The recession is in full swing and real estate has taken a plunge, so that means if you want to sell your home, it’s gotta look good. And by “good” I mean clean, updated within the context of the neighborhood, and not crazy over personalized. I am not talking perfection, people. So this past weekend when we attended a few open houses, I was a wee bit shocked to encounter this, ahem, diamond in the rough. Cute neighborhood, lovely yard, and acres of square footage, but I knew as soon as we walked through the door and were asked to remove our shoes (so as not to sully the 20 year old carpet) that things were amiss…
Master bedroom.
Not a kid’s room.
The only redeeming room in the house was the Big Cat Room. This one’s for you, Karly.
Apologies for the crappy phone pictures, but I had to shoot fast for fear of discovery. My only regret is that I didn’t get a shot of the Navajo room, but then you may already have had more than you can take. It’s probably for the best.
Now, lest you think I’m a heartless asshole who hates pillows and stuffed puppies and crocheted coozies on zombie dolls, I’m really not. What you do on your own time is your business, but don’t expect for everyone else to think sleeping under a giant plastic clam shell is chic. Buyers are nigh incapable of seeing past such things — even me, and I’ve waded through mounds of rat turds while home shopping and still thought, “hmmmm… this has potential.”
Oh, and by the way, this home is priced higher than this one, which is surely proof that the housing market is on wack on crack.
“Now, lest you think I’m a heartless asshole who hates pillows and stuffed puppies and crocheted coozies on zombie dolls, I’m really not.”
Yes, you are.
And I am too.
that diamond is way rough. “you can’t polish a turd” comes to mind. have a great weekend.
Tigers as design theme. How original. Sadly, for all we know this is a beautiful home with great potential, but who could see it?
the dolls, the pillows…. I am afraid! Bejesus, doesn’t their real estate agent say anything to these people?
Ok, Raina, you got me!
Wow….I sense that the short, plump lady with the squeaky voice from Poltergeist is going to walk through the door…
http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0748289/
I will now call this “Zelda’s Place”.
For real?
is that a clam-light?
That place is fucking magical. Big cats and clams – a recipe for real estate success!
I shutter to think what I am going to have to do to my house when and if we ever try to sell. What do you do? Move all your stuff out and paint everything white? These are the things I lay in bed nights worrying about. The sad thing is the people who decorated this house would think the same thing about a house many of us thought was decorated well.
Jen, I think that’s why I was trying not to harsh out on these people too much… I feel sorry for them, more than anything. They’re not going to get anywhere close to what they could if they just spruced up a bit.
And PS: your house is much cuter and much more in line with what people would look for in a South Austin house. That said, when we sell our house, I’m betting that we’ll have to rent a storage facility. Sucks, but there it is.
Oh my…
gah.
You should be DELIGHTED when you step into a home like this, because you can often get a lower price than if it had quality staging. Most people simply can’t imagine the space separately from how it’s decorated, so if you can, you have a HUGE advantage. After all, you’re not buying the dolls and tiger murals — those will be gone when you move in.
The converse is true, too. My husband was once totally dazzled by a staged home, but when I pointed out that all the great furniture would be gone, he saw that it wasn’t such a great place after all.
Lisa, that is true, so true. There were tons of other issues with the house that prevented a sale, but yeah. Mostly my post was just a word to the sellers.
Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting!