Some sellers over-prepare – Part 2
Last Monday, Sam Schneiderman, broker owner of Greater Boston Home Team discussed how he felt that some sellers over prepare their homes. Today he continues the discussion:
Last week I wrote:
"The most common mistake that sellers make is that they do work to their homes that might be better left to negotiate over after a home inspection."
Jima responded:
Sam - I think that this statement needs some explanation as it doesn't make sense.
Today's Home Inspectors are like wolves on a deer. If there is some blood, they tend to rip a house apart. A buyer's estimate might be double or more of the actual cost to fix an issue.
Jima makes some good points. Here is what I think:
Good listing agents know that there is the actual cost of a repair as well as the perceived cost of a repair or upgrade. Good listing agents also work with reliable, reputable, cost effective contractors that can provide quotes on issues that arise or could arise from home inspections. A good listing agent will obtain estimates for the obvious repairs or upgrades that he anticipates that a buyer might notice or request after an inspection. At least I know that I do.
Because experienced agents understand how a buyer will react to various conditions, those estimates could be used pro-actively or used for negotiations later. For example, if a buyer and/or buyer’s agent perceives that updating ungrounded outlets in an older home could cost thousands, but the seller’s agent already has a binding quote for $700 to upgrade the outlets, the buyer will assume that they have won big when the seller agrees to upgrade the electrical outlets as part of the inspection negotiations. The buyer may also give up other items in return for having the perceived big ticket item taken care of by the sellers.
I mentioned a few more examples in last week’s post. I have seen sellers replace roofs that did not leak and had some good years left in them. I’ve seen sellers replace working appliances to get a better color match. I even had one seller tell me that he was planning to replace all of the windows. One seller wanted to replace his water heater. Some sellers have installed granite countertops in low end kitchens.
To prepare a house properly, the agent needs to know what the most likely buyer’s temperament will be, then prepare the home, price and marketing for that buyer. A lot depends on the house and whether the buyer is a nervous first time buyer or an experienced homeowner buying a second or third home.
The price range of the house is also an important factor. High end buyers aren’t likely to quibble over a $1,000 water heater that is on borrowed time, but first time buyers might consider it a deal breaker.
If a seller is planning to hire an agent, it only makes sense to choose the agent and follow that agent’s advice before anything is done to prepare the property for the market.
