Unlocking Success: Transforming Traditional Homes | Tips for Selling in a Hot Market | House to Home

pick walls and fairies are not fine when you're trying to sell a house two and a half months you haven't had a single offer it's probably not selling because of the presentation it is just a suggestion so don't shoot the messenger we're hoping and praying that it is gonna get sold [Music] in real estate beauty is in the eye of the beholder and when I mean Beholder I mean buyer so consider spending a bit of money prepping your property before viewing you will reap the reward because in my property experience I know that you've got to spend money to make money [Music] 10 members of Roost family live in their two-story semi-detached house and after seven years it's time to sell up it's been on the market for two and a half months and I haven't received a single offer and this is weird well for two reasons first of all with an asking price of 429 900 dollars it's a steal and second of all it is a hot hot market so this house should have sold months ago now to make matters worse Ruth their oldest daughter is moving out of home taking her family with her and that leaves the other members of the family with a mortgage that quite simply they can't afford so they have to downsize and they have to downsize quick ly this is the traditional Portuguese my mom and my dad they don't want to sell the house because they want to gather the family together but they have to sell the house Ruth and her family have had no luck selling their house and I think it's got something to do with presentation because the location and the asking price are bang on so I got to get in there and find out what I'm dealing with thanks for having me hi I see I've wanted wow slightly overwhelmed who's gonna give me the tour I am okay brilliant this is our living room this is where we hang out when we have special guests it's bright there are a lot of statues in here I also see a big cabinet right in front of the window yeah some more statues as you can see well I'm really curious to see the rest of the house sure let's go okay this is my parents room wow it's a huge bed it's quite a lot of furniture in here a lot of bed and not a lot of room it's a Portuguese style what what's next this is the kitchen the most important room in the house it's a really big size yes it is again covering up the windows a little bit of damage down here yes that needs to be fixed I think yes it does so who do all the statues belong to because there's a lot of them it's a Portuguese traditional theme and basically like these are all gifts see in England we tend to hide them away than if someone comes to stay we put the we put the gift out and goes yeah always here another traditional Portuguese thing is the tiles isn't it yes to my mom if a kitchen doesn't have tiles it's another kitchen for her I think I'm gonna have to have a quiet word so where next next is the dining room ah oh hello you he's absolutely terrifying have you ever seen the movie The Birds I can see that if we move around the room his eyes follow you for viewings we might put the eagle away okay we'll see what my mom has to say about that okay that's going to get a little scared unless you go upstairs sure as you walk up the stairs you can't help but notice the awful pink carpet and it's in bad shape the bathroom's okay but what is that shag rug doing in there there are three bedrooms the first two are a good size but with all that clutter how would any perspective buyer know I can't wait to see what the master bedroom looks like so this is mine my husband and my three children's room wow that must be really hard it is very hard hopefully once we get this house sold you can remedy that yes but to get to that point we're gonna have to do something about all these curtains covering every window do people not like the light or something are you like a family of vampires I think I have a bit of a battle on my hand I need to brighten this place up I think it's time to implement some changes pink walls and fairies are fine in Orlando Florida but they're not fine when you're trying to sell a house and as for covering up every source of natural light it seems like complete Madness to me so unless I can sit down with Ruth and make her understand that to sell this house it's not all about Old World charm she's gonna have to appeal to a new breed of buyers or her parents are going to be left with this big old emptiness which they can't afford the bottom line is it has been on for two and a half months you haven't had a single offer now it's a four bedroom house in the center of that City the asking price is very reasonable so it should have gone in the first week and the reason it hasn't is because it's not viewing that well at the moment decorate it to appeal to people coming in off the street you want to attract viewers in and you want to get offers and I think part of that process is going to be removing a lot of the dark big furniture creating more space changing the color palette so taking out the Pink Carpet and repainting the sitting room and the rooms upstairs more neutral colors that will appeal to everyone and modernizing the kitchen that looks