Sold!: How to buy or sell your home with real confidence

The whole premise behind renovating for profit is to add value to a property so that you get back what you spent on the property renovation and more (the profit).

If you have recently bought a property that is a renovator’s delight and that is what your plans are, what you spend on it will make a huge difference if you sell it again in the short term as opposed to living in it as your forever home.

We are spoilt for choice when it comes to watching renovation shows on television to get ideas, and Australia’s biggest renovation-for-profit series has to be The Block. The show is both inspirational and aspirational. Industries have changed because of the show, and style trends are set or extended because of what the contestants use or do not use, along with the feedback they receive from the style judges. Reece and many other bathroom supply companies had to put black fixtures and fittings back into production because of the demand generated!

New products are showcased and can become best sellers within weeks of going to air. The retailers are very well trained now too; they can often advise you, knowing what is coming out next season in their showrooms. They can also customise, given your budget, and try to help you get the look for less! Viewers watch the couples during the renovation process and believe that they could take on a bathroom or kitchen renovation; the show actually inspires people to go out and do just that! Others watching find it aspirational and they dream of one day either being on The Block themselves or being able to buy a home and complete a Block-style renovation.

When you do decide to renovate for profit, you need to have a clear understanding of the costs involved. They include the cost of the property to begin with, the stamp duty and the holding costs, and then what you spend to renovate.

Research is the key. Know what is selling well, and why, in your area. Know your market. Are you renovating for the downsizer or the first home buyer? Would a family be your target market when you sell? I have seen renovations where clearly the person who completed it did not understand their market. Using cheap fixtures in a market that expects high-end ones just makes the potential buyer question other aspects of the renovation.

Throw away the idea of your own personal taste immediately, unless you are a professional interior designer who is up-to-date with trends and what is selling. You might have dreamed about having a brown bathroom but that is not going to be to everyone’s taste and some potential buyers will instantly cross your home off their list or calculate how much it will cost to change—not just for the re-tiling, but also the emotional cost of having no bathroom for a period of time. Bathrooms are an expensive room to re-do; many buyers will just start calculating that potential cost and take it off their house budget.

When you know your desired market, you can allocate your budget accordingly. It may be that a new kitchen is not required but that new handles, a new stone counter-top and new appliances will be enough.

The other key factor is this: are you doing a cosmetic renovation or a complete do-over? If the floor plan already flows and the essential rooms are there and simply need updating (what we call ‘good bones’), it is a very different scenario from a house that has a compromised floor plan and needs a wall or two knocked out or even an additional room, like an ensuite, added.

Always make sure you have found out the relevant council requirements, especially if you need building or planning permits before starting. You also need to be honest with yourself about your particular abilities. Engage the right trades for the right job if you do not have the qualifications yourself. Yes, you can teach yourself some things but other things, like the electrical work and plumbing, must be left to qualified tradespeople, since you will need certificates of compliance upon completion of these jobs. Family members may be great if they are trades, but make sure they are also qualified and able to complete the jobs in the time frame you require.

Many years ago, my husband and I accidentally stumbled into renovating properties for clients with the idea that enhancing them cosmetically would allow the property to sell in a shorter time frame and ultimately achieve a greater sale price.

At the time I was a selling agent and I had coordinated quotes for my clients to get cosmetic works done at their request. The quotes kept coming in well over budget and I just thought my clients were getting ripped off. We were already in this space personally, and we had a great team of qualified trades and great contacts for stone, carpet, plumbing equipment and so on. We already knew where to spend the money to achieve high-impact results. It was all about renovating for profit. We had to make sure that what our clients paid for the renovation they could get back, as well as a decent profit. I openly let them know my husband was going to quote and where we could save them money.

One of the key things I learned over the years is that trades love it when you are organised. We always had a whiteboard onsite and had a list of what was being done that day and in what order. If you know when to bring tradespeople in and you pay them on time, they will fit your smaller jobs in when you call them. I like to use local tradespeople and, if they are good, I will keep them in my contacts so I can, firstly, use them again and, secondly, refer them whenever people ask for recommendations.

