Wallpaper and carpets when selling your Riverside Avondale home

The homes in Historic Riverside and Avondale were built in the 1920s and 1930s. Back then, there were still plenty of horse drawn carriages as well as Model A and T cars on the road. So driveways were not built for Expeditions and the wide-body vehicles of today.

The same can be said of our interiors. I am sure there was wallpaper in many homes when they were first built. According to +Wikipedia "Wallpaper has been going in and out of style since the 1930s". So that 1950s wallpaper that looked so retro back then.....may not be in the best shape these days. Same may be said of the carpet used in the 1970s. In some areas shag carpet is returning, but just because something is coming back, does it have enough of a following to allow you to sell your house?

Do I really need to strip my wallpaper and replace the carpet?

When called out to view a home I don't always know what awaits me. Sometimes a consultation involves simply advising sellers on how to best showcase their home, removing potential buyer objections, or helping decide what should stay and what should go. Other times it gets pretty deep. Sometimes I have to make bigger suggestions, including making repairs, home updates, or even home upgrades. The guidance given is always based on the same principle - create value for our customers (both the seller and agent) and for the home buyer.

Sometimes when I make recommendations, sellers immediately understand while other times they seem to want to fight me believing that they'll save money by not following the recommendations. What happens when the home won't meet buyer expectations though.

As a real estate professional, would the presentation of this home affect the list price? What are the changes that buyers would expect to see in order to pay top dollar? Who would the likely buyer be with the home in its current condition?

What's the return on investment for simple changes?

As a professional, I am able to make recommendations that will maximize the homeowner's return on investment, only changing what will create a measurable, marketable difference to the home. While generally speaking, almost every home should probably remove wallpaper, sometimes that rare occasion happens where a home can break the rules with tremendous positive impact.

Always check with a professional Realtor before making improvements on a house you plan to sell. There are some improvements that will get you a higher return on your investment, and there are still many that people will not pay for in this market, thus investment wastes. If your Historic home has hardwood floors, a typical staple of the homes built in this period, it makes NO sense to keep them covered up, this value is one thing people look for in our area. Finishing and Resanding them will yield a higher return than adding an outdoor kitchen, because we all walk on floors inside, but we rarely use that outdoor area when its 90+ degrees in the summer.

Ask your Realtor for other good advice before making renovations. You'll be glad you did!

#LizBobeck