Lessons Learned
I am not afraid of color, pattern, or paint. Because of this, I am drawn toward elaborate paint treatments, bright colors and stylized rooms. I learned that as I moved all of my furniture out of my Sacramento house, and tried to sell it, the patterns and colors on the walls stood out. While they still looked beautiful, I believe it took away a percentage of the market that may have been interested in my home.
We were in a hurry to sell, and didn’t want to take the time to repaint all the walls before leaving. Next time I put a property on the market, that is exactly what I’m going to do. In fact, knowing that we aren’t planning on staying in our condo for too long, I have chosen to be more conservative on my paint and decorating so I can save time and money in the future. If I really want to have a chatreuse room, I’ll do it, but I’ll be sure to paint it back before inviting potential buyers into my home. Not everybody can visualize like we can, so keeping the home neutral can help interest more buyers.
My sister once said that she thought that her two-story home lost many potential buyers – ones with young children or older couples who didn’t want to bother going up and down the stairs. These are things we learn along the way, and change the way we look at our next potential home. Since you never know where you are going to end up, it’s important to remember how a potential buyer is going to look at your home in X years when you decide to sell. Will they like the fad wallpaper or the construction you did? If you are worried about getting top dollar when you sell your home someday, consider the potential buyer!
picture taken from Flickr