We made sure we knew who we were renovating for and where to spend the money. The majority of our jobs were cosmetic renovations, so it was about adding value in the right places. No budget and a tired bathroom? We would get a professional spray painter in who specialises in bringing bathtubs back to life and giving old tiles new sparkle. New vanities, appliances, light fittings, window furnishings, carpet and a new paint job throughout can do wonders cosmetically.

Large renovations with structural changes will always require professionals to make sure you are not removing a load-bearing wall and that the work is structurally sound. If it is your first project, start small and work your way up to the bigger projects.

Before you start a renovation, it can also be a wise idea to call a local estate agent in to run your ideas past them. We undertook a very large renovation on a home in a Melbourne beachside suburb, Sandringham, as our second home project and did just that. Remember, we bought this property after I declared openly to the agent that he could not sell it until my husband saw it as we were buying it! Making sure our renovation was on budget and to the market was critical to the profit we would be walking away with, especially considering I had probably overpaid for the house because of my open emotion!

We nearly divided an incredibly large space into two bedrooms but, on the advice of the local agent, made it a main bedroom, with ensuite and walk-in wardrobe, and parents’ retreat. The market we were going for was a professional couple who would value their own haven away from the noise of their kids. The house already had three other bedrooms, so it would meet the family market, too.

Kitchens sell homes, as do bathrooms. They just happen to also be the two most expensive areas to renovate. These days we are spoiled when it comes to kitchen and bathroom choices—you can get all types of finishes and to suit so many budgets. Shop around and you will find ready-made kitchens, high-end kitchens and cabinet-makers who can tailor the job to your space and budget. Check their reputation and speak to past clients if you are not going with a well-known company. We paid a deposit for a kitchen once, from a company far, far away, only to find the company had collapsed and was never to be seen again.

When choosing finishes, again, choose based on the market (and budget) and not your personal likes and dislikes. Walk through Freedom Kitchens and you will see many different options and styles to choose from, depending on the style of house and features you would like to incorporate. The Block kitchen week is always highly anticipated, as the couples work with the latest products, styles and colours to appeal to the buyers. Scoring highly in this week means you have met the market for a lot of buyers.

Stick to your budget throughout the project and factor in a contingency of at least 15–20 per cent of the total budget, as something invariably costs more or a problem is uncovered that you did not originally include in the initial figures. Both the budget and the contingency should be line items on your budget spreadsheet. Remember Caro and Kingi on Series 11, The Block: Blocktagon? Caro was brilliant at budgeting and left no stone unturned when it came to logging in an expense and accounting for it.

Two of the most memorable contestants on The Block have been Alisa and Lysandra Fraser (winners of Series 7, The Block: Sky High). Since last appearing in 2014, on ‘Fans v Faves’, Dux House, Albert Park, this sister duo has been working on residential and commercial projects. They have honed their skills in the renovating for profit segment and have always been known for their luxury finishes and attention to detail.

Alisa and Lysandra’s advice when renovating, whether it be for an investment or to live in, is to start with a vision. ‘We always begin with a vision. We assess the layout of the house and then integrate that with our vision. We believe this is important in forming the design and interior architecture brief that we will work to for the entire renovation.’

Alisa stresses that early planning and budgeting is essential in achieving your end result. Create a budget and allow for an additional 20 per cent for unforeseen purchases or incidences; a building inspection prior to beginning work will help uncover any major high-cost areas.

Lysandra emphasises a key learning for them was the fact that trying to do everything themselves was almost impossible and stresses how important it is to have a good team.

As I have mentioned in previous chapters, buying a home can be an emotional process for many people. When you first arrive at a property you immediately begin making decisions as to whether it is right or wrong for you. Step inside a house with archways from the 1970s, heavy wallpaper or shag-pile carpet and some buyers will immediately become fearful. If you are the one buying and can see past those cosmetic issues you might find you can get yourself a bargain. But if you are selling, you do not want to run the risk of potential buyers being put off by thinking there is too much work to do.

