By Living Room Realty, September 12, 2023
This lemon meringue ranch has SOLD!
I met Scott through his previous tenant last year when she tried to purchase the house from him. There were quite a few issues with the home, so she ultimately pivoted and ended up purchasing a different house.
Scott purchased this home nearly 20 years ago. It’s been a great investment for him and an affordable place for all of his tenants. He kept the rent well below market value. We love a win-win.
So when it came time to sell, Scott knew that he needed to invest in his investment before listing it. He splits his time between the states and Mexico, so after we met, he handed me the keys and let me do my thing.
Knowing we’d be marketing to mostly first-timers, I got to work gathering bids for repairs we knew would be too overwhelming for most to handle. We knew we’d be able to market these recent updates and calm some nerves in doing so.
Scott trusted my recommendations and didn’t balk at the costs. He signed proposals and paid invoices from Mexico for the foundation, electrical system, roof, interior/exterior paint, and a bathroom facelift, while I project managed for two months to get the house ready for market.
Instead of listing as-is at $350K, we listed at $390K and received 5 offers. Because of all the recent work we had done, most buyers included repair verbiage in their offers, limiting the amount of repairs they would ask for.
We ended up at $405K. Scott invested about $25K and landed $30K higher than he was hoping for with an as-is sale. This is a perfect story of the power of listing prep. (Of course, gorgeous photos by 22 Pages and immaculate staging by Roughhouse helped, too!)
Not everyone has the capital to invest in improvements before listing their homes, but your realtor should help you identify and prioritize the improvements that will be most cost-effective and attract more buyers.
I’d be cheersing Scott with a pina colada on the beach right now if I could. Congrats on the sale of your investment property!
