staging houses Archives - Living Room Realty

I talked with Kara Mack on Afternoon Live today about whether people should buy a new house or remodel the one they have. It’s worth diving into a little bit because home prices, building materials, and contractor prices are all up this year. Below are some things to consider. To watch the 5 minute clip, click here

Get honest about what really doesn’t work about your current house.
1. Enough space
2. Outdated
3. Location
If a remodel could work, get estimates
1. Costs of some building materials have increased exponentially over the past year (lumber)
2. Demand for remodel has gone up, contractors are busy, and their time is worth more than a year ago as well.
3. Determine a realistic timeline- most materials are coming late.
Planning to Buy
1. Home prices in the Portland area are up 17% from a year ago. For a $500k house, that’s $85k more
2. Since 2/3’s of houses sell in the first week, you will have to compete
3. You may have to be willing to pay more than the appraiser says it’s worth, so make sure you’re planning to live there for a while

If you decide to remodel your current home, check out some tips on Hiring Great Contractors

I talked with Kara Mack on Afternoon Live today about the importance of professionally staging houses before selling them. Even when the feeling is everything will sell no matter what because of the low housing inventory, staging will draw in more interest, and get more return on your investment.

To get all of the tips, check out my 6 minute interview with Kara here

Here are some of the highlights:
* Designed by experts, a staged house will look better than most buyers will decorate or furnish it themselves
* Staging showcases how to functionally use awkward spaces and rooms
* Buyers will be taken over by their great experience being in a staged house, and not be looking for what’s not right with the place.

Staging is one of the four tips I give to sell your house faster and for more money. Check out the other three here