There are a few fixes you can do that do not cost a lot of money, but will make a home feel fresher and more welcoming. For a start, get rid of any fixtures and fittings that date your property. Steam off ugly wallpaper, rip up thinning or ugly carpet, repolish floorboards and put on a fresh coat of paint.

Once you have done all of that, look around again. What are some other small jobs you could perform that would make the home feel more contemporary, stylish and liveable? You could think about new light fittings, new taps in the bathroom and kitchen and perhaps even replacing carpet—even if it is in reasonably good condition—with good quality timber laminate in living areas. These can all make a huge difference to a home’s appeal.

Want to get some ideas on instant fixes that will be appealing to buyers? I love to head to the newsagent to buy a few home and design magazines to see the types of trends being covered, especially when it comes to colours, soft furnishings, rugs and the sorts of things that are inexpensive and easy to change. I start a vision board with ideas for the project at hand and cut out everything that I love. There is something about cutting out pictures to form ideas that makes the project come together early on. You can add colours, tile samples, carpet and flooring samples too.

Pinterest of course is also great and many online retailers also have great ideas. If you are a ‘Blockaholic’, then the Block Shop is online and you can even re-create the contestants’ bedrooms by looking at visuals and having the ability to purchase the items or find out where to go to get the look. All of the major sponsors during the show will have customer-ready online sites to shop at. It’s also a good idea to get to know the shopping strips in your area that have the gorgeous homeware stores with the latest in furniture, cushions, lights, sheets all the way through to the styling items like candles and hand creams. Even if you just browse, you will be able to search out your styles and what’s hot and what’s not by looking.

Do not forget about what is going on outside the home either. Overgrown gardens and excess clutter in the backyard, front yard, shed or garage can stop buyers from seeing the size of the block and the capacity for storage. Every time a buyer has to stop and process ‘what if’, they move from an emotional connection to a practical one—and that usually means they are calculating the amount of money it will take to fix what exists or add what does not.

Work around the garden can also make a difference to the home’s interior. If any of your living areas feel quite dark, trim back or cut out any trees or shrubs that are blocking the natural light.

The best way to get the highest possible price for your home is to appeal to the sort of buyers who want to live in that neighbourhood. Is your four-bedroom home in a great school zone? Is your potential buyer a young family? Do you have a two-bedroom apartment that will appeal to first home buyers? You may be appealing to downsizers or young couples, depending on how close you are to the city or infrastructure. Further out from the CBD, the market may be about first home buyers and investors. Keeping that potential buyer at the forefront of your mind when you are renovating should keep you on the right track.

Talk to any real estate agent about what sells a house and they will tell you it is kitchens and bathrooms. It is therefore worth knowing the basic minimums for a kitchen and bathroom in the area you are renovating in. Research, if you don’t know, by attending other open homes. If you remember Hannah and Clint’s kitchen from The Block in 2017, you will know what I mean. They were renovating a luxury, four-bedroom home with an added studio and their kitchen included a small main refrigerator and two wine fridges. This is a property that would have been perfect for a growing family, but families want double-door fridges not just fridges to store wine (while that may appeal to many a parent!). Practicality should be covered off first, followed by good looks. Hannah and Clint ended up changing this aspect to appeal to the target market who would either buy or lease this property by adding a much larger fridge. Most homes do not get sold with everything in them as on The Block, but you need to allow for a larger fridge space if you are putting in a family-sized kitchen, and potentially the plumbing required for the fridge to have water and ice-making facilities

The kitchen is the heart of the home, so if you can open it up and connect it to the living area and your outdoor space you will be catering to the majority of the market. That could mean that taking out a single wall will make a big difference, but make sure that happens under the guidance of a qualified builder. Knocking out a structural wall by mistake is going to cost you a lot more than putting in a new kitchen.

Most new kitchens have a standard layout: a wall of cabinets with the oven and fridge recessed into it, and a big island separating the kitchen from the living space. It is fine to follow this basic plan, but you can make minor adjustments with big rewards. You might remember Josh and Elyse’s kitchen from The Block 2017. Their kitchen was slightly recessed with the cabinets, oven, sink and refrigerator set into a corner, and a butler’s pantry offering even more storage and a place to hide appliances. Rather than the island being oriented towards the living and dining areas, it instead looked towards the outdoor space. Add to this, the pale grey Caesarstone waterfall benches and splashback, and white-profiled cabinetry, and it was a beautiful room that would have held appeal for just about any buyer.

