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What do you think is important when buying a home?

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  • Jul 27th, 2007 2:10 pm
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Sr. Member
Dec 25, 2002
660 posts
229 upvotes

What do you think is important when buying a home?

We are looking at moving next spring. At this time we are starting up on home improvement projects that will hopefully help our house sell quicker. We are planning on repainting where needed (keeping it a neutral colour) Our bathroom sinks are ugly so we are replacing them. We are also removing our patio stone walkway and will replace with either pavers or concrete. We are also planning on having the driveway sealed. Those are the biggies that we have right now (there is also a bunch of little stuff that we need to do)

My question is for those who have bought a home (or for those who have sold really) what did you look for? What made you want to buy (aside from price obviously lol) Any tips would be awesome!

Kelly
15 replies
Deal Addict
User avatar
Jun 28, 2007
3866 posts
1027 upvotes
Rule of thumb - the renovations and fix-ups that get your best return on investment are kitchens and baths. Also, try to keep clutter in the house to minimum - there is nothing that turns potential buyers off more than the inability to see the "bones" of a house.

Other than that, also consider what market your home is targeting - if its first time buyers - they are typically concerned about having certain things like an office but won't care about having formal living rooms per se. That may be different for move-up/older buyers....
Deal Fanatic
Nov 18, 2005
5111 posts
1546 upvotes
Kitchener
I second putting the majority of work in the kitchens and bathroom, landscaping doesn't do much as most people tend to rip out existing and put in what they like. adding hardwood or engineered flooring also gives you a good return
Newbie
Jul 18, 2007
47 posts
I have seen a few tips on 'Sell This House' and they suggested removing your personal pictures. You want prospective buyers to see themselves living in the house, so your personalized items should be put away to allow them to envision the house as their own.
Newbie
User avatar
Oct 30, 2005
70 posts
I agree that kitchen and baths are the key places to focus on.

The big things, if it's an older home, I'd like a newer: roof, furnace and windows. Good plumbing and water pressure.

For smaller things: neutral paint colours, or at least no existing paint that's so bright that it will be hard to cover up. Doors that close properly, including closets. If you have dingy or dirty carpets, clean them as best you can or rip out if you've got decent flooring underneath. If your cabinets have outdated hardware, change the knobs to something more modern.
Deal Addict
User avatar
Apr 8, 2007
1858 posts
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Mississauga
as first time buyers who just bought, in addition to those tips above, we were always looking at for spaciousness.

a lot of folks had really big furniture in small houses that just seemed to make the house look smaller. a lot of buyers will think the house is smaller than it is.

as we were looking at semis, a lot of the semis were really narrow. and the furniture setup just seemed to accentuate the narrowness.

so i'd recommend looking at ur furniture, maybe remove some of the pieces to make it seem more spacious.
Sr. Member
User avatar
Apr 6, 2004
974 posts
30 upvotes
Newmarket, Ontario
Drthorne wrote: I second putting the majority of work in the kitchens and bathroom, landscaping doesn't do much as most people tend to rip out existing and put in what they like. adding hardwood or engineered flooring also gives you a good return
I tend to disagree somewhat on landscaping, this is the curb appeal of your house that sets the first impression and many people will decide to visit or not visit based on a front exterio photo so it's worth investing some money here. Definitely no need to go crazy but it should reasonably attractive IMHO.
Deal Fanatic
Nov 18, 2005
5111 posts
1546 upvotes
Kitchener
gnunn wrote: I tend to disagree somewhat on landscaping, this is the curb appeal of your house that sets the first impression and many people will decide to visit or not visit based on a front exterio photo so it's worth investing some money here. Definitely no need to go crazy but it should reasonably attractive IMHO.
but it doesn't give you a good return on the amount of money you spend on it, unlike a kitchen or bathroom remodel where you can get 3-4 times your money back
Sr. Member
Dec 25, 2002
660 posts
229 upvotes
I think sometimes you need to do things though not because you are going to get a good return but because you want to sell you house no?

I mean right now we have wooden (ie ugly) pressure treated flower boxes with a red patio stone walkway (don't laugh - we were 22 & 23 when we bought the house and stupid and flat broke :) Would you be more likely to buy our house that way or with a nice flat flower bed with a cement or paver walkway?

Our kitchen and bathrooms are actually in pretty good shape (the house is not quite 10 years old) My husband has already replaced 99% of the flooring (just the laundry room is left and he will be laying ceramics in the next couple of weeks) I am taking all of your suggestions to heart though - they all seem like really good ideas....keep them coming :)

Oh and my DH is extremely handy so pretty much any work gets done by him - therefore for any improvements we are just paying for materials.

Kelly
Sr. Member
May 22, 2007
515 posts
332 upvotes
cambridge
We looked at a house in this week which I liked very much. However the bathtub, all basins, shower floor & kitchen sinc were dirty. The oven window is so dirty you cannot see the light from the outside. What is a really nice house is very much diminished by this filth. I cannot believe people would actually allow potential buyers to see the place like this.

