SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - People looking to sell their home may be leaving thousands of dollars on the table by not renovating before listing, mainly because money is tight during the Coronavirus pandemic.
Now, a San Diego-based company wants to help.
Renovating Lives will pay for renovations up front to increase the value of a home before it sells.
"A lot of the people that we help are in horrible financial situations," says CEO Greg May. "They're they're they're stuck with being taken advantage of by vulture investors."
May's company works with the homeowners on a renovation plan and then covers the costs.
Homeowners pay the company back when the house sells, along with financing and administrative fees.
"There are 10s of thousands of properties out there that need work, that are deferred maintenance or just dated," says May. "If people had to sell them as is, they would be leaving 10s of thousands of dollars on the table."
May says his company can typically increase a home's value by an average of $115,000.
That's what happened with owner Bill Stutzer. After his wife passed away, he wanted to sell his 5-bedroom home as is, listing for around $750,000.
But a smaller house across the street sold for nearly $875,000 after some renovations. Stutzer didn't know what to do with his home until he called Renovating Lives.
"I didn't want to do anything," he says. "I was just going to leave my house, as is, and try and sell it, and soon realized that wasn't going to I wasn't going to cut it... It turns out that if you put a little bit upfront and and get some things done it, it magnifies the bottom line."
May's company helped Stutzer redo his home from the inside out, with new flooring, paint, doors, lighting and more. It would up selling for $950,000.
"My reaction was, wow, this is a modern house. This house could be in a magazine. I absolutely could not believe it. I couldn't believe my eyes," he says.
May says Stutzer's home is a best case scenario, but he wants to give hope to others in a similar situation.
"I want more people to understand there is hope out there, you don't have to sell your house for pennies on the dollar to a profiteer," says May. "I will help you fix up that house and put the cash in your pocket."
May says this is especially important now, as people may decide to save money during the pandemic by not renovating before selling. He says its best to take advantage of the housing market while it's still high.
"Don't wait until it's too late, until they burn through their nest egg, and they're in foreclosure and their credit's being hurt," he says. "The markets hot right now, it's a great time to sell, but there's always more that you could do put more cash in your pocket."
For more information about Renovating Lives, visit their website.
