Home Identity (5 Reasons NOT to Renovate or Buy a Fixer Upper)

OK, it sounds like I'm getting a little wound up with a big title like "HOME IDENTITY" -- trying to make it into a thing in order to justify my existence in strategic renovation planning.

Here's what I mean, and then you decide if I'm getting a little too overwrought about it.

►  People need to live somewhere.

►  Homes exist to serve that purpose.

►  A particular home was built in a certain place and time, with all the factors: cultural, design, material availability, societal norms, etc.

►  For a particular family or person, who wanted what they wanted, or by someone who thought they knew what people wanted.

►  Maybe it was done well, maybe not.

►  Maybe it has aged well, maybe not.

►  Maybe it's been well-cared-for, maybe not.

►  The home you live in, or are thinking about living in, may or may not match your needs (see very first point—within that point are a lot of other subpoints for another day!).

How can you tell if it's possible, or even really the right thing, to change the current identity of your home to what meets your needs? And…

💭What if your home doesn't want to be what you need it to be??💭

Lots of people are getting in touch with that reality right now. 

Here in New England, the realities of the housing stock make it even clearer: not much is newly built, and much is built for a different era altogether. I would also wager to say that people want to spend their money wisely and to be satisfied with the result. 

Why can’t we just have what we want? Yes, it’s true that with the right amount of money (and time and saintliness) you can build anything you want, pretty much. No one wants to spend silly money, though -- money that they will never get back. As homeowners and responsible stewards of our investments, we constantly have to find the sweet spot between a home we’re happy in, and one from which we can recoup our investment.

Right now is a good time to assess critically – you’ll get the best money for even a flawed home now, in this seller’s market. But becoming a buyer, though, right?? With the right advice and patience, you CAN make savvy decisions on buying again — ones that will put you in both a happy house and a sound investment situation. 

One option you can consider (or may be forced to consider) is a home needing renovation, aka a fixer-upper. With the majority of your homebuyer competition looking for turn-key homes, making an informed decision on a home that will obviously need some renovation work can be an opportunity to expand the supply for yourself.

As a developer, I’ve sized up a lot of houses and most of them we reject. Why? Let’s assume you’ve got a great spot in a town where the real estate holds its value.

Even still, some homes were built for a different era, occupant and neighborhood.

Here are 5 reasons NOT to renovate your current home or consider one that needs extensive renovation (without analysis and advice):

►  Poor quality original construction, materials or workmanship

►  Previous renovations that cut corners

►  Too many structural and layout problems

►  Infrastructure problems beyond a reasonable degree – I define this as all the stuff in the walls; plumbing, electrical, HVAC, insulation, roofing

►  Renovation to this particular house undermines a cohesive architectural story, or can’t fix one that’s already been flubbed

Problems like the construction quality and repairing previous mistakes take extra money to fix things you cannot see and future buyers will not pay for. The cohesive architectural story can be a less obvious problem; even if your perfect-for-you but odd-for-the-market addition doesn’t bother you, buyers may hesitate to snap up the farmhouse rustic kitchen buildout on a Victorian.

If you suspect your house or your home search may fall into one of these categories, you need to find some good advice about whether it can be made to serve you, or if you’d be better off moving on.

You know what you need from your home. (If not, let's talk.) You don't have to guess what your house wants to be. Let me be your house whisperer. Sign up for a free get-to-know-you call.