Opinions needed on getting home ready to sell

[Digit]

I wish I was younger without the physical limitations I now have. But it is what it is and I have to hire someone to do the following.

I need to downsize and I have some general questions. First of all, let me say this is a split level built in the early 70's in an inexpensive neighborhood. So basically, granite and other high ticket items are out of the question.

I need new flooring in the kitchen, dining area and foyer...I am looking at laminate. There is vinyl flooring there now which is outdated. Would lowes or home depot be the way to go when it comes to price?

I also need carpet for the lower level, which I believe off the roll stock from hd or lowes which would be my best bet when price is a major consideration.

The countertop in the kitchen is tile surrounded by a nice wood frame. If I could get it re-glazed, it might be okay. Does anyone have any experience with having a countertop re-glazed?
The matching backsplash at minimum should be re-glazed as it is almond with gold flecks. It is also behind the fridge from the baseboard to the cabinet above the fridge. This is one reason why I don't wish to attempt removal of the backsplash.

The other choices for a counter top would be laminate or butcherblock. The longest stretch is 9'3" feet long, then it goes into an L for 4'6" with the stove on the shorter span. I could even split the two possibly into two materials like butcher block for the stove side and laminate for the longer span. Would this look too odd?

I need to keep my expenditures down as homes are only going for 25,000 more than I paid for it 16 years ago. I even considered selling it as is but another home in the neighborhood was on the market for almost a year and just finally sold. I am afraid offering as as-is would prevent anyone from even making an offer.

The contractor I had planned to use is booked solid.
Any ideas appreciated!

[Turbineguy]

1. I had an idea

to offer a rebate instead of doing any work. The rebate would in effect, lower the down payment. The new owners can choose what to do. You could even allow them to do the work during the closing period (with proper protection against the deal falling through of course!).

[Digit]

9. My experience has been

That this is a good idea in concept, but unfortunately, people lack the imagination and won't even make an offer.

Even when it has been as simple as a carpet allowance, homes would not sell without actually doing the work.
I find it is even more true these days.

I wish I could...it would make my life so much easier!

[Turbineguy]

15. Thanks for the info.

It's obviously much better to learn that by your experience than me re-inventing the flat tire.

[Warpy]

2. You might want to replace the countertop.

Tile had a brief period of popularity but now it's seen as a real liability--heavy, with grout that dirties quickly, and uneven. You might find that even Formica is less of a liability and it's a cheap fix. The backsplash has to go, but you knew that. Even a painted wall would do. It doesn't have to be fancy glass tile.

If you're going with laminate, both Lowe's and Home Depot have installers, it's what I did when I replaced them in my kitchen. The flooring might be problematic if you've got more than one layer of vinyl down, but those stores have flooring installers, too.

These fixes won't break the bank at all and might make the difference between selling close to what the home is worth or selling "as is" and taking a beating. The cosmetic buck has the biggest bang.

[Digit]

10. Oh please say the backspash can stay!

I wanted to maybe have it reglazed or resurfaced. As I mentioned, it is also floor to cabinet behind the fridge.

I am going to get the prices at least from HD and Lowes on the flooring. At least I will have a base price which is a good thing.

I am not having fun...this is a pain in the butt.

Thanks for your input, it helps!

[Hassin Bin Sober]

3. If you go new countertops and you can keep the counter top run under 10 feet, Home Depot has....

.... some very reasonable nice counter tops on the rack for about $105 dollars per piece.

If you go over 10 feet, it becomes a custom order and the same counter top with the ogee edge runs about $500 dollars.

They come in 10 foot and, IIRC, 5 foot sections with the 45 degree miter already cut (or without miter). IIRC, 5 foot sections are about 50 bucks.

We used these HD counter tops twice recently. We installed them in my partner's mom's old house on old cabinets. Then they decided to move. She wanted the exact same kitchen so we did a complete re-do with new oak cabinets and the same counter tops.

We ended up installing the pantry on the long side to keep the counter run under 10 feet.

Make sure to measure from the corner.

[X_Digger]

5. We love the HD / Lowes laminates for short runs.

The most recent one I did was in our 'fish room' (equipment room behind an aquarium).

[Digit]

11. The pre-made formica sounds great for the house I am moving to

Also it would be good for one of the bathroom counters which is 70's sky blue at the moment.

Your pictures are wonderful and I like that ogee edge. Unfortunately, my current kitchen has an L shaped counter so I would either have a seam at the end of the longest run (and to get to the farthest edge of a mitred corner would take it to over 10 ft) and then have to switch materials. I don't see a seam on yours...you did a fantastic job.

