else like the pieces/finishes/light fixtures I settled on?
painting stripes in our entryway
When we bought the house in 2011, I really thought that would be our last move for a very long time. (More details on our move here.) So, I went into the decorating process with a different mindset, focusing on making decisions for our family and not so much for future buyers. But, I also went more slowly, thinking there were years to complete rooms/projects. So, I never got around to painting the kitchen cabinets or stripping all of the wallpaper. I felt like our house was kind of half-done when we decided to list it.
(After stripping the powder room wallpaper, I just didn’t have it in me.)
The feedback we got from potential buyers, however, was really positive. We had it “almost sold” several times (which is a gut-wrenching process, as many of you know). Only one person said anything about the master bathroom wallpaper that I decided not to spend time stripping off, and we didn’t hear anything about the entryway stripes, the green vanity, the (removable) decals on our steps, etc. With the help of HGTV and DIY sites, I think most buyers are savvy enough to know what’s easily changeable and what’s not. (However, it still bugs the ever living daylights out of me when someone on House Hunters talks about how terrible a paint color is! Repaint it, people!)
our upstairs closet-to-bathroom project
hanging a fabric wall in the girls’ bedroom
I’m no real estate expert, but I would say that most buyers notice more the overall feeling of a house when they walk in and less the specific decorating elements. And, as long as the changes are cosmetic and don’t require more than some elbow grease—and maybe some spackle—to change, I’d say go for it. I think a personalized home can show that a family lived there and enjoyed the space—and possibly potential that they might have never considered.
Even if a move is eminent, you can make it yours in small ways that you’ll enjoy now. Hang the picture. Paint the wall. Enjoy your home.
Curious if you’ve had any good/bad/interesting feedback about ways you’ve personalized a home you’ve sold?
When we sold our last home our realtor had a “stager” come through and give suggestions. I ended up in a tizzy changing out all kinds of things (like the brand new heat registers for goodness sake) that really didn’t have to be done. I was so desperate to show our house off in its best possible light (and it was a beautiful home, it pretty much looked like a model and I packed away a ton of the personal photos/tchotkes) that I went completely overboard. When we went on a house hunting trip (whirlwind weekend) all I was looking at was the floor plan, bedroom size, kitchen size, and how close to all the schools the homes were. If they were painted an off color, or had a wallpaper that was loud-I couldn’t tell you. I also (and this was a total revelation because I was a cleaning maniac while our house was listed) didn’t notice if they’d emptied their garbage cans or had organized closets. I was definitely trying to get a feel for the house-not the sellers cleanliness. But I get it-when your home is listed SO much is out of your control and you’re trying to do everything you can possibly think of to take action to get your house sold.
I hope more people come around to the thinking that a house does not have to be painted basement-to-bedrooms in White Dove and be completely staged and devoid of personal details in order to be listing-ready. The blank slate sends a negative message to me—when I see blank walls or generic artwork and furniture, it makes me wonder what was wrong with the house that the owners never took the time to make it a home.
When I sold my city condo, I cleared out the closets and repainted the bedrooms and bathrooms just to freshen things up. I bought it with fairly neutral paint colors on the walls, and three years later everything just needed a fresh coat. When I was in the process of buying my current house, I did a ton of house hunting, and the levels of staging/de-personalization really ran the gamut. The houses that appealed to me the most were the ones that had not been wiped clean of personality. They felt like people lived there, and more importantly, actually seemed to have spent some time building a life there.
Sometimes I wish the previous owners of my current house had eliminated some of the crazy paint colors they used, but I choose to think of it as an opportunity to put my own touch on things. I’d be less likely to repaint a freshly painted neutral room than I would one that is granny smith apple green or bright red!
I have never bought into staging and painting everything white and taking down and putting away all personal objects. I do buy into cleaning the house super good, making sure it smells good and getting rid or packing away the clutter. Another tip is to make sure there is lots of bright light coming in. I’ve sold 7 houses following these simple things and am a big believer that in the end the people who buy your house does so because of that feeling you walk in and get that feeling and can picture living there. Oh and house hunters is the best show to yell at the buyers…oh you don’t like the bedspread…really??? Oh and I’m convinced they are all still stuck in the 90s because they all insist on granite countertops!!
And, a double vanity and stainless steel appliances! :)
Don’t forget dark wood cabinets and a more open floorplan—-because EVERYONE on that show “does a lot of entertaining!”
I know, and these people have more bbq’s than I’ve had in my life :)
When my daughter put her townhouse on the market, I was worried it would just sit. She had 2 dogs that had marked up the walls & was a terrible house keeper to begin with.
But surprisingly someone bought the place. I guess it just goes to show you…if you price it right, someone will buy it.
My first place was a condo in the SC Upstate and as you can imagine it was way “me”. It turned out that, is in fact what sold it. The young lady that purchased it from me even insisted that I leave some of my decorative items. Needless to say if it meant she was buying the house, I was happy to part with them. I agree, giving your home some personality (even if it’s reflective of your own style) is almost always a good idea.
