Why you cannot afford to NOT hire a designer......
As a realtor who works with investors, many of whom do fix and flips I am very aware of being sure my clients buy right AND that they do not put money into a house that they cannot get back out.....however I have come to the conclusion that NO ONE can afford to make improvements to a house with out the guidance of a designer....
Now I know what many of you are thinking...."I cannot afford a designer". I beg to differ. I believe that you cannot afford NOT to use one. Why do I say this?
Well let me list a few reasons.
1. An appealing and well thought out house sells in any market so long as the Realtor marketing does a good job pricing it and their client does a good job of listening to professional advice.
2. Most of us are not talented enough to do a spectacular job. Especially in today's market, anything short of spectacular costs you alot in terms of resale.
3. Designers have resources you do not. ( Just like the Realtor who has their resources since they work full time in the industry.) Why is this important? Well, your designer knows what professionals to have do what and knows who does a good job and who does not. This knowledge alone likely makes what you pay for design work worthwhile. At the same time keep in mind that your Designer can also get prices based on high volumn of business. You and I likely do not do the volumn that a designer does.
With that volumn comes volumn pricing. This saves you money.
4. A designer works with design as their full time job, if you are spending all your time shopping for the right finish, the right deal and so on it will mean time away from you doing what you do. In the end you will get the job done faster and likely less expensively with a designer. ( and have less head aches, less missed work and more sleep!)
5. Over and over I have sold properties in a matter of DAYS when the average days on market was several MONTHS or more because of design work done to the property.
6. Working with a designer helps you really have a well planned and executed project. Often with out this investors as well as home owners make mistakes that cost too much money. ( Example, my husband was excited to go pick out tile for our kitchen since there was some damage to the flooring, however when I consulted with my designer, Connie, she suggested that we do some other work first, especially the counter tops....why? Granite is more expensive than tile. First we need to find a good deal on granite, then once that is in we can find tile that will match. Tile is less expensive than Granite, get the deal on Granite first, put it in and then get tile to match, save alot more than you would going in with no plan....)
7. Pretty sells. Hands down, if the house is truely appealing and very pretty and priced competitively it will sell. People may think they buy on logic, they do not. They buy on emotion and justify it with logic. ( at least when it comes to homes.) They buy a house that "feels" right. Most people decide AS THEY WALK IN if they will buy a home.
8. If you are designing for yourself this is important too. Even if you do not intend to sell....ever....you may end up selling in the end...and you know what? Most people in the end spend more with doing do it yourself projects than they would if they hired some one to help them design something well planned out that they would love. How is that? Most people end up redoing much of the work because in the end it does not work, or does not match or they do not like it, or lack of planning makes it not "quite work" . Wouldn't you love to have a house you LOVE, not like...LOVE? If so, you need some guidance.
Over and over I see homes that could be fabulous, but they do not sell....why? Because the way they are done, they are NOT fabulous....I am reminded of a 4500 sf home all redone in University Place. High end lighting, high end finishes, low price, still on the market after months. Even a good lay out for all but the Master bedroom. What was wrong? Well.....the counter tops ( granite ) did not match the flooring which did not match the cabinets which did not match the hardware....same kind of thing in the bathrooms.....also no color in any of the other rooms in the house AND a redone master that could have been redone just a little differently and likely for less money and would have been an asset, but really was NOT the way it was done. Also new paint on the house....which subtracted for value instead of adding..... The investors who did this house likely felt they could not afford a designer, but as a buyer's agent helping a buyer who looked @ this home, I will tell you they could not afford not to have that help.....the lack of that help was the whole reason they had very high holding cost as well as a price point that was steadily moving in a downward direction.
If you are an investor, how will design save you money?
1. If your Realtor and you Designer look @ homes with you before you buy, you will likely skip some real "duds"
2. The project will be well thought out and will take less time and money in many cases than one that is not well thought out.
3. You will save money on holding costs if the house is very appealing.
4.You will likely be able to compete better with other homes and be able to command a higher price if the house is very "pretty".
5. You will not turn buyers off by mixing styles, by doing things that are new but dated in style or by leaving elements that are likely to turn off a buyer.
6. If your Realtor and your Designer work well together they will hep make sure that you are only investing in things that will actually fetch more money for the house. So often I go to meet with a seller who has decided to do many things to the house before I ever saw it.....sometimes these were really needed and will make a big difference in ending sales price or how fast we will sell. Other times unfortunately, had they met with me prior to spending all the money I would have told them it did not need to be spent, or that it could have been spent in other areas. Sometimes the work and "improvements" will actually have to be removed and redone....extra expense.
Watch this blog for before and after pictures. Subscribe to this blog to see actual projects in progress. Come here often to get ideas and to learn dos and do nots both on selling and design. See projects as we go and learn from our sucesses and failures. We look forward to having fun with it and know you will too!
--Anna Matsunaga, Team Momentum Keller Williams Realty 253 353 2662
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