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BACKGROUND
Coldwell Banker Realty’s RealVitalize Program helps sellers make home improvements with no money up front to get their home ready to sell.
Many homeowners want to sell but may be hesitating because their home has needed repairs that will impact how long it takes to sell or what they can get. In today’s market, it’s critical to get your home show-ready to profit the most, and sell quickly, Realtors say.
The list of potential projects includes:
- Carpeting
- Handyman work
- Plumbing
- Cleaning
- Junk hauling
- Renovation
- Electrical
- Landscaping
- Staging
- Flooring
- Paint
Also, to participate, the home must not fall under these conditions: forbearance, foreclosure, short sale, bank owned, or if the seller is in bankruptcy.
THE CHALLENGE
I helped Brett and Karen Ballantyne buy a home several years ago in Tooele, Utah. When the COVID 19 pandemic hit Karen was confined to working from home. Brett, on the other hand, had started a cross country delivery business and was still able to work as usual — have truck, will travel.
Because they could both work remotely, the couple decided to relocate to their native Florida. But their home had a few issues that needed addressing before I could market it aggressively.
The kitchen, living room and hallway needed paint, while the basement needed some minor remodeling. Outside, the rock front yard needed more gravel after a plumbing repair disturbed the landscape.
“It wasn’t hard,” Brett said. “We knew the things that were wrong with it,”
THE SOLUTION
So, we brought in the RealVitalize program.
Offered to customers of Coldwell Banker Realty, homeowners must enroll and have their home listed with a Coldwell Banker agent to participate. The budget matches the seller’s side of the commission.
So, if the commission is a typical 6%, split evenly with the buyer’s agent, then the budget is 3 percent of the original listed price. Commissions usually have a selling side and a buying side. So, whatever the seller agrees to pay the listing brokerage on the selling side, that becomes the RealVitalize budget.
With the budget in place, the project can begin and Coldwell Banker Realty will carry the balance. The seller pays the brokerage at closing from the proceeds of the sale.
The RealVitalize team professionally manages each project by bringing in a local contractor.
All that worked well for the Ballantynes, who didn’t have to worry about hidden fees, charges or markups. Soon the home was ready for market.
“We needed some remodeling to get done and we were able to use the RealVitalize program so the remodel money came out of our proceeds instead of our pocket,” Karen said. “It was super easy. We just love it!”
THE RESULT
With their home professionally prepped it sold quickly, well above what the Ballantynes owed enabling them to move to Florida and into a brand-new home.
By using the RealVitalize program, remodeling and other projects have better management control, while reducing the risk to home sellers. Payments are streamlined and made easy by refunding the brokerage through the proceeds at closing. If the home fails to sell, then a repayment program is worked out.
To date, the RealVitalize program has completed more than 8,500 projects. Realtors report that homes using the program sell quickly and at asking price or above.
CONTACT INFORMATION
To learn more about the RealVitalize program and how it can help you successfully sell your home, email me at rodger.hardy@cbealty.com or call me at 801-360-9133.
