Real Estate Blues

So I met with my real estate agent (or my potential real estate agent) for the first time last night.

She seemed nice, and competent, but she suggested I put some money and time into my place before selling it. I guess this is normal.

Her suggestions:

1) That I get rid of a whole bunch of my crap: clutter, I understand, but -- bookshelves, books, cd and dvd towers? Well, I guess I won’t be “getting rid” of them, but storing them somewhere else – not a big deal.

2) That I replace my kitchen appliances – fridge, oven/stove, and dishwasher – I guess they are kind of old and dirty looking, Total that probably will cost me $2000+ though. I wonder if it’s worth it.

3) Paint – and paint colors of her choosing.

4) General rearranging of my furniture, taking certain things off the wall and hanging others, etc.

5) Cleaning, and “detailing” of the place

Now, she told me that (if I signed the contact with her, of course) that she would price shop for the appliances (at places like Sears, Best Buy etc), arrange the painters, etc.

Before I met with her, I thought she was getting a kickback from all these people (the painters, etc), but now I think she is just one of those “Trading Spaces” type addicts who love doing this stuff (and besides, doing all this will get a higher sale price, which is what she wants).

I guess I’m just not sure if it is worth it. What she wants me to do will probably cost around $5,000 (probably a little more). Am I going to recoup that sale price? Would I have gotten it anyway?

Beats me.

Also, she showed me the comps for my place which were about $50,000 less than I thought they would be. Now, I’m still making a substantial profit, but that money makes me rethink a lot of future decisions.

I’m not listing till March, so maybe the market will heat up some by then.