From Shabby to Showplace – A Lifestyle Real Estate Services Success Story (Part 1 of 3)
Many of our friends and fans know Lifestyle Real Estate Services as a real estate marketing company, and think of the fantastic photography, brilliant brochures and precise online marketing we use to get our listings sold. But good marketing is just as much about the “product” as it is about the “media” used to represent it. Let’s face it – if your house is ugly, there’s only so much we’re going to be able to do to help you maximize your equity. Below is an example of Lifestyle Real Estate’s process of turning a property from “shabby to showplace”.
When the owner of 440 Meadowlark in Livermore approached us about selling his home, we gave him two prices. If he sold it as-is, he could expect $340,000. If he allowed us to give the house about $32,000 in fix-ups, he could expect $480,000. That was before we realized the house needed a new roof, which added another $8,000. So, our total budget was $40,000 to fix up a house and sell it. We were excited to get started.
Our seller gave us permission to post these photos of what the house looked like when we began. As you can see, it was pretty run-down. The yards were covered in concrete which was falling apart, there was an old, rotten overhang covering the patio, the kitchen and bathrooms were a mess, and the whole place was suffering from deferred maintenance. Also, the garage had been converted to a “man room” and the opening was bricked over in the worst way possible.
We didn’t need to replace everything; the goal of our team was to replace a few, key things to maximize our sellers’ investment. By making the space feel like everything “went together,” we could give the home a move-in-ready feel so buyers would pay more. Check out the photos and tell us what you think in the comments below.
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