In the month of February, I have over $3 million in closed and pending sales and one stat I’m especially proud of is that my listings have sold nearly 60 days faster than the average days on sale. That kind of difference usually comes down to strategy—especially when a home needs updates.
One mistake I see often is how people calculate the list price for a home that isn’t fully renovated. The typical approach is to look at a renovated comparable sale and simply subtract the estimated renovation cost. On paper that might make sense, but in the real world it’s rarely that simple.
What that equation leaves out is the time, uncertainty, and sheer headache of doing a renovation.
Anyone who has lived through a home renovation knows the story: delays, decisions, contractors, permits, unexpected costs, and months of disruption. Buyers factor that into their decision-making whether they realize it or not.
Because of that, I often walk sellers through a different way of thinking about pricing. It’s not just renovation cost—it’s renovation cost plus renovation burden.
Many buyers would rather wait and pay more for the fully renovated home that eventually comes on the market than take on the project themselves. So, if a home needs updates, the price has to reflect not just the dollars required for the work, but also the time and effort buyers are taking on.
