Yesterday I was curious about the house down the road, the one that has been sitting vacant for almost half a year. About the same size as mine, although it is a split level instead of a colonial like ours, and it sits on three acres of land instead of our two.
Looking this for sale house online, I discovered that it had recently been reduced by almost $50,000. The house is in a very nice neighborhood, if I do say so myself, with low taxes. It features the things that most home buyers in this area are looking for: a mature park like setting, a wood burning fireplace and hardwood floors. So why isn’t it even getting a nibble.
Well, of course there is the economy. In previous times, this house would have probably been snatched up very quickly. But things are different now.
Still curious, we drove by the house and down its long driveway to take a look.
The first thing we saw was the wood rotting around the windows, which would obviously need to be replaced. Someone had placed a piece of duct tape on the frame, which drew our attention even more. That also made us wonder if the roof needed repair as well. We also wondered about the inside of the house, since the outside seemed to be in such bad shape.
Instantly, the house screamed that it had been neglected, and all of the other niceties about the house and the property were overlooked.
Buyers can demand a lot these days, and even after an agreement is reachers, there is the dreaded inspector, whose job it is to find things wrong with your home.
While you may not currently be in a position to spend a lot of money fixing up a home you intend to sell, now more than ever it is important to do so. Take care of minor and cosmetic problems yourself, and invest a bit in a profession to do the obvious repairs that you don’t have the skill and time to do. You may find that the initial investment pays for itself, not only in an increased price for your home (remember the $50,000 reduction), but also in mortgage and tax payments that you will no longer have to make when your house is sold.