Emily,
I’m curious- what did you do about photographs of your family? I know you had a lot on your hall gallery wall and bedroom- did you keep them all up, take them down, or replace pictures for generic prints? Interested in what you did since we are thinking about selling later this year. Appreciate this post!
Tricia
Left them all up :) We moved some furniture over but left everything up on the walls.
Like you, we thought our last house would be our “permanent” home. We made the spare bedroom into our dressing room, and some people had a problem with that (it was a 4 bedroom house). But we made the changes to what we loved at the moment, and no regrets. Totally agree with you that we should make whatever changes so that we can enjoy our house!
I think the level of clearing/personalization also depends on the potential buyer – i.e., whether the buyer is more likely a first-time home buyer or an experienced homeowner. In myself, when we were looking for our first home, so many of the decorative details stood out, whereas with our next home, we were more focused on the floorplan, layout, size of particular rooms, etc. Practical things that we had learned from 10 years in the previous house were more critical. The comments we received from the sale of our first house bore out a similar pattern – the majority of potential buyers for our house were looking for their first home and tended to be more focused on superficial things. I think that our own experiences also largely direct what we look at most closely because we know better what is most important to us.
When we put our first house up for sale, I did a deep clean, touched up scuffs in the paint, and packed away the clutter (mostly our books–my husband and I both have tons!). It felt so much lighter and more open–I loved it! Funny thing, though: a couple interested in buying lived out of state, and had their niece (who was local) come look in person. She kept saying, “It’s really nice, but they have so much stuff, I’m not sure it will all fit.” I whipped out the pictures of our home before staging, with bookcases and stuff piled everywhere, and she exclaimed, “Oh, look at that! It is wonderful! This will be perfect.” We closed 4 weeks later :~)
Go figure! :)
We have been looking at houses for 4 yrs and finally have decided to build. While looking at houses it was always about the layout for us and the lot. I never got too hung up on colors or decorating. We were looking for large rooms and 1st floor master or the potential to have that. We have renovated before and were able to look beyond someone else’s taste, that being said sometimes I do wonder what they were thinking? The one thing that I can never get past is dirty, disgusting houses. I just can’t understand how a reputable real estate agent would show a house w/o telling their clients to clean it up. My new house I am doing for me, not thinking at all about selling in the future!
Thank you so much for this post! I follow and anticipate your posts everyday, but this one was spot one. I, too, watch HGTV and can’t believe some comments by potential buyers. We are empty nesters and plan to sell soon but I keep putting it off until all the projects are done. We have lived here 16 years and now it’s time for a kitchen and bathroom remodel. With that said, all the rest of the house is amazing! Beautiful and homey but mostly lived in. I look at homes for sale on line and I see updated kitchens but I want a different counter tops. I would love to redo another kitchen, just not the one I’m not going to be here to enjoy. The real estate pictures are aweful. I see clutter. I see toilet lids left up for pictures! Why doesn’t the real estate agent do this? Now I feel better about not having all the projects done. When I look at a house, I know which one it will be by the feeling I get. You confirmed everything I felt. Thank you so much.
I actually regret that the people that we bought our house from re-did the kitchen. I feel like I can’t rip out brand new counters and cabinets even though the layout is not great for me. I wish they had left it alone so that I could update it in my style.
The previous owners painted our kitchen cabinets an interesting, kind of cute teal color before we moved in. We liked them enough to buy the house, obviously, and have used the color all throughout the house. But, we’re sort of thinking of doing a huge kitchen reno which would include new cabinets and I find myself totally dismissing colored cabinets for more neutral ones, because, “Who would ever want to buy a house with colored cabinets?” Oh wait, I would. Kind of makes me laugh.
We just sold our old house over the summer and had similar experiences. The feedback was almost all overwhelmingly positive and we “almost” sold a few times as well and many people said they just need to sell their house first and then they could make an offer. We heard only a couple of negative things and one was, yes, that they didn’t like the paint job in the family room! The other was that our lawn was spotty, which it was, so I hired a lawn care company and they got it in good shape pretty quickly.
Oh my gosh, this blog post could not have come at a better time! This is all I think about these days. We bought our first home a year ago this February, knowing that it wasn’t our forever home and that we’d probably only be here for a few years. Which is fine! The house is nothing like we (okay, I, haha!) hoped, in terms of appearance. It’s “cute.” That’s the word we get a lot. We painted the exterior Murky Sage from a pale yellow, and were told by well-meaning family members, “but what if the next buyers like yellow?” My response? “Then they can paint it yellow!” I hate feeling like we have to tiptoe around every design decision, worrying first about whether the next owners will like our choices. Our home is behind a great elementary school, but our neighborhood is mostly 65 and over couples. We’re in our early 20s. Our home had wood trim every where until we recently painted it a fresh white. Wood hollow core doors, which we’re having replaced with paneled white ones. Basically, we’re trying to make adjustments that future owners will like, but that we love while we’re here. So in light of your post, I have a question: our kitchen has wood cabinets (pretty, but just not my style) with awful countertops and a stained stainless steel sink and awful overhead lighting (think Sunday School/classroom lights). I’d love to paint our cabinets a navy or even medium/dark gray, install nicer countertops, put in new, simple lights, and install a white sink. But I’m so worried that these cosmetic customizations will be detrimental to the selling of our home…one day. Future buyers will probably be a lot older than us, the surrounding area is very blue-collar and I can guarantee you that none of the houses in our neighborhood have navy cabinets. ;) Will this hurt us? Would you make one of these customizations, but not all of them together? Any advice would be so appreciated!
