best and cheapest way to make house more appealing for sale

I need to sell my house ASAP it has been on the market for AGES! and it is now necessary to sell as i have a baby due very soon. I wanted to know what would be the best and cheapest way to make it look good to attract buyers. Its dark red brick and i was thinking a thin render or even if you could paint the bricks (but they are rough and i dont think this will look very good!!) I see a thin render on new houses aroung that you can still see the outline of the bricks and wondered if this is a cheaper way to go?The house is in Oxley Park (western Sydney) if someone has an idea or could do something cheap please let me know.

thanks!!

Yuk, we have to sell ours soon too mate, not looking forward to it.

It will be good to hear opinions on rendering brick as we are going to be looking for a livable, but 'original' old style brick house to clean up a bit and we were thinking of rendering ourselves (the new place, not our old). Unfortunately we are moving to a much more expensive part of Sydney (from Sutherland we are going north - I like Beecroft/Cheltenham) so we need to spend more for a worse house!!!

Hints/tips will be great as we could only afford to do the rendering ourselves after borrowing an extra couple of hundred K!!

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I wanted to know what would be the best and cheapest way to make it look good to attract buyers.

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Drop the price :p

would drop the price but then id still owe money its complicated

If you have cable, have a look at House Doctor on How To channel. It is a pommy show that will never top the ratings, but prepares a house that has been on the market for a while so that it will move. Might give you some presentation ideas. Nothing on rendering though. Good luck.

quick, hurry and render dont go together!

get some experiecned estate agents out - ask whats turning people off? one of them will tell you - couple of grand on afront garden, or flat rear deck, few pebbles and a water feature can sometimes do wonders - but nothing can perform miracles if it is overpriced - its only worth what the marekt thinks it is - doesnt matter didly what you paid for it, what it owes you or what you think its worth.

I'd try and seek out the gun agent in the area, and get their feed back with a view to changing agents.

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Originally Posted by need_2_sell

would drop the price but then id still owe money its complicated

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Bless my soul, it's not complicated at all. You are what's called Upside Down on your house, like thousands of others in a fluctuating market.

Best advice, spend some money on the front landscape. Kerb appeal. Can't sell it if people won't even go in.

Forget the render, that's a non-starter--won't help much.

Pricing and staging, pricing and staging--that's what sells houses. If you haven't done so:

• Clear off all personal pictures anywhere in the house. People can't imagine themselves in it if they feel like you are still in it.
• Clear off all clutter (and I mean ALL) on countertops, especially kitchen--makes it look bigger.
• Empty about half of your clothes out of closets (wardrobes), to make them look larger and uncluttered.
• I always tell clients to rent a temp storage place and put all this clutter there, including extra pieces of furniture. Haven't seen your house but am willing to wager you could get rid of 1/3 of furniture without hardship.
• Paint interior walls a neutral colour, like off-white. People are put off by bizarre colour schemes--just because you like it doesn't mean they will.
• Wall-paper should be banned by law, but that is too much to hope for. :rolleyes:
• If builders in your area are showing model homes (new construction), visit them see how they have staged them--that is the look you want. Clean, neat, spacious, uncluttered. Give the prospective buyer the room to imagine his furniture there.

[Disclaimer: I am an estate agent, but in the U.S. Your mileage may vary, but I'll bet not much. ]

Bobs right on the mark, the same things apply in oz

Honorary Bloke is a BLOKE??

*lol* ... I thought s/he was a Sheila ... but one with enought aptitude for blokey things to get the "Honorary" :)

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Originally Posted by Ron Dunn

Honorary Bloke is a BLOKE??

*lol* ... I thought s/he was a Sheila ... but one with enought aptitude for blokey things to get the "Honorary" :)

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Harrumph!!!

Nar, just a Seppo with enough Ozzie in him to get the title Honorary. :D:rolleyes::D

[Note to self: Ramp up the macho on your posts a bit, people are beginning to talk! :cool: ]

Burn it down and use the insurance to build a better one and sell that for more money:)

Have you got a pic? And how much do you want to get for it?

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Originally Posted by Honorary Bloke

Bless my soul, it's not complicated at all. You are what's called Upside Down on your house, like thousands of others in a fluctuating market.

Best advice, spend some money on the front landscape. Kerb appeal. Can't sell it if people won't even go in.

Forget the render, that's a non-starter--won't help much.

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Have to disagree on the render. Maybe not big in the US, but on the right sort of house here it can add a lot of value. Red bricks are not particularly popular colour these days(nor can I see it being the case any time in the medium term), so rendering can make sense.