As I have mentioned, there are many options when it comes to renovating or replacing a kitchen. Think about storage, which is imperative, and the flow of the kitchen. I once designed a kitchen with a cabinet-maker and forgot the pantry and a bin! I went for aesthetics instead of practicality and paid the additional price when I had to go back and retro-fit the pantry. I could not get a bin in, so I had to put up with a bin on the floor—a first-world problem but one that need never have arisen as it was a brand-new kitchen.

Compare different counter-tops, again with the target market in mind. High-end renovations will require a different quality benchtop and cabinet finish compared to lower-end renovations. Remember too, if you are renovating for a potential investor to buy the property, they may want a laminate benchtop as this is hard wearing and can be replaced a lot more cost effectively than a marble one or a stone one, if chipped by the tenants. It’s a practical decision as much as a budget decision. The most important part of the process, as I keep emphasising, is setting a budget and sticking to it, otherwise you are going to be eating into your potential profits.

Bathrooms can really eat into your profit if you do not do your research. You do not need to spend $6000 on a huge egg-shaped bath like Kyal and Kara did in their Albert Park apartment (Series 8 in 2014), or cover the entire bathroom in incredibly expensive tiles like Sara and Hayden did (Series 14, The Gatwick, in 2018). And Caro and Kingi’s graffiti-covered tub might have got a tick from the judges during ‘Blocktagon’, but it is not a design that would appeal to the majority of buyers. Luckily the graffiti was on a wrap that could be removed if the buyer did not like it.

The key bathroom elements you want to try to achieve are these: excellent use of space, good finishes (including tiling and painting), a bathtub in a family home, double vanities (if you can fit them in) and good storage areas (both under the vanity and at eye-level)—these are the features that matter to people when it comes to a bathroom.

Optimising the kitchen and bathroom should pay dividends when it comes to selling the home.

How to spend your money wisely

If you are renovating for profit, spending your budget on the items that will impress your target market will go a long way. Weighing up the real cost of items and the perceived cost and value added on these same items can sometimes be tough. For instance, as I have pointed out, adding a pool is sometimes not as beneficial on the other end of the sale in extra dollars. Many families do not love the idea of their young kids and a pool, and many buyers see pools as high maintenance and costly. If you are in Melbourne or Tasmania, the perceived value is one of a very large water feature for most of the year!

Spend your money on the key areas that will make an impact: quality floor coverings and cabinetry.
If building or extending, think of the height of your ceilings. Nothing screams out more than low budget with low ceilings.
Fixtures and fittings, if done well, can make a huge impact if you are not in the prestige market. You don’t always have to spend at the highest price point to achieve ‘the look’. Research online as well as in store and use your negotiation skills to find and buy even in the mid-range selections. Even if you are renovating for the prestige market, you still need to do your research and source quality products at the most competitive of prices.
While hydronic heating is fantastic and valued highly in the southern states, the value may not be received as highly in northern New South Wales or Brisbane. Most buyers just want heating and cooling; if hydronics are a must, many buyers are going to factor in adding this feature if it is not already there anyway.
Tiles can really set your budget back. If you shop around, you can usually get a great alternative to the expensive ones, with a similar look. Make sure the tiles are correct for the space—floor tiles used on floors: do not laugh, many people lay incorrect tiles on the floor or outside in wet areas. Always factor in the cost of laying the tiles too. The smaller the tile, and the more intricate the pattern you want, the more work it is for the tiler and hence the costs can skyrocket.
Mulch garden beds and plant small plants to freshen up a garden very cost effectively.
Paint external fences to make gardens ‘pop’. Hardware stores have large 10-litre buckets of fence paint. Save on labour by getting the kids or friends and family over to help paint! (A good old BBQ at the end, of course!)
Use the large number of homeware stores to source cost-effective rugs, cushions, paintings and styling items when it comes to presenting the home. You can take these with you when you sell as well!

