Suggested Cosmetic Upgrade # 1: PAINT, PAINT, PAINT!
The first HGTV/DIY tip is, of course, PAINT: “Paint, paint, paint! The Quick, Easy and Cheap Way to Add Value to Your Selling Price!”
Yeah, right. If you think $2,000 to $3,500 is cheap.
“Wait! That can’t be right!” Read on…
According to innumerable websites and advice columns, this is one of the most effective improvements you can make when getting a home ready for sale, and we agree – it’s a great way to add value, if you have the money, the time, and stamina. But when you read these articles all you’ll see are words to the effect of:
“…. a can of paint costs $25, and you’ll have plenty of money to buy to tools you need – $50 or so to buy brushes, rollers, trays, painter’s tape, drop cloths, etc…”
And herein lies the problem. The breezy, easy phrasing above makes it sound like all you need is a little bit of paint – and a weekend to knock this project off by yourself, right?
Don’t believe the TV hype – fixing up a home to sell costs money, time, and a lot of hard work
We’ve done some research so we can give you a few real numbers here, and more of an idea of how much work it actually is:
APPROXIMATE COST OF PAINTING YOUR HOME YOURSELF, SUPPLIES & LABOR:
THE SUPPLIES
Paint 8-10 gallons @ $45 gallon: $360-$450
Primer 10-12 gallons @ $20 gallon: $200-$240
Brushes
Rollers
Paint Trays
Bucket(s)
Ladder
Tape
Plaster
Putty
Putty and plaster knives
Sandpaper
Supplies above $150
TOTAL IF YOU PAINT YOUR HOME: $710-$840
And the only labor you have is – yours, and you have to:
THE LABOR
Move your furniture out
Remove light switch covers
Remove outlet covers
Cover the floors with drop cloths
Patch holes
Sand the patching
Sand walls (if old paint is oil paint)
Tape off windows
Tape off knobs and fixtures
Paint with primer – at least once, twice is better
Paint with color – at least twice
So – as for how much time it will take you to do all of the above? Go ahead and ask around – ask your friends, your neighbors, the guy at the paint store – ask anyone who’s done any painting whatsoever, and they will tell you that it took them an entire weekend to paint their bedroom, or maybe their dining room, and it was a terrific hassle. And we’re talking about one room that’s maybe 10 X 10, or 10 X 12, and folks – that’s only 100 to 120 sf.
Now – imagine that much time and that much effort multiplied by 1500 sq ft; go ahead, we’ll wait. It’s daunting, isn’t it? Ask yourself truthfully – do you really want to do this much work for a home you need to sell as quickly as possible? Even more to the point – if you need to sell your home as quickly as possible – do you have the time to do it?
All right, these numbers are discouraging, true. But we should also look at alternatives. So we need to take into consideration what it would cost to bring in the pro’s to paint your home. So, after a lot of research, here are the figures for that cosmetic upgrade:
APPROXIMATE COST OF HIRING PROS TO PAINT YOUR HOME, SUPPLIES & LABOR:
A median price for a 1500 sf home in this area will take a decent, professional team (that’s right – a team – as in 2, 3 or more people) approximately 3 to 4 days, and cost approximately $2000 to $3500, and possibly more depending on the condition of the home. This includes prepping, sanding, scraping, priming, taping, etc. And you need to know that:
It will cost more if there’s more than one color.
It will cost more depending on the amount of woodwork and trim.
It will cost more if there are a lot of holes
It will cost more if there is wallpaper to remove
It will cost more if the walls are textured
It will cost more if…. Etc., etc., etc…..
You get the idea. In other words – if the pro’s do it – it will cost more.
TOTAL IF PRO’S PAINT YOUR HOME: $2000 – $3500+
Can you afford the money, time, and stress that a cosmetic upgrade like painting will cost?
Let’s be honest here – every realtor we know is going to ask you to do these kind of cosmetic upgrades before they take on your home and try to sell it. And many of the fixes may seem minor, but trust us – all of them will cost money, time – and they’re a lot of hard, hard work if you do them yourself. And if you bring in the pro’s instead – well, it kind of defeats the purpose – doesn’t it?
Drew and Jonathan, Sabrina, Clive and Lisa – they make it all look so easy, but the truth is they’ve got a team of carpenters, contractors and production assistants waiting in the wings to swoop in and start working on the house to make it all happen in that magical half-hour slot. One of them may swing a hammer or wave a paint brush on film, but trust us – the minute the director says “Cut!” they’re out in their trailer by the food truck, while the actual crew of carpenters, contractors, and laborers move in to do the real grunt work. Oh – and by the way? Those 7 or 8 burly men who do the actual work? They cost the homeowners nothing. Nothing. Plus, TV never shows how much time it actually takes for those 7 or 8 men to get that work done. And it’s a lot. Do you have a crew waiting in the wings to help you fix up your home?
Probably not.
Do you think your home is in the kind of condition that would sell if you were to list it today? More importantly – could you sell your home quickly right now? Can you look around your home and honestly say to yourself, “Sure, if a potential buyer came into my home this afternoon, I’m sure they’d want to buy it right away, just the way it is. I could walk away with cash in a few weeks”?
If you can honestly answer “yes” to the above question, great, we’re truly happy for you! But if you can’t – and you’d like to see how you can sell your home not just quickly, but easily, without doing any work on either the inside or the outside, and close within a few days to a few weeks – then we’d be happy to talk with you for a free, no-obligation consultation. We can offer you guidance, advice, and often – the way out of your financial dilemma.