I did find that the current tile was put on top of old formica and that is why they evidently put the wood edging all around to cover what they did. The tile comes up easily and if there was another material to put down within the framework of the wood edge, it would save me alot of money.

I am getting some great ideas here, thanks!

[Hassin Bin Sober]

14. It might be worth your while to find a local fabricator...

.... who can come out build your counter-top rather than getting in to custom ordering from the big box. I found HD's up charges for edging etc. ridiculous. IIRC, it was like $20 bucks a linear foot for that ogee when ordered.

I'm thinking once you go outside the off-the -rack specs it would be more economical to have someone build from scratch. The laminate and press-board aren't that expensive.

At least get a bid - and let me know if my theory is correct. I'm dying to know.

Or I like your idea of splitting up a run with butcher block built up so they can sit 'proud' of the laminate to hide the transition.

[Stinky The Clown]

4. Flooring: Not sure where you are, and it probably doesn't matter. HD or Lowes are possibles, but....

. . . . you might well be surprised at what a flooring store can offer you. We had all the floors in one of our rentals redone (fully installed) for less than what it would have cost for DIY laminate materials from HD. We got laminate on the 1st floor and carpet upstairs. Admittedly the carpet was not the very best, but it was more than serviceable. We sprung for top end padding as it makes even the least expensive carpeting feel plush, plus it will do for at least one recarpeting, maybe two.

What was also true for us at the flooring store is we were able to dicker with them on the price.

Countertop advice is in the post above ^^

[Digit]

12. I agree that is a great idea to price things from different sources

I now think that having the price from hd or lowes will at least let me know what to expect.

If I just got a price down the street from local flooring shop, I wouldn't know if it was exorbitant or not.

Paying 35 for the measuring and having a price will help me in the long run and hopefully I can negotiate with a local company.

Afterall, I would rather give my business to a local company than the big box store.

[Stinky The Clown]

16. For what its worth, we did our own measurung and got the proposals based on that,

Since I have a way to have scaled plans made, we measured the property and brought prints of the drawings to them.

We have such plans of all our properties. They come in very handy.

[Mosby]

19. A handyman we use told us about a store called Floor & Decor

absolutely amazing selection, and the prices are just as good as HD/lowes in some cases better.

I would be careful about using HD/Lowes installers, they can be extremely overpriced and often do lousy work. They do not work for the chains they are subcontractors.

example, bought a nice new arcadia door for $550 at Lowes, they wanted $600 to install it. My handyman charged me $200, he knocked off a hundred bucks because I told him I could do the trim work.

[Adsos Letter]

6. How is the exterior?

Fresh paint is one of the best ways to increase your chances of a good return, and it doesn't have to break the bank.

[Digit]

13. Exterior is pretty good

I paid to have it painted a few years ago.

Thank goodness.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

7. You might have if you haven't already

get a consult from a realtor. There are many reasons a house can remain on the market for what seems to be a great length in time. A realtor can tell you what you need to do and where you really don't want to spend your money. The point in spending is to get a return. A Realtor can tell you where to upgrade and where not to. If you go into it on your own without finding out what the market facts are-you just might find yourself at one hell of a loss when everything is said and done escrow closing and all that.

A Realtor might tell you not to do anything because there will not be a gain by it. The point here is they can tell you exactly where to make upgrades and where not too and you really need to know those facts.

And here is the thing, any Realtor you call will do the assessment at no charge and you don't have to commit to that Realtor. They want your business and they are always willing to strut their stuff to get it.

Thats what we did recently and it saved me a whole lot of head ak es and hard unnecessary work.
As a contractor I wouldn't think to count how many times I have ripped out new carpeting -kitchen cabinets in pristine condition ,torn up bathrooms that really looked nice but not to the home owner who recently bought the home. Everybody has their own ideas about carpet,tile bathrooms kitchens flooring and so on.

Now I know that, but I thought when it came time to sell ours, I had to do all kinds of stuff to get it ready.
Get a realtor over there,they've done all the market research and stay up on revisions- if your asking price is fair market,there is a good chance you will need to do little to nothing to get it sold. But if you have to spend-you really need to know exactly where to spend and where not to.

Good luck. !

[Digit]

17. I confess, I AM a Realtor

I am not active (mobility issues). It is kind of tough when it is your own house, but I do know the basics.