Of course, many people buy a home to renovate themselves with the idea that in a few years’ time they will sell it and do it over again, using their profits to buy another renovator’s delight, or maybe a more expensive house or bigger house than before as their family also expands. Renovating and living in the home has many tax benefits when you decide to sell. Depending on your personal situation, the majority of people doing this would not pay any capital gains tax on the profits made. My husband and I have done multiple renovations ourselves. In fact, we got on the property ladder by buying well-priced properties, renovating sensibly and selling them. We travelled a lot when we were younger, so we got into buying homes quite late, but I used to look at properties, go to auctions and dream about having a house. Our first home was already renovated, but we did a lot of research, looked at a lot of properties and began to see what the market wanted. We also realised that you had to make improvements that appealed to the bulk of the market rather than playing to a niche.

If you are going to be living in a property with your family, you need to work out how your family lives and functions and determine your floor plan based on that. If you buy a house with a formal lounge and dining room, you have struck gold as these rooms, which many people do not use for those purposes any more, can be re-purposed into a second living zone, study or even a grand main bedroom with walk-in wardrobe and ensuite. Again, it is about thinking forward to the end goal and attracting as many buyers as possible in your target market. A floor plan that flows and makes sense is always going to attract buyers.

After winning Series 12 of The Block, Ingles Street, Port Melbourne, Karlie and Will have been busy on personal projects. Their advice for success—no matter how big or small the project—is to live by the principals of the Time, Cost and Quality trifecta when tackling a project.

It is always good to ask a selling agent in your area what sells best. Should you include four bedrooms and two living spaces, or would three bedrooms and a study appeal, for example, to young professionals? Should you go for a huge main bedroom suite or is it better to have an extra bedroom? Before my real estate career, I always asked the most successful agents in the area what combination of features appealed and therefore sold best and what properties just did not seem to resonate with buyers and why. Many of The Block contestants have started to realise the importance of this sort of advice and are contacting their selling agents a lot sooner to help them target what appeals to buyers who will ultimately spend the money on auction day based on the local market and comparable properties.

If you decide to make structural changes to the house, consult an architect or engineer. Your first step should be to have the plans drawn up and find out how much it is all going to cost. There are some things on which you should never compromise in a plan: if it comes down to having these features or expensive finishes, find yourself some cheaper tiles and light fittings.

The first thing on which you should never compromise is aspect. In Australia, living spaces should, wherever possible, face north to make the most of the natural light. Then concentrate on how these living spaces connect to the outdoors. The living space and kitchen are where you will spend most of your time and where you will entertain with family and friends. Maximising the light and views will make them as welcoming as possible. Then look at ceiling height: ideally, it should be 2.7 metres minimum, which will make any space feel airy and open. Sometimes this is not possible—for instance, when building up—but always try to gain the maximum possible. Any lower and even a fairly spacious room might start to feel cramped. As I have said earlier, low ceilings, while screaming low budget, have a bigger impact: they can make a room feel oppressive and unpleasant to be in. Ceiling heights can be compromised slightly in bathrooms and powder rooms, where many people run their bulkheads for heating and cooling.

The next points to consider are rooms that do double-duty—a room that could be a dining room or an office, another could be a fourth bedroom or a parents’ retreat—and adequate storage. Careful consideration of both will help improve the prospects of selling your home when it comes time. These are definitely the sorts of decisions you should ask an expert about, and ask them to give you a second opinion on what will work best when it comes time to sell.

Once you have finalised your design, ask a number of builders how much their general building costs are per square metre. That way you can narrow down the people you can afford to work with. Much like finding the right selling agent or buyer’s advocate, you need to find a builder you trust. Talk to them, ask them what sort of projects they have worked on before, ask for references, and go and look at their work. Doing all these things will help you team up with the right builder for your renovation. Working on a fixed price and agreeing on the work to be done are also key.

