I get a lot of questions about how to market their home when they an older home with modifications that have been done and they aren’t exactly sure how it got there. For instance, the actual square footage is much larger than what the tax record shows or there is an extra bedroom or bathroom... How to you market your home?
Another example is bonus space that is in the attic that somebody before you turned into a living space that is a very usable space? Do you count that as square footage or not? What do you do with the finished basement square footage that doesn’t appear in the tax records?
What do you do with the guest house or granny unit? Does that get included in the square footage or the size on the listing?
The answer is not as straightforward as it should be but, it really depends on the intended buyer. For example, if a family is looking for a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home, and your home is a 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom, with a 1 bd 1 bathroom additional unit, this would be very disappointing to the prospective buyers. In this case, I would recommend listing that property as a 2 bedroom 1 bathroom with an additional granny unit. This way the perception of the home when they view it becomes a positive experience when they see the additional unit.
In general, I always recommend exceeding the buyer's expectations, not disappoint them. If they are interested in your property enough to visit the property, you want to make sure to keep the experience positive.
Alternatively, let’s say that you have a finished basement that has an extra 700 feet of living space. For buyers looking for a home of a specific size, I do recommend adding that square footage to the listing and make it clear in the description that there is 700 sqft that is in the basement that is usable, but not in the tax records. Times extra square footage should not be included is if the bonus space is awkwardly positioned and doesn’t really contribute to the usable space. For instance, if the basement has a 6’ ceiling or has pillars that inhibit normal use of the space.
If you have a specific question about your home, feel free to reach out to a Black Label Agent today. We offer no pressure, free consultations for anybody looking into selling their homes.
