How much to spend to get a house ready for sale?

[Cobblersandhogwash]

We'd like to sell our house.

The kitchen is okay. Functional. I hate it personally.

The carpets are looking pretty tatty and soiled.

The current value of the house is estimated at £950k.

What I propose is new but inexpensive carpets throughout.

Painting and plastering where necessary.

Making sure all plumbing is working well.

I'm hesitant to put in a new kitchen say from Howdens. But do you think it would be worth it? We think it would cost between £12 and £20k.

Plus we paid £2k extra for the previous owner to leave the Falcon range oven. Should we do the same for the next owners or just include it in the price?

Photos of kitchen.

I wouldn't spend much at all, I would want to choose my own kitchen etc and most people prefer wood floors these days. Make sure it's clean, plumbing works, paint is too chipped and include all fixtures in the price. That said I would expect an immaculate mansion with pool for that price but I'm guessing you don't live near me!

In that price bracket I wouldn’t expect people to baulk at new carpets and I wouldn’t be surprised if they’d prefer to replace kitchen. I’d save the money beyond a spruce up of paint etc and then have it in hand for if you need to drop price a little.

Thank you for tips.

I will spend money on making what is here immaculate and 100% functioning.

Don't charge extra for the even older oven - come on, at 950k it seems super petty to ask for money for an oven.

Do not put in a new kitchen or bathroom - waste of money as you'll want to do it cheap and a cheap one will put people off.

I probably wouldn't re carpet either - it sounds as though the house is livable but needs a bit of a refurb, so no point in chucking down cheap carpets if they are going to be ripped back up.

I probably would get the carpets steam cleaned - will look and smell better.

Painting and make good any bad plaster areas is a good thing to do - totally brightens the entire house up.

Give the house a feeling that is has been well cared for and maintained - so no dodgy door handles, sort the dodgy plumbing, do all repairs etc.

950k?? some first world problems here surely! Should we spend an extra 20k to win an extra 50k? If its a nice house in a nice area it will sell regardless. I wouldnt do a think bar a good hoover and tidy up!

Seriously don’t put in a new kitchen and bathroom. New ones that aren’t to my taste would put me off buying far more than old ones that do. Likelihood is your taste and buyers aren’t the same.

all weve been doing is repainting rooms that need it and Im using the carpet washer . lay down a new rug or 2 (which are nice and nutral for next house). cleaning house up and making outside nice (kerb appeal ;) )

I'm afraid in that price bracket everything needs to be spot on. In fact in almost any price bracket these days!

Buyers expect to either buy a doer upper at a reduced price or something that doesn't require work doing.

Work out which category it falls into. If the first, make sure its priced accordingly, and if you want to get top price then you're going to have to invest I'm afraid.

The rule of thumb is spend 1% for making it sales worthy. That gives you a fair old budget!

Everything is about price point and cleanliness. Also get some nice little decor things to make it cozy (i.e. make sure you have fresh flowers, maybe a bowl of lemons or something, a hanging wicker heart etc). Make sure the garden is nice, grass is short and there are some flowers out there too. You can find some relatively inexpensive bits of home decor from like Dunelm or Matalan, and it may seem silly, but it can change perception.

Don't replace the kitchen or the bathroom. If the carpets are shit, then a nice pale oatmeal throughout to lighten it and make it look cleaner. If any paintwork is obviously tatty and worn, paint over it.

Past that just make it clean and tidy and clutter free.

And no don't charge extra for rhe even older oven.

And no for 950 people don't expect perfect, they expect the price to reflect the condition.

I was going to say you have to fork out for a stunt pineapple every week!

I think the carpets are a good way to make a difference. Even if people can afford new carpets straight away they don’t want the immediate hassle.

A deep clean really helps. Inside closets, skirting boards, the wood in the kitchen etc. Clean windows really really help! Cleaning carpets gives a pretty good result in terms of smell and freshening up.

Sorry I'd also say before you replace the carpets, get a professional carpet cleaner in, you'd be amazed at the difference it can make, and won't cost much,

Sorry but for that price I'd want and expect an amazing kitchen, and lovely carpets!

I 100% would replace the carpets, it makes a huge difference to a room and if paintwork and everything tidied up it'll look a lot cleaner, fresher and attractive to buyers. And a massive nod to getting the place to look well maintained, especially in your price bracket. The kitchens fine, I agree with new kitchens being a bigger turn off than one you can change without the guilt, but do show it off to its best regardless.

My top tips would be to clean and set the scene for every part of your home, e.g. Outside grass cut, some flowers (in pots you can take with you), garden furniture you can sit and relax on, bed made with plump pillows looking cosy, fresh flowers on the dining room table, a book on a side table beside a chair in the library assuming you have one?

So no strange rooms without a purpose! Just confuses everyone. If you've got a spare bedroom, dress it for someone coming to stay! We sold last year within 24 hours, the first two viewers both said they could see themselves living there more than any other home they'd looked at, and we had a firm offer by the time the second one left so it can work. Good luck!

^^Not suggesting this was totally down to dressing the house but it helped!

Our EA advice was either to sell as a doer upper or do everything. I would look what you are up against and what is selling. In our area the perfect ones are selling, ones needing work aren't though that's partly as the asking prices are too high.

Op, I'd also de clutter. The kitchen looks like it might be quite cluttered from thr pics shown, so I'm not sure what the rest of the house is like. But if you do have a clutter issue, get that sorted first.

No help at all but laughing at stunt pineapple whilst staring lovingly at my bowl of stunt lemons and limes and vase of tulips.

950k sounds a lot to me as well, but I suppose it all depends where you are. Actually I like the bones of your kitchen, although I would probably have painted it a light colour and oiled the tops. But, the (what looks like) rotten and black wood under your tap would make me look very closely at other areas that might have been ignored. I don't mind a house being out of fashion, but I would expect general maintenance and running repairs to have been done. Don't give buyers the opportunity to start picking holes.

I am looking for a property in this price bracket. This is the top end of what we may go for. I expect really high end to reflect price or I expect a discount with a kitchen like that to the price.

If you put in a cheap kitchen or cheap carpets to sell, I will see through it

That's a very weird floor! But the units are solid wood and could easily be painted to look gorgeous.

Don't second guess someone else's taste - you could be throwing money away. We had awful carpets and the estate agent said DO NOT change them, the new owners might want wood floors or be training puppies and not care, you don't know.

Just get everywhere as clean and clutter free as you can.

I think I'll replace the kitchen work surfaces. What do you think - with wood?

The kitchen really isn't solid. The doors are very flimsy and poorly mad.

Made not mad!