Redo Kitchen Before Selling?
Thinking about selling a co-op. New baths, decent everything else, but 20 year old formica kitchen with 10 year old white/black appliances. Redo kitchen prior to listing?
Thinking about selling a co-op. New baths, decent everything else, but 20 year old formica kitchen with 10 year old white/black appliances. Redo kitchen prior to listing?
I’ve been inside a lot (a lot) of apartments that are for sale, both as possible purchases for myself (read deals) and for high end residential clients.
For the lower end of the market, the finished product definitely will be a sales point. Of course most people don’t bother with the upgrades but instead settle for clean and presentable. I agree with the above posters about making sure the countertops aren’t cracked or damaged. Also, make sure that all doors and drawers are clean and operable. Floor should be clean and defect free.
For the high end of the market it seems that most of the clents wanted to go in and immediately gut renovate the place. That doesn’t mean that either group wouldn’t be swayed by style, it’s just that one person’s tastes aren’t necessarily another’s.
Of all the places I looked at for myself (hundreds) I can only recollect two really great kitchens, the rest featured a great proponderance of while laminate cabinets.
The first really great kitchen was in a pre-war building on Lincoln Place in Park Slope. It had the original wood cabinets that had been expertly refinished, the other apartment was a half floor duplex in a narrow townhouse near Union Square. That one was interior decorated to the 9’s, including this tiny kitchen with stainless steel cabinetry salvaged from a tur-of-the-century French patisserie or such – people were really wowed by it. I didn’t buy either of the apartments and ended up buying a deal where the kitchen had already been demolished.
So, what am I saying….. I’d advise you to take a cold, hard look at your kitchen. Will it detract value from a sale of your place? If so, identify the elements that will detract and replace them – as mentioned above hardware is one of the cheapest, as is painting. Countertop replacement can really improve a space, and if the appliances are really lousy, it may behoove you to replace them too but don’t spend alot.
agree with other folks that watch HGTV. ha. but seriously, I think if you can get it up to a basic standard on the cheap, then it is worth it for you to update the kitchen. there are too many people that want something that is move-in ready. i think it keeps your buyer pool bigger and probably gets a deal done sooner than later. good luck.
re-do
see if you can get a discount on granite or something else nice and do the appliances. you will sell easier.
lots of people just want to move in and move on.
having to go thru having to pay rent and pay a mortgage while they renovate, and they don’t want to have to live in a construction zone.
try to find sale appliances and do a cheap dishwasher if necessary to keep it in budget.
old stoves and refrigerators are kinda gross.
A real estate agent told me when I was fixing a house to sell that older appliances wouldn’t kill the deal but cracked counters, etc. would. She also had me change all the electrical outlets & switches to look up-to-date & it was amazing how much that perked the place up. You can do the work yourself so it’s not expensive.
i tend to agree with kensingtonian, most people want to move into a ready apt. and don’t want to do any renovations. at least not at the outset. they cant walk into a house that needs a little cosmetics and picture a beautiful home. then there are the 10% sickos like me who look at crumbling walls and ‘swiss cheese plumbing’, and then say wow! this house has character… then gut the damn place.
Don’t spend a ton. Refresh the cabinets, add a new sink, door pulls, new vinyl floor tiles, etc. If ambitious, find a remnant piece of granite (check out the Chinese in Sunset Park) and replace the counters. For a few grand you could drastically improve the appearance of the kitchen. You might not dramatically increase the value of the home but you should be able to recoup what you spend while increasing the home’s marketability significantly.
I’m in a similar situation. I want to unload a fabulous old house…in Beacon, NY where the market is down. I’m choosing to finish the restoration I started, knowing I won’t make my $ back.
The goal is to make the house irresistible & have it sell quicker.
The plan is to go strictly DIY with salvaged materials and second hand appliances. Cost should be under $2k and worth the effort.
if the cabinets are presentable, you can update the counters with new formica. appliances will be about 1000. you don’t need to spend 10k to make it look presentable.
Gotta disagree with denton and dave. You guys may not see it but a lot of people much rather buy already made apartment than dealing with renovations. I’ve seen buyers walk away from GOOD deals just because there was no kitchen or bathroom reno eventhough it would end up being much cheaper to buy a place and reno yourself. Some people don’t have the time or money to deal with it and much rather take out a bigger mortgage eventhough they know they’re paying a bit of a premium for already done apartment. Key is smart and neutral design.
You people watch HGTV don’t ya :o)