I do not plan on listing it....I will be selling FSBO as I always have so didn't want to deceive anyone out there thinking they might get the listing.

I kind of know from experience what needs to be done, just not how to get it done without too much expense or the materials I can choose from.
Believe me when I say it would not sell in it's present condition.

All of the cabinets (kitchen and bathrooms) are original and of course I will not rip them out. They will be painted instead. I can't tell you how much I hate painting original wood, but that is what the market calls for. The cabinets are all solid wood and in good shape.

The things I am doing something about have to do with tears or cracks, or in the case of tile, outdated material. Upstairs luckily is hardwood floors so I won't have to do anything there.

I have a Realtor friend who I have been trying to get over but another friend of hers is very ill with cancer and she is busy taking care of her, understandably.

[RILib]

20. painted wood

Man, I hold my head when I walk into a house and see that someone has painted over good wood, particularly in a lovely old house.

[RILib]

8. realtor

I second the suggestion of working with a good realtor. They know what will help and what's a waste of money.
I'd hate to see you spend money on something that will make no difference.

My house is not for sale, but I had less than wonderful flooring in the kitchen and entryway replaced with Mannington "resilient" flooring from a local floor place. It made a substantial difference in the appearance.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

18. Well,one thing at a time.

About a year ago I worked on a house about like you say your is, On the Kitchen flooring the owner used vinyl squares the big ones.The house was going up for sale it was a rental. We did that on his mothers house he and his sister inherited, the sister bought out the brother. The floor actually came out very nice-. As a rule I go with sheet flooring, . you wash the floor with tsp and lay that stuff down- and it goes down quick. some cutting and fitting but not a whole lot of that. The cuts go under the cabinet kick plate.

Take a look at the vinyl squares at hd or lowes- just measure off yer kitchen and multiply the numbers. The box tells you sq. ft. coverage. Same as tile you have at least two extra box's on hand. You simply take back what you don't use or leave it for the buyer. It really doesn't cost all that much for the squares of course there are grades, the better stuff costs more. He spent about $150.00 the material was good, it took about 4 hours to do it. He washed the floor and has mobility issues .

I would go mid grade on the squares -on sheet flooring -I dono that it matters because you will never please somebody else. Eventually the buyer will redo it all. That to a given, I wouldn't go high end on any of the materials.

Do a search on discount tile and flooring in yer area. Carpet stores run surprising deals on carpet and vinyl. Call hd or lowes and ask if the carry tile glaze or what products do they carry having to do with restore a shine to tile.You just might be surprised at what products are out there. You brush on the glaze if you go that way with it.

I gotta wonder if you thought about hiring casual labor out of labor pools -some of those guys have construction experience- carpet is easy- as is flooring and tile is easy .

Also you might google re glazing tile - HD and lowes sells kitchen cabinet refinishing kits you paint on-it's self leveling and comes with or without glaze. Take a look at the stuff. A product for changing the color of those counter tops too. Cost about as much as the counter top,but you don't have to change the old one out.

Check craigslist for building materials . You would be surprised. A carpet contractor might sell off a whole lot of extra material for very little.

If you are in no hurry and you have more time than money-you can look around-use your computer too and shop search so you can save yourself a ton of money. Of course there is driving to look over the stuff ,so there is your gas to consider.

Google used building materials in your locality-
Look at all options.

Since time is on your side ,you should be able to get it done at a cost that will make you smile.


Good luck with project.

[NMDemDist2]

21. one idea on the carpet is to give the new owners a 'carpet allowance' so they can choose their own

and you don't have to come out of pocket. you'll just take the cost of the carpet off the profit you'll get. realtors usually like this as it helps them overcome objections in the sales process

as for what's there, Folex's carpet cleaner will do wonders and there's nothing saying you can't put a throw rug over carpet to hide the worst of it.

http://www.amazon.com/Folex-Co-Instant-Carpet-Remover/dp/B000ILA3YY/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1361072750&sr=8-1&keywords=folex+carpet+cleaner

we had new laminate counters put in our Phx house before we sold it, it was a fast cheap process, but i'd suggest planing that well in advance as it takes some time to get in the 'nice' stuff in stock. we had to have it done FAST and we were very limited for choices in stock

[Digit]

22. If you saw my house, you would know why this would not work

The downstairs where the carpeting would go is vinyl and it is not only split in sections (which were covered up when I bought this place), it is installed poorly. They did not cut the wood around door frames, etc to make it right....instead, it is up against the wood and slightly curling up.
The main floor is old vinyl in the kitchen and dining room (and foyer) which has seen better days and is starting to curl at the edges...plus there was another adjoining area which was covered up with a throw rug where the previous owners child took a knife to tried to cut out the pattern. Yes, seriously.

