How Toronto Realty Group Handles Home Renovations

Can you imagine a time in our real estate market when prospective home sellers did absolutely nothing to prepare their homes for sale?

I sure can!

In fact, I lived through this area in the early-2000’s when I first got into the business, as there were very few homeowners who did more than a quick tidy-up of a home before buyers came through for a viewing.

Over the years, we began to see pre-listing efforts ramp up, and soon “property staging” was so prevalent that it became an industry unto its own.

Fast-forward to our current market, almost every homeowner does some level of staging. Those who don’t are making a catastrophic mistake, but that’s a topic for another day.

At Toronto Realty Group, we feel that staging is no longer sufficient in today’s market. Don’t get us wrong – it’s essential, but it’s not enough just on its own.

That’s why, over the last half-decade, we have found ourselves offering a new service to our seller-clients; one that gets our clients a higher sale price, provides a great return on investment, and ensures their property will sell regardless of the market climate:

Pre-Listing Renovations.

Just as every real estate agents says, “I stage my listings,” but some work with fantastic stagers, and others don’t, we would also argue that so many real estate agents out there today clamour, “We help renovate your home before going to market,” but they lack the knowledge, experience, and contacts to actually do so.

Painting is not renovating, and yet it’s what most agents will offer, in tandem with staging, as a “pre-listing renovation.” Sure, painting is important, and it’s actually the best return on investment that a seller will get, but again, it’s not enough on its own.

How about new kitchen counters? A new bathroom vanity? Refinishing the hardwood? Replacing the runners on the stairs?

Should you paint the kitchen cabinets? Is that more cost-effective than getting new ones? What’s the cost-benefit analysis of replacing the old kitchen appliances with the shiny, new, stainless steel variety?

And how about those really tough jobs like that decaying, 100-year-old brick stairwell leading from the basement to the backyard? It’s an eyesore, and sure to drive away buyers, but what do you do?

Over the last five years, we have done just about every project imaginable for our seller clients, ranging from $1,000 to over $100,000.

No, we’re obviously not doing the renovation ourselves, nor are we bearing the cost, but rather we work with a contractor and a slew of subcontractors and tradesmen that are effective, reliable, experienced, and finish work on time, and most importantly – on budget.

Here’s a quick look at our renovation page on the TRG Website: Toronto Realty Group – Renovation Expertise

This page barely scratches the surface of what we’ve done for clients, and what we can do for any seller who shares our vision.

The Case for Pre-Listing Renovations

Consider that your primary residence is not only the largest investment you’ll ever make, and the biggest asset you’ll ever own, but the sale and associated capital gain is also tax-free.

For this reason, any pre-listing renovations serve as an investment, but one that is completely tax-free.

Can you think of a better investment that’s tax-free? Don’t worry if you can’t; that question was rhetorical.

Learn more about staging and renovating your home to sell with these posts next:

A Real-Life Example

I recently visited with a couple who had lived in their house for ten years and were looking to sell. I asked them, “What have you done to the house since you’ve been here? What improvements have you made?”

They looked at each other, then back at me, and sheepishly said, “We haven’t done anything.”

Believe it or not, many people fall into this category. In fact, I would argue that most homeowners fall well behind a regular home maintenance schedule, let alone adhere to a commitment of upgrading the property over time.

But as I told this couple, this could be used as an asset and an opportunity!

Think of all the money they haven’t spent on the house over the last decade and now consider that they could spend $15,000 – $25,000 on a pre-listing renovation, essentially taking the funds from what they should have spent over the last ten years. Also consider that any renovations or upgrades would be brand-new and show in the best light possible to prospective buyers. You could have refinished the hardwood floors three summers ago like you planned, but now you get to do it before listing, and the floors will be in perfect shape.

Learn more about the pros and cons of this strategy by reading: Should I Renovate My Home Before Selling It?

TRG’s Approach to Pre-Listing Renovations

So how does it work? How are we working these pre-listing renovations into the lives of our seller-clients, while trying to ensure that it doesn’t turn their world upside down?

Rather than providing a simple staging consultation as most real estate agents do, we bring through our entire team: stager, designer, and contractor. As a group, along with the sellers, we do a working walkthrough of the house, discussing potential upgrades, pros and cons, cost-benefit, and timing.

I have an important saying: “There’s a never-ending number of things you could do in your home.”

Our job is to find the items that make the largest impact, are the most cost-effective, and can be done within the prescribed timeline and budget.

Once we have been through the house, compiled a list of potential renovations and upgrades, and examined and discussed them off-site, we provide a recommendation to the sellers, typically with items listed in order of importance and impact.

After that our contractor works directly with the seller to provide and estimate for the work they choose to do and discuss logistics for the renovation.

Sometimes, it’s simply a day of painting and installing new light fixtures. Then other times, it’s a six-figure renovation spread over four weeks, with a target listing date shining on the horizon.

But my team works together to get the project complete on schedule, ready for staging, with time to spare for marketing efforts, and above all, to list the property on time.

So what type of work should you consider?

We’ve laid it all out for you in a handy guide. Download our Renovation Guide today.

If you’re looking to sell your home in the near future but would like to understand how a small investment can provide a much larger payoff, and one which is tax-free, please reach out to us.

We love what we do – and we want to do it for you! Get in touch today by filling out the form on this page, giving us a call, or sending us an email directly.