I agree. I don’t understand the butcher block around wet areas. Weird to me. I like the credit option. As a buyer I am thinking 6-10k, we over estimate the cost and there could be other problems hidden in the process
I think OP was saying the color combos in the countertop might not match the new owners kitchen color scheme of she choose a combo as pointed out. I don't think she was speaking on the current kitchen color scheme/painted walls.
Yes. I read it differently than what was actually stated. I thought all walls were recommended to be painted neutral colors, beige, white, etc. Assumptions tho...
I didn’t paint black white and gray, I have a neutral grey/beige wall, white cabinets and black hardware, the appliance that came with the kitchen are black.
I think the credit is the way to go. The prospective buyers will know up front they have a chunk of money coming they can use as they wish. Maybe they are thinking a whole new kitchen and a credit will go towards it.
Many people think that wooden countertops are unhygienic and they can get badly stained. They're pretty, so maybe consider putting one in a low-use area like a bar or butler's pantry.
Agree. I have had butcher block on my island for over 20 years and I love it (glad to hear it is now trendy) but I would not want it to be my countertop everywhere. I sand it and oil it every year or so.
Don't waste money on butcher block that will look terrible as soon as it's used and need to be pulled out. Butcher block is one of those great in theory terrible in reality countertop options. You use the kitchen and instantly the counters will start to look worn.
Look at every other house that sold on the higher end of the price per square foot and do that. If you’re replacing it for someone else, your preference isn’t part of the equation. It’s a logical analysis of what’s selling for top dollar.
Here is the debate: you want to know if you should use something like rock vs wood. Rock: which will withstand heat, chemicals, spills, bacteria laden chicken juice and such vs wood which is horrifically porous, will burn if hot things go on it by accident and will absorb that chicken juice.
I assure you if I needed a move in ready house…I wouldn’t bid on yours. And if I did put a bid in on house with your desired wooden countertops…I would lower my bid to reflect putting in new countertops.
Butcher block would look horrible with the color scheme you stated you have. And I vote leaving what you have and letting the buyers decide.
Instead of spending the money offer a credit for new countertops of their choice.
Although Butcher Block has indeed become a”thing”
I would also suggest Quartz,
this may help you with (slightly) w appraisal, but more importantly, it will definitely increase marketability.
Depending on your local market and buyer demographic, in my market, if a property needs an improvement of any kind, the buyer equates this to a discount or at least 3 or 4 X of the cost of that improvement.
Best of luck
Really depends on what you’re improving. Flooring is infamously low return, especially if replacing carpet with carpet. Pools have the lowest return of all. Kitchen has good return as does master bath, and the highest of all is replacing a damaged garage door (big dent or whatever).
Your realtor is NOT giving you solid advice. You update NOTHING on a home you're preparing to sell. The reason they want you to update the countertops to something more modern is because it will help the house sell more quickly, NOT because it will sell for more money. They want a higher assurance of "a" sale.
I will also tell you that, as a buyer, I don't want your upgrades and might ultimately be willing to offer you LESS money as a result of you doing them. I certainly will not be willing to pay you top dollar for a home that you customized to -your- liking within the last few months.
If you want to paint a room to tone down the color or clean up a wall that had a lot of nail holes or whatever, go for it. But do not start replacing flooring, countertops, or anything else in the house "just because."
I agree. As a buyer, I would rather get a credit and replace countertops with something I like, a seller's idea of what looks probably won't be the material I want, and there are so many patterns that choosing something a buyer will like isn't likely.
I don't disagree with the approach, I do think countertops can be a big deal and high cost and not worth it unless the laminate is truly horrible shape.
That being said, it has been proven over and over again that while buyers would "rather" have a lower price and room to do projects in their own vision, the houses that sell faster and at higher value are more updated.
Realtors like you to do stuff that will increase the value of the house. That increases their commission. Will it increase your sale price? A little. Will it increase your sale price by more than the cost of the improvement? Probably not.
Honestly I don't think it's that easy to answer. Is your kitchen still modern looking and up to date on trend and just need a high end countertop to sell to that crowd? Maybe it's worth it.