[NMDemDist2]

23. if it's concrete sub floor, you could try a stain treatment

when you say 'downstairs' is it the main floor or a basement?

a DUer did a concrete stain we found with paper bags to create a beautiful effect. if you search in DU2 DIY you can find the thread i bet.

[Digit]

24. It is a split level

The lower level consists of a family room, bedroom and half bath so it is a major part of the house. It is at grade level.

Most people carpet the lower level anyway.

[Digit]

25. What can I use for the master bath floor?

Currently, it is tile and many are broken. The tile man I had over said it was installed incorrectly (figures) and wants to put new tile down on top of it. He said it was plywood under the tile if that matters. I could probably pull up the tiles myself since they seem to break up so readily. Would I need to have new plywood put down before something else?
I am thinking the expense of a new tile floor in there is a lost feature. I would rather spend the money in the kitchen.
What is suitable for the floor?
Can vinyl be put on top of it and keep the tile base(board)?
I am thinking we can't build up the level too high with the toilet.

[Wash. state Desk Jet]

26. If you break out the tile you will have to remove the the sub floor-plywood.

You can tile over tile -The toilet is not an issue inso far as raising the floor. It's a $10.00 part at hd's plumbing section. flange.

I'll tell you what- there is lots of good flooring products you can go over tile with, Example 1. I used glueless sheet flooring on a apartment tile bathroom floor because the stuff was new on the market and I was curious ! The floor was old fifties tile ugly as hell.Let me tell you it looked great and stood the test of time. You can buy the double edge tape that comes with the product or just glue the edge at the bath tub and door . It lays there flat as a pancake stays flat too.

There is that snap together stuff looks like immitation wood they make it in immitation tile-too- that would go. You might fill the impressions with a putty knife. You can buy a box of u mix it powder-grout where you get the tile.

Pergo was originally invented in Europe-Sweden if I recall ,for kitchens and baths- people in europe go for the hard wood and kitchens and baths were usually the only rooms lacking hard wood.. hence pergo was invented. Than it took off as the in thing to do to european apartments-people had their entire apartments done in pergo and when they moved they took or take their floors with them !



I've used 12 " by 12 " square vinyl tiles over tile-filled in the grout line impressions -looked great. Somewhat timely though leveling the tile grout lines. (telephone )

All in all it turned out good. I used self stick vinyl 12" by 12" squares, but I also used a small can of multi purpose glue. It looked just fine. Great said the owner of the apartment building- considering what it will have cost for me to break tile out -concrete floor and install new tile.

There is a lot of products out there you can go over your tile floor with. Quick to install and not too spendy.

You need somebody that knows how to do things to help you. You know any realtors that might have a line into guys the labor type with some skills ? Like somebody you can keep around at a price that won't break the bank who can help you sort through it all ?I call them helpers.

.

[bifusa]

27. laminate flooring installation

I personally think laminate flooring is an attractive and long-wearing. You have to make sure that you choose the right material for the floor since it is used by a lot of people every day. When you are planning on laminate flooring installation, you can have the laminate floor installed in different rooms in the house. Because of the water resistant characteristic that it has, you can have it installed in the bathroom and also in the kitchen. Also display minimal personal things and belongings for the open house.

[AndyA]

28. A couple of ideas for you

Since you aren't planning on remaining in the house, check with a local carpet store for remnants or damaged carpeting. Sometimes carpeting from the factory has flaws which can often be cut out. It might require an extra seam or two where the pieces meet, but a good installer can make those almost invisible. As long as the color is neutral, new carpeting will make a huge impact on the appearance of your house.

I just bought peel and stick vinyl from Home Depot for my utility room. I got the "Carrera Marble" pattern and it looks great. Very neutral, low gloss, and looks like it will be durable. 30 square feet for $30, and it doesn't take long to install.

Companies that redo bathtubs will do tile as well. The ones I've seen look great--don't know how well they hold up over time, but they look brand new in the beginning.

Make sure to get rid of clutter (including drawers and closets) and remove photos of people before showing your house. Clean, clean, clean makes a big difference as well. It's amazing how many people do not do this, and the ones who do sell their homes faster and for more money.

Best of luck to you in getting your house ready--I hope it sells quickly.