Honestly, I think some lighting and minimum kitchen updates could only help your resale. I might not paint the cabinets, if the wood is okay and you know you’re moving…
I think that so much depends on your market and location… my last house was in a prime neighborhood and the easiest house ever to sell. My realtor insisted that I do a lot of staging, and we wound up with tons of offers almost overnight, but looking back I think the offers would have come even with minimal staging. My current house is in a much less competitive area full of new homes and lots of builder models… plus decorating tastes tend to run pretty traditional/conservative (compared to mine, hah!). I think I would definitely need to do quite a bit of staging to sell this house.
This might be a little off topic, but we are getting ready to put our house on the market in about 3 months and I am literally having panic attacks about when to start packing, how to pack, if we should store stuff to stage it or leave everything, and how to go about moving, either do it ourselves or hire a moving company. How did you guys pack and move and do you have any tips or suggestions? The thought of packing up the whole house by ourselves just gives me hives and the thought of paying out the nose for movers does, too!
We did it by ourselves, but we had the “luxury” (if you can call it that) of moving a little at a time since the house hadn’t sold yet. I didn’t take anything off of the walls until the last minute but I packed up the smaller things early on. We left some of the bigger furniture for a while and just took what we needed.
Interesting topic! Personally, I’ve found my approach is very similar to my approach to my wardrobe. The more permanent a piece is, the more I care about quality, longevity, and versatility. I don’t think a crazy paint treatment (or perhaps even wallpaper) would scare me off from a home with the right floor plan and location, but if, as an example, it has expensive (or newly installed), highly customized bathroom tile I dislike, I am out of there. However, this is only my first home, and it really had no projects to start. My attitude will probably cha ge when I’ve got more home buying experience. ;)
When we sold, we listed our house at the worst time of the year ( two weeks before Thanksgiving), and we had a contract by the time we sat down for our turkey day meal. Our personal touches were a win-win.
As the seller, I staged the house with my best things and decluttered and de personalized. Finished up all the projects I had been meaning to get to that weren’t too pricey. As a buyer though, it was different. We ended up buying a house from a family that had built the house and had five teenage boys. The boys had been raised in this house and it showed (missing paper towel holders, fingerprints on the hallway and stairways). The feeling I got was that this family had lived and loved in this house. They had lots of personal effect around and the carpet was stained where the dog took his naps. I didn’t care. I new I would rip out the carpet and paint anyway. I could picture myself raising my 3 boys there because I saw proof of a well spent life in the house. The seller built a larger house down the street and she always asks how my boys enjoy the creek out back…
I’m constantly looking at the housing market because I know that my family will eventually outgrow our 3br 1.5ba little house. I never let wallpaper deter me UNLESS it is in EVERY room. A little bit of wallpaper I can handle on my own, 3200sf of wallpaper is a no. What I really look at is the set-up and flow of the house. Does it have enough rooms? Is the layout weird? Is the kitchen a gut job or just a paint job? Are the bathrooms gut jobs or paint jobs? Then I factor those things into the price that it is listed for. I’m going to look at a house this weekend that is $50k below our budget, but I know it has a weird layout – I just need to see how weird it is in person. If it is fixable with $50k or less, then I see it as an investment.
When I see houses that were clearly customized by their previous owners, my only concern tends to be if the work was done well. If I don’t like what they did, I can always change it. But if it looks like shoddy work, it makes me worry what other things they changed that I CAN’T see right away.
I really dislike watching HGTV or such shows when you hear the host or people complain about the homeowners pictures and things. I know when I live there their things will be gone. If the TV is in a place I don’t like…so what. If you love your family pictures I’m sure before you move you will take those with you. If I don’t like the color of the walls it will not keep me from buying the house it will just send me to the paint store earlier than expected.
I don’t look at their stuff because I’m too busy looking at the bones of the house and my minds eye is looking to where my things will sit best. Sometimes I think Realtor’s forget to remind buyers that the house will be empty when they move in. And my only really big pet peeve is that the house is mostly clean and not running with creatures. ;)
These are great ideas! A home with a spirit and charisma will definitely be easier to sell. I am always looking for a place with a cool and special vibe when searching for an apartment… Thanks for the post!