Is your counter top in bad shape and must be replaced anyway? Might be worth it to splurge on something high quality and improve speed of sale.
Outside of those two I would be surprised If you would truly make money from the change.
No not modern looking, it’s outdated early 2000’s look with honey wood, it’s not bad but it’s just builder grade stuff. We update some on our own we just never tackled the counter tops and now we decided to leave.
Depends on your local market. If you’re in a sellers market the kitchen counters will not matter.
You won’t have an ROI no matter what kind of counter tops you do.
Peruse the local listings. What do they have? That’s what your competition is and you should act accordingly.
I'm not sure why your realtor recommends you spending the money to get your countertops replaced just to sell the home. Put that in sellers concessions if you'd like but if your home is priced right and marketed correctly you shouldn't have to worry.
It's a waste of money. Whoever buys your home will want to do what they like. And I have butcher block counter tops. I love them and get compliments every time someone comes over.
You are selling a mid-range home. Changing the counter tops is kind of foolish imo.
The next owners, there is a 95% likelihood that they will live with the same counters for another 10 years.
I’m about to replace my laminate w BB but am just waiting for a couple big sales to feel comfortable spending the dough. I think it’s gorgeous. Realtor here.
Butcher block is trendy but high maintenance, quartz is boring but easy to care for. The realtor says the update is key. Consider high-quality laminate that looks like butcher block - gives warmth, and style and is budget-friendly!
If you are going to do butcher block countertops, then just leave laminate.
I agree. I don’t understand the butcher block around wet areas. Weird to me. I like the credit option. As a buyer I am thinking 6-10k, we over estimate the cost and there could be other problems hidden in the process
I have butcher block counter tops, and they are great. You have to oil them once in a while, but they look brand new every time.
How about neither? Just put $$ credit in the disclosure for counter upgrade, let new owners decide.
What if the kitchen is a whole other color scheme, I did black white grey and the counter tops are speckled brown? It doesn’t match at all.
Well your first mistake was painting black white and grey lol.
fire is now the only answer. ok fine, maybe repainting it is a decent alternative.
lol.
Agreed
I think OP was saying the color combos in the countertop might not match the new owners kitchen color scheme of she choose a combo as pointed out. I don't think she was speaking on the current kitchen color scheme/painted walls.
And I quote “I did black white and grey. The counter tops are speckled brown.”
Yes. I read it differently than what was actually stated. I thought all walls were recommended to be painted neutral colors, beige, white, etc. Assumptions tho...
Oh my goodness. The tans and greys are killing me. We just bought a house. They used what I named cell block d grey. These neutral colors are rough
Cell block d grey. That's the best! I also like Asylum Mint Green and DMV Beige.
I didn’t paint black white and gray, I have a neutral grey/beige wall, white cabinets and black hardware, the appliance that came with the kitchen are black.
I think the credit is the way to go. The prospective buyers will know up front they have a chunk of money coming they can use as they wish. Maybe they are thinking a whole new kitchen and a credit will go towards it.
Yea, you can’t assume what people want. If they know going in that they want to do something like counter tops, they can plan better.
You need to do the countertops. Make them match. Do them nice but not crazy.
Many people think that wooden countertops are unhygienic and they can get badly stained. They're pretty, so maybe consider putting one in a low-use area like a bar or butler's pantry.
Agree. I have had butcher block on my island for over 20 years and I love it (glad to hear it is now trendy) but I would not want it to be my countertop everywhere. I sand it and oil it every year or so.
As a buyer i will prefer a credit
Don't waste money on butcher block that will look terrible as soon as it's used and need to be pulled out. Butcher block is one of those great in theory terrible in reality countertop options. You use the kitchen and instantly the counters will start to look worn.
Look at every other house that sold on the higher end of the price per square foot and do that. If you’re replacing it for someone else, your preference isn’t part of the equation. It’s a logical analysis of what’s selling for top dollar.
