Is it TIME to UPDATE your home?

I Sell Downtown Memphis Real Estate. I have been living here and selling here for years! In fact, my very own neighborhood, Harbor Town, is turning 25 years old this year and on the south end of downtown, South Bluffs, is doing the same thing. 25 years! Can it be possible? Where did the time go?

Some things get better with age, but, without a steady stream of upgrading and maintenance, your house is not one of them.

I know it's easy to get complacent. You get comfortable in your home, it's yours, it's familiar.

But here is the issue. The way I see it, it is my job to make sure that our property values stay HIGH. Downtown has always been extraordinary! We have wonderful well planned neighborhoods that lie in close proximity to lots of entertainment hot spots! So when I go to a house to list to for sale I want to get YOU the HIGHEST price possible. Getting the HIGHEST price helps not only you as a seller but the entire community. Selling for a LOW price hurts everyone.

Come with me for a minute on a listing appointment- we pull up to the house and have our first real look at it:  it's well kept, the curb appeal is good, the siding and trim are freshly painted, the landscaping is nice and trimmed.  Lets go inside: we are greeted by a lovely piece of artwork, the paint is fresh, the clutter in minimal. Lets go to the kitchen: The appliances are less than 10 years old, the counter tops are granite (or something like that) , the cabinets look great. Lets go upstairs: the carpet is clean (and reasonably new) and now we take a peak at the bathrooms: Yay! The bathrooms have been outfitted with granite counter tops and new fixtures. JACKPOT for the seller! Jackpot for everyone!
This home will bring the HIGHEST possible price per square foot- it will sell is a short amount of time, and if priced properly may even receive multiple offers. A home like this make property values RISE.


Now, come along with me on another listing appointment. This time as we pull up to the house we notice that the paint is faded, some of the trim boards are rotten and the bushes are unkept. Lets go inside-
the furnishings are a hodgepodge of things that have "sentimental" value, the kitchen is "original" meaning that the appliances (with the possible exception of a stainless steel refrigerator or microwave sticking out like a sore thumb) are the same ones that were originally installed by the builder ( probably white or black) . The countertops are formica, the cabinets are old. The light fixtures and the sink are the same ones that came with the house. Upstairs, the carpet is original and in the bathrooms we find the old man-made marble vanity tops with their pecked sinks and brass fixtures.

This home will likely be viewed as a "project" for the next owner. So they can't pay top dollar for it! They are going to have to spend a lot of money bringing it up to date. So the home sells for a LOW price and it stays on the market for a long time- the sellers are not happy. Nobody is happy. The low price per square foot appears as a "comparable sale" for everyone else in the neighborhood and it hurts all of the property values.  A home like this make the property values go DOWN!

I understand that people get comfortable in their homes but 25 years is entirely too long to have the same old tired
appliances that the builder installed in your home when you bought it! By now you should have gone through several carpet installations (one of my clients once said "if you don't need carpet every five years you just are not living right"- and he had a point). Your light fixtures should have been replaced at least once, if not twice and the roof probably needs replacing.

I used to be able to go into someones home and suggest that they do a few minor things to their homes that would bring them up to speed but 25 years on, those few items are turning into quite a long laundry list.  Take a look at your home with critical eye and see where your home stands. And if you want me to, I will come over and help you view as others will see it. If you are contemplating a move this is imperative- but even if you are planning to stay for a few more years you may as well do the upgrades now so you can enjoy them! You can contact me, Karen Soro,  at 901-338-4444