You have to do it right though, and have the style of house to do it.

Not everyone likes rendered houses.

What Bob's on about is making the front attractive enough to get people over the doorstep, and looking through the house. He's talking about presentation, which is the key to selling.

Do a poll along the lines, would you buy a rendered house?

GENERAL THEORY

When the property market dives it is only the renovated places that will sell readily and for anything near previous prices.

Absolutely no point rendering and making the outside look novated if inside is still a 30 - 40 year old scratchbox.

That would only reinforce the idea in buyers minds that it further work.

That's wrong,
when the market dives only the rip roaring bargains sell,
plus houses in the bottom price range as some people are able to downsize

That hasn't been my experience - the renovated houses are usually a bargain compared the cheaper bargains that need 100k spent on them.

1) Why not drop the price?

I know you said you' still owe money, but if you're prepared to spend $x on, say, rendering, then surely you could drop the price by $x instead of rendering???

2) Change Real Estate agents

If it hasn't sold in ages (how long in actual time?), it's either overpriced, or the agent isn't doing anything, or there's something inherently wrong with it.

3) Advertise it yourself

This post was an opportunity for you to let us know how much you want for it, attach pictures, let us know how much typical rents are in that area, what work needs to be done etc. etc. etc.

You never know who might know someone who wants to buy....

4) Consult a financial adviser

You haven't said whether it's your primary place of residence, or an investment property, or if you like to stay on as a tenant after it's sold, and each scenario has different tax implications.

A switched on adviser may be able to point out options you haven't considered.

Best of luck with the bub.

My unsolicited parenting advice is:
once the baby hits 6 months old, teach them sign language. Worked amazingly well for us, and for those folks we know who have tried it.

Cheers,
Andrew

need-2-sell

Where you live is biggest problem then the present market

Like this place biggest thing these days is room size this one doesn't have garage there is none the rest of the place looks great pool and all. http://www.realestate.com.au/cgi-bin...&tm=1200618948

while this one http://www.realestate.com.au/cgi-bin...&tm=1200618948
the bathroom well

That 385 k place doesnt look renovated to me. The 325 k place has had work done but gets let down by street prescence IMO - and that bathroom - ROFL !! I didnt know Oxley Park was so far out.

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Originally Posted by echnidna

Not everyone likes rendered houses.

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Yep, and it's a lot harder to remove than a dodgy paint job!

As suggested, give the place a tidy up, spend some time in the garden, repaint so it's nice and fresh, clear out the junk/clothes/furniture, etc.

And then just before the open inspection bake some bread! :lol:

or cook some butter and garlic in the pan.

The inside of the house is all fully renovated just the out side is not very attractive. huge land 727m2 3 bed sigle garage attached to house and double shed out back. ensuit and walk in robe to main be. brand new kitchen BIG!! large living area tiled through out. new bathroom with spa fire place. we are asking $325,000.00. you can see a picture at www.raineandhorne.com.au/stmarys

This Is My House

oops Need_2_sell link goes to main page

http://www.realestate.com.au/cgi-bin...&tm=1200618948 WE ARE ASKING $325000 AS I SAID ITS A SEPARATION WE HAVENT BEEN TOGETHER FOR YEARS AND BOTH MOVED ON. THE HOUSE IS BEING RENTED OUT AND WE GET $330 PER WEEK. THE BATHROOM IS SMALL BUT MAINLY CAUSE OF THE SPA (THE BATHROOM WAS DONE BEFORE WE BOUGHT IT) BUT NOT AS SMALL AS THE PICTURE SHOWS. EVERYTHING ELSE IS VERY LARGE. THE ONLY WORK THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE IS THE OUTSIDE GARDENS ECT AND THE LAUNDRY.
* THE ROOF HAS BEEN FULLY RE-TILED AND PAINTED,
* KITCHEN AND BATHROOMS BRAND NEW.
* THE WHOLE HOUSE IS TILED EXCEPT THE MAIN BED WHICH IS CARPET AND THE TWO OTHER BED ARE FLOOR BOARDS.
* ENSUITE AND WALK IN ROBE HIDDEN BEHIND MIRROR CUPBOARD IN MAIN BEDROOM, BUILT INS TO THE REST,
* LARGE WALK IN PANTRY IN KITCHEN,
* SINGLE DRIVE-THROUGH GARAGE ATTACHED TO HOUSE WITH ELECTRIC DOORS AND HUGE DOUBLE LOCK UP SHED AT BACK,
* FULLY FENCED.
* FIRE PLACE,
* SOLAR HOT WATER,