like a lot of hard work to be done in here many hands make the light work we've got the family we're here I think I'm going to go around and richly burn all the in this house let in the lights how do you think your parents are going to react well my dad is very anxious but my mom's mostly afraid her thinking is what if I don't sell my house the bottom line is really once you move out your parents can't afford a mortgage can they no so they have to sell times they are a changing and this old world neighborhood is modernizing Ruth knows this but she's still naturally a little unsure about the changes we're making in her home but her and her parents have to take a leap of faith otherwise they're going to be stuck with this big old house and a mortgage they can't afford I've got a meeting now with Cynthia the family's real estate agent she should be able to give me some insight into Ruth's situation in your opinion what is the target market for a property like this in this area there is a lot of first time home buyers in the market right now do you think a lot of people who are looking around this house will themselves be Portuguese no no no I think he'll be a mixture but to not necessarily Portuguese no one of the first things that struck me when I walked through the door was they don't make the most of the natural light in here because I mean for instance this room has two huge windows in and curtains apparently drawn and there's a lot of very big furniture do you think this house would benefit from a modern revamp yes I definitely think it's going to benefit from modernizing it I'm Portuguese myself and we like the antique and the nice dark curtains and it's something that we're accustomed to Ruth has to understand that to take this house from unsellable to sellable she has to forgo her parents traditional style modernizing it for young families who will look at this as their potential dream home it's all about presenting your house in the best possible life and getting it to appeal to as many people as possible now I want to show Ruth this house because it's a perfect comparable it's exactly the same footprint but it's been staged really well and it shows fantastically and the best thing is it's right next door well Ruth we haven't had to come far have we now this house was on the market and it's now been sold neutrally painted but still attractive it's de-cluttered at the same time it doesn't look like a show home it does have personality and I'm not suggesting that we take all personality out of your house but it's a kind of fine balance I think I want to show you the kitchen because it's a really good example of a kitchen that shows well but isn't expensive look that is definitely not Italian Granite cupboards are not new but they've had a fresh-ish coaster paint and new handles it's kind of small minor refurbishments and make a big difference when you're showing your house it still look like your kitchen but not quite so many statues okay light Ruth's house there are three bedrooms upstairs the polished hardwood floors and clean and tidy rooms are very appealing and one room has been converted into an office which is always a bonus the good thing about showing you this house is it's the same footprint as your house so this room is pretty much exactly the same size as your room but it feels more open just show what you can do with a bit of paint and use of natural light well because of the curtains I knew bringing Ruth to this house was a great idea she's really understanding why this house sold and she's learning what she has to do to make her house sellable it's just about making it so it appeals to everyone then the best way to do that is to be as middle of the road food as possible do you see what I mean I know what you mean and this house is quite a successful casing point now you've lived next door so you saw the sale sign coming up and then you saw the soul sign replace it how long was that period of time about a week talk we can see a week to a week and a half I don't want to sound like a bully but the bottom line is your house it's been on the market for two and a bit months and it hasn't sold and it is quite a buoyant Market at the moment so there is a reason for that it's probably not selling because of the presentation at the moment it seems to be appealing to only one market and that is the Portuguese Market but this era is changing like the couple who bought this house are not Portuguese they're a young couple they want to start their family so that's what we're trying to achieve it is just a suggestion so don't shoot the messenger you're giving me daggery looks anyway I think we've got loads of work to do it's time for me to bring in our head contractor Anthony Sayers to get us started with this transformation what have you got planned I've noticed a lot of these in my house you would make a really pretty bride Anthony oh thank you so we're gonna start by decluttering and we are putting the eagle to Nest somewhere else I think the house is very dark so we'll just uncover all the windows let all the light back into the house upstairs we're gonna take up the carpet and reveal the nice hardwood floor that's there hopefully we won't