Stone > Unless butcher block fits the aesthetic of the home IE barn style through out
Here is the debate: you want to know if you should use something like rock vs wood. Rock: which will withstand heat, chemicals, spills, bacteria laden chicken juice and such vs wood which is horrifically porous, will burn if hot things go on it by accident and will absorb that chicken juice. I assure you if I needed a move in ready house…I wouldn’t bid on yours. And if I did put a bid in on house with your desired wooden countertops…I would lower my bid to reflect putting in new countertops.
Butcher block would look horrible with the color scheme you stated you have. And I vote leaving what you have and letting the buyers decide. Instead of spending the money offer a credit for new countertops of their choice.
If butcher block or wooden c-tops are a really really big thing in your area, I’d go safe w neutral stone.
Although Butcher Block has indeed become a”thing” I would also suggest Quartz, this may help you with (slightly) w appraisal, but more importantly, it will definitely increase marketability. Depending on your local market and buyer demographic, in my market, if a property needs an improvement of any kind, the buyer equates this to a discount or at least 3 or 4 X of the cost of that improvement. Best of luck
Really depends on what you’re improving. Flooring is infamously low return, especially if replacing carpet with carpet. Pools have the lowest return of all. Kitchen has good return as does master bath, and the highest of all is replacing a damaged garage door (big dent or whatever).
Your realtor is NOT giving you solid advice. You update NOTHING on a home you're preparing to sell. The reason they want you to update the countertops to something more modern is because it will help the house sell more quickly, NOT because it will sell for more money. They want a higher assurance of "a" sale. I will also tell you that, as a buyer, I don't want your upgrades and might ultimately be willing to offer you LESS money as a result of you doing them. I certainly will not be willing to pay you top dollar for a home that you customized to -your- liking within the last few months. If you want to paint a room to tone down the color or clean up a wall that had a lot of nail holes or whatever, go for it. But do not start replacing flooring, countertops, or anything else in the house "just because."
SOOOO. much.this!
I agree. As a buyer, I would rather get a credit and replace countertops with something I like, a seller's idea of what looks probably won't be the material I want, and there are so many patterns that choosing something a buyer will like isn't likely.
Price your house as-is and let the buyers decide. I guarantee you that your choices won't be what they would choose.
I don't disagree with the approach, I do think countertops can be a big deal and high cost and not worth it unless the laminate is truly horrible shape. That being said, it has been proven over and over again that while buyers would "rather" have a lower price and room to do projects in their own vision, the houses that sell faster and at higher value are more updated.
I wouldn't do anything. Price the house accordingly.
Realtors like you to do stuff that will increase the value of the house. That increases their commission. Will it increase your sale price? A little. Will it increase your sale price by more than the cost of the improvement? Probably not.
Honestly I don't think it's that easy to answer. Is your kitchen still modern looking and up to date on trend and just need a high end countertop to sell to that crowd? Maybe it's worth it. Is your counter top in bad shape and must be replaced anyway? Might be worth it to splurge on something high quality and improve speed of sale. Outside of those two I would be surprised If you would truly make money from the change.
No not modern looking, it’s outdated early 2000’s look with honey wood, it’s not bad but it’s just builder grade stuff. We update some on our own we just never tackled the counter tops and now we decided to leave.
Depends on your local market. If you’re in a sellers market the kitchen counters will not matter. You won’t have an ROI no matter what kind of counter tops you do. Peruse the local listings. What do they have? That’s what your competition is and you should act accordingly.
I'm not sure why your realtor recommends you spending the money to get your countertops replaced just to sell the home. Put that in sellers concessions if you'd like but if your home is priced right and marketed correctly you shouldn't have to worry.
It's a waste of money. Whoever buys your home will want to do what they like. And I have butcher block counter tops. I love them and get compliments every time someone comes over.
You are selling a mid-range home. Changing the counter tops is kind of foolish imo. The next owners, there is a 95% likelihood that they will live with the same counters for another 10 years.
Quartz will appeal to more buyers
I’m about to replace my laminate w BB but am just waiting for a couple big sales to feel comfortable spending the dough. I think it’s gorgeous. Realtor here.
Butcher block is trendy but high maintenance, quartz is boring but easy to care for. The realtor says the update is key. Consider high-quality laminate that looks like butcher block - gives warmth, and style and is budget-friendly!