Ultimately it is good for me as I can make a lower offer based on the condition of the place.

Things to pay attention to are,
Spotlessly clean(especially kitchen & bathrooms)
Everything in its place with no clutter
well kept garden - green grass which is tended regularly & no weeds in flower beds
Well positioned furniture(if there is too much get rid of some at least for the sales visits)
Current condition of major infrastructure - windows, roof, furnace, CAC, doors.

Attend to all these issues & you stand a MUCH better chance of selling quicker.
Deal Guru
Dec 31, 2005
13306 posts
750 upvotes
Drthorne wrote: but it doesn't give you a good return on the amount of money you spend on it, unlike a kitchen or bathroom remodel where you can get 3-4 times your money back
the return is not 3 to 4 times.....from most builders/Canadian Mortgage sites, the top return is for the Bathroom/Kitchen at about 75%....
Deal Fanatic
Nov 18, 2005
5111 posts
1546 upvotes
Kitchener
nalababe wrote: the return is not 3 to 4 times.....from most builders/Canadian Mortgage sites, the top return is for the Bathroom/Kitchen at about 75%....
I don't think so, she said she's doing the work themselves so it would be 3-4 times
Deal Addict
May 20, 2003
2864 posts
25 upvotes
As a start, I'd say make sure all clutter is removed from the house. Sometimes it's worthwhile to put stuff in storage for a few months to achieve this. Also make sure everything is spotlessly cleaned. make sure the lawn and garden are well-kept too.

As for upgrades, it's really too difficult to answer without seeing the house. It's better to ask a friend or the agent to give you an opinion from a buyer's perspective. Sometimes what you think is a priority isn't one; and sometimes you overlook the simplest things because you're so used to everything the way it is now.

For example, the house might smell funny but you're used to it. Or furniture could be rearranged to achieve a layout.
Sr. Member
Mar 21, 2006
505 posts
1 upvote
My tip would be not to try to hide or cover up anything. Make things look nice, clean and all that, but dont be devious.

In one house we looked at, I found something that had obviously been hidden by the owners. I could not help but wonder what else they were hiding, so we passed on the house as a result.
Deal Addict
Apr 8, 2001
1041 posts
900 upvotes
Everyone has their own input, and many have good ideas. I thought I would summarize what people have said and provide some feedback of my own. I'm not a professional by any means, but some of the things worth noting as I do a lot of minor things for friends and family:

1) Curb appeal attracts buyers, but doesn't necessarily get a high return on what you spend, so keep it simple, clean, grass green, no weeds, blooming flowers, but don't spend too much, especially if you're leaving.

2) Kitchen and baths are the #1 and #2 items for people to buy homes. Making things neutral, clean and up to date are super important. If you have 70's mustard yellow appliances in the kitchen, it's worth your $3000 to upgrade them before the showings. A Simple upgrade that you can do yourself is to change wooden cabinet knobs to stainless steel, I did this for my parents last Christmas eve as a gift, it cost about $200 (they had an unbelieveable 52 doors, that shocked us all!) and was quick and easy. Just need a screw driver - Canadian tire had the best deal and sold in packs of 10, I couldn't find anywhere else that did.

For the bathrooms, again, changing the knobs, adding updated fixtures, just a weekend of work will make it look much more contemporary and can be low cost.

Replace the grout lines if they are dirty, starting to show their age, or discoloration. One tube should last you at least 1 or 2 bathrooms. Maybe even your kitchen.

3) Remove your family pictures and portraits.

4) It might be worth renting a storage space to put all your extra furniture and clutter into. It's a few hundred dollars you'll get back just because your home will seem bigger.

5) A lot of people think crown moulding is something that gets you high return back, a friend did this for years and claims what you'll spend on it, you'll be lucky if you get 15% back when you sell the house, don't bother.

6) Make sure all counter tops and tables are clean and not covered in 'stuff'.

7) Don't hide obvious things, but don't fix things for no reason, it afterall a used house. For example, if you have one cracked tile in your hallway and this hallway runs from your kitchen, your hall and front door, unless you have a spare identical tile, don't bother replacing the whole thing though. It's thousands you won't get back.

8) Resealing your driveway is nice, it's a Saturday afternoon's work, and it makes the driveway look newer and sharper.

9) Clean your garage, despite it being a storage area for a lot of people, people want to see their car in it.

10) Believe it or not, if your car is parked on your driveway, make sure it's washed and clean. People believe, how you take care of your car is how you take care of your home. You'll never see a Realtor drive up for an open house with a dirty car, they always have nicely washed and recently waxed cars.

11) Dirty carpets need to be washed/cleaned or taken out. Hardwood flooring is always a great selling feature, but can be time intensive and expensive.

12) Make sure your window coverings are clean and accentuate the rooms.

One big thing, don't get caught in overspending to make things perfect. You want to sell the place at a profit, sometimes, you can spend double the money for only 10% gain, don't get caught in doing that.
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