N2S

I'd get the agent to et rid of the photo of the bathroom for starters and get these features

ENSUITE AND WALK IN ROBE HIDDEN BEHIND MIRROR CUPBOARD IN MAIN BEDROOM, BUILT INS TO THE REST,
* LARGE WALK IN PANTRY IN KITCHEN,
* SINGLE DRIVE-THROUGH GARAGE ATTACHED TO HOUSE WITH ELECTRIC DOORS AND HUGE DOUBLE LOCK UP SHED AT BACK,

shown online

thanks for the advise im in the process of changing real estates so ill take that into consideration!!

If it was my house I would be doing some lanscaping and gardens out the front with some agavaes some nivce yuccas mainly succulents
plants it will work out cheaper than painting the house and to me there is nothing wrong with it just plant some nice garden beds along the front of the house
with some white stone rocks and perhaps a water feature maybe
and tile the verandah it would look great

I'd put thatch on the wire fence, and maybe a nice letterbox plaque with the house numbers. Add some planting in the front. Lose the bathroom picture. Paint the grey trim white. If the tenant moves out because it's being shown, get some staging furniture, and shoot all new pictures. The pictures probably aren't getting people out there. You'll get more hits on the website if you drop the price to 324 or even 319k, so weigh up the hassle and cost of doing the work with the need for that money. Just like you have a certain amount you want to get, people have a certain amount they want to spend, so you're not appearing in searches people do under 325.

I think what everyone has said about the garden is what would make a differance. At the moment with no plants at all it looks hot, uninviting and a bit "rental". You can tell the rental houses around here by the lack of garden. Something to give a bit of shade and break up the square starkness would be great. Get an advanced tree of perhaps something weeping- cerry or ghoast gum or maple. (I don't know what will grow in Sydney. Is Frangepany to cleche?)
Maybe a pic from a differant angle of the spa would be better, because it does look a bit weird with the loo in the first photo you see.
Thats my 2 cents.
Good luck.

Have fun with bub. Best thing in the world.

I'd like to know who designed the bathroom, forgot the loo and had to stick it somewhere!!! :D

WHOOPS !!! that was Need 2 Sell's property that I was laughing at in Post #20 (laughing at the bathroom ).

What is that box thing behind the WC in the bathroom?

As I said in Post 20 the place needs a little bit of street appeal and a bit of a bathroom work over IMO. I wouldnt worry about rendering the bricks.


I'm really not surprised it hasnt attracted much buying interest - trying to sell with tenants in place is a real pain. I know off many cases where properties have sold within a few weeks after the tenants departed and the house was dressed and tricked to look good. Agents get a bit miffed about having arrange viewing appiontments well in advance.

What do you think?

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Originally Posted by Dirty Doogie

WHOOPS !!! that was Need 2 Sell's property that I was laughing at in Post #20 (laughing at the bathroom ).

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Ha Ha, I thought you somehow knew!

I don't think 'whoops' is in order. If anything, I think it might give need2sell some insight as to what the general public are going to think when THEY see it. As someone said, remove the bathroom pic or take it at a different angle leaving out the dunny. :)

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Originally Posted by Dirty Doogie

What do you think?

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Whats with the Christmas trees in the front yard?

:U :U :U

LoL i know they look like xmas trees ROFL Xmas trees would be cheap this time of year. I was sort of thinking maybe large - um - hibiscus - Frangipani is good too cos you can just cut off a huge chunk of trunck and it will grow - instant tree.

But I think just from the VERY quick sketch the front begins looking better - would everyone agree?

IN the kitchen I'd change those cheap-nasty-butte-ugly black mushroom door and drawer knobs to small round metal ones. http://budgethandles.com.au/index.ph...products_id=50 And anywhere else they appear in the house. ( I bet everyone thinks I'm gay now for suggesting it LOL)

In the bathroom I would extend a wall up behind the loo and put a squarish hole in the wall backed by mirror - that gives an opportunity to create some shelves next to spa for towels and "spa" toys. If I get around to it I'll draw another pic .

I agree that shelves or something behind the loo in that corner would make it look less after thought. Bit of greenery or something too would be nice.
Potted plants either side of front door.:2tsup:

I think it would be hard to do all this while tenants are in situ.

A new estate agent would probably be a help. Hope fully they'll do more than turn up with a clip board.