There is also the option of doing the renovation as an owner-builder. This means you will take on responsibility for the whole project, including such things as the insurance. It can save you a lot of money but you need to ask yourself if you are not just willing but able to do this. It takes time, great management skills and knowledge of when trades are required.

If you choose to use a builder and have agreed on a price, you should always factor in a contingency amount. Having a contingency amount is always prudent; this is a must for owner-builders as well. Most renovations and builds go over the expected or agreed amount. Most people factor in 10 or even 20 per cent of the total renovation or build price to be safe. There are always unexpected costs and you want to make sure you are keeping track of these. Spreadsheet it all! Make Excel your friend or use a document on an accounting package that you like. You absolutely need to know where your money is being spent. It helps on the current project and when planning and budgeting for future projects.

On top of that, add in any costs for putting boxes and furniture into storage while the work is taking place, and even the cost of a rental if you and your family need to move out. Many people believe they will be fine living through a renovation, but even a few days of dust, noise and having no privacy when the builders arrive at 7am can make even the toughest start to regret that decision in a hurry. I remember living through many a renovation before having kids. Our dining table was a milk crate and we ate by candle light not because of romance but because we had no electricity! Once the kids came along, we had to factor in rental fees.

You will need to factor in the time it will take to get either a building or a planning permit from the local council—if one is required for your renovation or extension. You may even need to engage a private building surveyor.

Even though you have probably watched The Block and seen what they can do in just twelve weeks, the reality is you probably will not have the same number of tradespeople working for you. Builders, especially good ones, are often booked well in advance, and timelines can be set back due to weather, workers not showing up when scheduled, products not arriving, lead times for windows being pushed out—all of these can lead to increased costs and frustrations.

Older homes should also be checked for asbestos, as this will require specialised removal teams and could also eat into your budget. Knowing this before you start is always prudent—hence my belief in the value of conducting a building and pest inspection before purchasing a property to uncover any large unknowns.

Financing the renovation

You should always have your finance approved before you get too far into the process. There are different types of loans suited to renovating and your financial institution should be able to guide you through the one that best suits your situation and project. You can definitely shop this around too.

Once you have engaged a licensed builder, have a contract drawn up. Many builders belong to the Housing Industry Association and will have a standard building contract available. If you are unsure, talk it through with the builder and seek advice from an external professional before signing. If the work is being carried out and project managed by the building company you have a contract with, they will have licensed tradespeople completing the relevant jobs.

If you are in charge of project as an owner-builder, this means you need to obtain difference insurance, as well as making sure everyone you use is licensed and supplies the correct certificates at the end of the job. You will need these when you go to sell and to obtain a certificate of occupancy.

The best results come from planning. When we have renovated homes, we started by making a plan that indicated when each of the different tradespeople would have to come in. When there were problems with one particular step, for whatever reason, we knew who had to be moved back and by how much. Project managing a build yourself is a great way to save some money, as I noted above, but you have to be able to spend the time doing it. You need to realise it all depends on you and your ability to time manage everyone onsite.

If you can do this well, you will end up with an address book full of tradespeople who will want to work with you and you will build up a good business relationship. If you ever plan on doing it again, it is great to have people onboard whom you know and trust. My advice is that it’s best not to always choose the cheapest quote; instead, look for a local. If something needs to be fixed later or you need to get them back to do something else, and they live close by, it probably will not be as a big an issue as trying to get someone who lives halfway across town to come back for an hour.

The best part of putting this sort of effort into a home you are going to live in for a while before you sell is that you can create a place you and your family absolutely love. Make bold choices when it comes to colours and personal styling. Walls can always be painted and your furniture and art will come with you when you move on.

My hope is that you have been able to read and use this book as an informative guide and feel more confident when making decisions to buy, sell or even renovate your next project!

If you are a Block fanatic, then I hope the contestants’ advice on renovating and styling have given you an insight into their Block adventures and personal projects.

Whatever stage you are at in your property journey, I wish you all the very best in finding and acquiring a home that makes you feel amazing. Who knows, I may even be out there bidding against you one day! (Of course I would much rather be bidding for you!)