have to do too much work to it to bring it back to life down here in the kitchen we're gonna tone down the towels I don't usually paint towels but in this case I think we're going to paint them countertops deteriorated around the faucet so we'll change the countertop get a new one paint out the cabinets new handles some lighting so you look slightly uncomfortable well regarding the tiles covering it up I don't know how that's gonna look we're gonna scuff them up and then Prime them and paint them really nice color it's going to look good it's not a lot of money that we're spending and you're making a big impact all right all our Solutions are reasonable and necessary because without the renovation Ruth will probably have to drop the asking price by as much as thirty thousand dollars so light fixtures window treatment no more pinks no more carpets hardwood young trendy modern look using our budget and two days yes well I don't think we have very much time to talk I got some knickknacks to pack away yes this was the Kickstart where he's really needed if you're having problems and don't really know where to start a good place is the 3DS disassociate yourself from your house no longer your home it's a product and a marketable one at that declutter get rid of all the knickknacks the excess furniture and finally depersonalize get rid of the majority of the family photos because people want to walk in and imagine themselves in the house not you [Music] I know it's all very mad at the moment but I want to know how you're feeling about the work it's good when I came in I was very surprised I seen my coverage weight the tiles are white and because is my house gonna be like this no I promise you it will not all be white I want to thank you guys for everything yeah I'm confident what the job you guys are doing is for the best it it's gonna be great so the house can be sold Fields he knows that we're gonna be happy again I'm so relieved that Maria and Jose understand that we're doing what's best for them and I feel like Ruth and the rest of the family are ready to move on let's sell this house so how's it going very good looks a little like a disaster movie in here but I'm sure it will look tidier in a bit now I assured Maria and Jose that this was just a primary code there's going to be an off-white like this and then this will be the bottom oyster white and then people comes up with these jogging parts it won't be all white everything no refurbishing is such a good way and if you don't have the money to make your kitchen look fresh before before putting it on the mask exactly yeah and I think I should go and put my jeans on and start painting excellent [Music] oh no no no no no no no no final that's not good I wasn't expecting that at all this house is definitely one step closer to getting an offer once the family got their heads around the importance of new versus old world Decor we could really move forward so all we need to do is concentrate on the things we could change I'd better check in with Anthony to see what's going on we've got to be ready for the open house Anthony how you doing uh so so I'm worried really worried we're not going to get it finished a lot is resting on it and it's not just one couple three couples three kids all living in this one house but they need to move out I know there is a lot of work to do and we've done quite a bit already we've taken up all the carpet from upstairs there was one room that there was vinyl flooring underneath so I wasn't expecting that but I had to use some of the budget to carpet the Rope the countertop I saw the kitchen it does look really smart no it does I think it looks great well I'm glad I came in here because you've reassured me just a few blocks away a similar house to Ruth shows how enhancing a home's best features get it on the fast track to a sale the living room with its warm Brown paneling polished hardwood floors and fireplace are highlighted as opposed to hidden behind decorative items even more deep brown tones are found in the elegant dining room photos Adorn the walls and a few smartly placed knickknacks add to the ambience the kitchen feels spacious and urban with its stainless steel appliances brand new countertops and there's no clutter upstairs the master bedroom sleeps too as opposed to five and it will appeal to young couples who will love the Romantic feel the furniture does not take over the room it accentuates it back at Ruth's house with the open house approaching everyone is pitching in to get this house ready for its big debut we're rushing to put everything away and it's exciting and wow can we actually be doing this at the end it's all about selling the house it's what we really need so we're hoping and praying that it is gonna get sold [Music] the house looks bad it's taking a lot of work and the team really had to pull together at the end but I think we've done it and I think you'll agree it really packs a punch now starting with the living room we removed the window coverings in the wall unit that was blocking the light with natural paint color instead of that candy colored pink and the added touches of the two mirrors on the wall the living room now feels bigger and brighter