Has HGTV Messed with Our House Pride?

I’ve lost count on the number of home renovation shows on television. It seems we Canadians are obsessed with them. Whether it’s an entire home, a single room, a backyard, a vacation home…rural, urban or on a beach…every angle is covered.

Terms like “mid-century modern”, “shabby chic”, “open concept”, “minimalism” and more are commonplace when discussing home decor.

And the pandemic didn’t help with this obsession. With more time on our hands and some extra spending money, DIY’ers were out in full force buying up lumber and other supplies to tackle their own home renovation projects. And for those not so inclined, hiring renovators to do the work for them.

Turns out, spending all that time at home watching renovation shows had us looking at our own homes and finding all the flaws…or perceived flaws.

Nowhere is this more evident than when I am working with sellers. I’ve noticed a significant increase in people who are embarrassed by their home when they show it to me. But while the open concept look and the designer cushions look great on camera, they’re not always doable or practical.

After all, we have to “live” in the space and living can get messy. And if we have a certain layout or footprint to work with, “opening it up” isn’t always possible. So, should we be embarrassed that our home isn’t Instagram worthy? Heck no!

If you’re selling your home you need to weigh the benefits of renovating it to be “TV-show worthy” to just decluttering, fixing any major flaws and doing some simple staging. And while some buyers may want to walk into a “perfect” home, the truth is most people will want to put their own updates and style into their new property.

And while you may get a little more for your property, in many cases, you won’t make back the significant renovation investment you make.

The bottom line is, we need to give ourselves a break when it comes to the state of our home. We can’t all be Chip and Joanna and we shouldn’t have to be. If you are planning some major renovations in anticipation of selling, talk to a trusted Realtor first. Chances are there are some simple fixes that can be done to make your home attractive to buyers and a little staging can go a long way.

Give me a call today for some pre-sale advice.