Home Renovations That Sell

So I work with several local real estate agents on a regular basis prepping their listings prior to putting them on the market. Eric Rojas of Rubiloff in particular and I do a lot of work together. We feel that doing some minor upgrades can really freshen up the look of your house or condo and help eliminate some of the main deterrents to potential buyers. I will give you two examples of listing preps that we have done recently and what we were able to accomplish for the money.

Project #1, 1bedroom/1bath condo, budget $3000


HALLWAY CLOSET
--remove existing shelving and rod and replace with new shelving and closet rod

BATHROOM
--remove existing light fixtures, medicine cabinet, mirror, and shower door
--refinish existing tub
--clean all floor and wall grout
--remove old caulk as necessary and re-caulk with matching mildew resistant caulk
--install new ceiling and vanity lights
--install new mirror and medicine cabinet
--patch walls around new mirror and medicine cabinet as necessary
--fill holes in tile with caulk or grout to match as closely as possible

PAINTING
--patch and prep damaged dining room wall
--paint walls in bedroom, bathroom, living room, dining room, hallway, and one hallway closet with 2 coats of Benjamin Moore paint

This place was nice but the only thing that had been updated was the kitchen. Everything else was really dated and hadn't been maintained properly. The closet shelving was ancient--it had some 1960's wallpaper on it--and falling down. There were some very noticeable cracks in the drywall. The paint colors resembled something you would find in a child's coloring book. And then there was the bathroom. It had an old sliding shower door that was ready to fall off the track at any moment, a really discolored tub, and badly stained grout throughout the shower and on the floor. Everything needed to go but the budget didn't allow for it. Fortunately when the owner replaced the kitchen cabinets he also replaced the bathroom vanity cabinet. So we were able to keep that. We did some serious cleaning, painting, and cosmetic work and that bathroom ended up looking great!

Project #2, 3bedroom/1.5bath single family home, budget $1225

BATHROOM
--remove and dispose/recycle existing mirror, toilet, vanity light, shower curtain rod, and plastic baseboards
--remove all wall hardware and save for re-use
--re-caulk around tub
--remove, clean, and replace ceiling fan/light and wall heater
--patch walls and ceiling as necessary and prep for paint
--purchase and install new baseboards throughout
--purchase and install new shower curtain rod
--repair cabinet hinges
--purchase and install new framed mirror
--purchase and install new vanity light fixture
--paint walls, ceiling, trim, and doors
--purchase and install new toilet


Since the budget was small, for this project we decided to focus all our efforts on the only full bathroom in the house knowing that potential buyers would be focusing on this as a problem area. We recommended to the seller that we remove the linoleum and replace it with a porcelain tile. This would have cost an extra $550. They decided to pass and stick to their budget. We also proposed to paint the vanity cabinet, install a new granite countertop, and install a new sink and faucet. This would have been an additional $975. They chose to do the minimal and pass on that option as well. By de-cluttering the space we were able to make the bathroom seem much brighter and in turn larger. The new

white toilet looked a lot "cleaner" than the old gray one did. The new mirror and light fixture gave the room the updated look we were going for. The new baseboards and white paint finished it off for a great low budget upgrade.

Email me if you want to upgrade your home or prep it to sell.

Email Eric if you want to buy or sell a home.

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As a general contractor, one of the most challenging things for me is finding and keeping a good team of subcontractors around me that I can count on at short notice. These guys have to be reliable, punctual, trustworthy, and most importantly do high quality work that I'm willing to put my name and my reputation on the line for. Oh yeah-another important detail-I need them to be licensed and insured as well.

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