all the furniture in this room has been reused which is proof positive that sometimes all of them needs is a Fresh coat of paint and oh yes no statues Anthony's decision to paint the kitchen tiles was a good one now the white and light green colors give the kitchen a modern look we added a smaller kitchen table to add space a crucial update to one of the most important rooms in the house the dining room is a simple fix we added some new lights and decluttered we got rid of that ugly Pink Carpet and painted the stairs and added a neutral colored Runner we uncovered hardwood floors throughout the upstairs hardwood floors can add a whopping 1000 and dollars to the price of a house we covered the tiles Anthony discovered with a carpet and painted it a subtle color as opposed to the violet color that was violating the view before and now for the fiesta resistance ruthrum where two adults and three children slept we got rid of the window treatments and let the Airy see-through curtains let the sun shine in the kids bed is gone as is the big TV and with the new lighting the room feels inviting as opposed to the foreboding feeling it had when we got there there is no point having an open house if no one turns up so advertise plaster your neighborhood in Flyers basically create an interest in your open house give your house a thorough clean after staging personally I'd always use a cleaning company because after all cleanliness isn't it to Godliness eliminate strong odors no one wants to buy a house that smells her feet and one of the best ways to do this to bake some cookies I'm feeling confident as we're about to put Ruth's home to the true test potential buyers are arriving for the open house hi come in I'm Sophie nice to meet you hi I'm Sophie this is a sitting room nice and high ceiling you oh this color is great A dark brown was fantastic great windows down here we've got an extra bedroom wow do you work from home well just use this as a home office yes I knew perspective buyers would want to see an updated kitchen we've got some formal dining room oh that's nice uh very nice would you want to look upstairs it did have a double bed in before really I promise you I'm not lying it really did speak kid's room the lack of clutter shows the versatility of this room suffix second bedroom nice size it is a good size the master no no the master is yet to come no size it's a gorgeous size so light in this room it's so much much better size here's hoping we have a perspective bar in our midst so would you think of coming back for a second viewing maybe bringing your wife yeah sure absolutely how brilliant what do you think there's a potential I think it's lots of space I like all the loads so would you consider bringing your wife back to have a look I kind of like it but you know she's the boss yeah it's usually the way the open house is done and dusted and we got some really positive feedback the house is looking bright and fresh and I think it's going to appeal to a broader range of people so I'm hopeful we'll get some offers and this house will no longer be unsellable I don't mind telling you Cynthia I'm really pleased what are your thoughts well I've taken a look around and it looks really nice I like it it sits nice and bright and it looks even bigger than it did before especially this room seems a lot bigger now yes I love the color I love the green it looks really nice the new professional opinion what change that we've implemented has had the biggest impact do you think I think the colors the colors look really nice they're bright colors it makes it look even bigger than it did before I mean the proof is in the pudding though it's all about whether someone makes an offer or not but the last gentleman who came around he seemed very keen so he said he was gonna take your card and give you a call and bring his wife around her apparently as the boss I love the kitchen the living room is beautiful it's just wow I love it we're hoping for the house to be sold this house is a perfect example of how modernizing your Decor can really transform a home so it appeals to a much wider spectrum of people and that's why real estate agents are persuading people to show off their home's full potential so it just improves the odds of a quick sale this house received a lot of traffic young couples were wowed by the transformation from clunky cluttered rooms to hip modern looking house and it wasn't long before Ruth and her family got the result they were looking for a sale for this property the journey from unsellable to sold is complete [Music] thank you [Music] foreign [Music]

Channel: House to Home

Views: 29,933

Keywords: House to Home, first-time home sellers, home selling process, home staging, house flipping advice, house flipping secrets, house selling advice, maximizing home appeal, property flipping tips, property improvement, property presentation, property selling tactics, real estate secrets, renovating for resale, resale property tips, residential makeover, selling strategies, staging for a quick sale, successful house staging, traditional home makeover, upgrading home for sale

Id: OL8zjvsI62E

Length: 22min 11sec (1331 seconds)

Published: Wed Nov 01 2023