You have an older home to sell. Should you spend the time and money updating the home or should you sell it “as is” to an investor?

Homes built in the last 20 years are relatively easy to update because they have open floor plans. Repairs plus new kitchen cabinets, granite or quartz countertops, new flooring, new plumbing and light fixtures, fresh paint, new appliances, power washing, and attention to the landscaping can greatly improve the price and speed at which your home will sell. Updating a 1500 sq ft home can easily run at least 30K for materials and labor but there are also the hidden costs of time delays, mortgage, and credit card interest. It still is a viable option if the floor plan is open, and you have the cash or credit to do it.

If you have an older home with a closed-off floor plan, you are better off selling it “as is” to an investor who has the means and the contacts to update the floor plan. Turning a closed-off floor plan into an open floor plan typically involves removing a load-bearing wall. That means hiring a structural engineer, getting permits and inspections, and installing a huge beam to take the place of the load-bearing wall. I have seen builders spend over 100k remodeling a single-story 1200 sq ft home. An amateur doing this for the first time is likely to spend far more money and time than an experienced renovator and that assumes nothing goes wrong.

The worst thing you can do is a half-hearted renovation job like putting new paint, new carpet, and new Formica countertops on old worn cabinets in a home with a dated floor plan. Doing this is often referred to as “putting lipstick on a pig”. The home is likely to take longer to sell and you will be lucky to recoup the money you spent on updates.