00:00:08:17 - 00:00:23:00
Joe Reitzug
Welcome to Off the Record talking real estate with Joe and Makayla. If you're interested in the Portland, Oregon real estate market and what the unvarnished inside scoop. You've come to the right place. Thanks for giving us a listen. Welcome, everyone. Hi, Makayla.
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Makayla Mast
Hi. How are you?
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Joe Reitzug
Good. I'm happy it's spring. The sun is out. We tell you. Excited?
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Makayla Mast
I'm so excited. Just makes me so much happier now. I think everyone's just happier here.
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Joe Reitzug
So just put your smile a smile on your face, doesn't it? Yeah. So we live in Oregon, and it can be difficult to say the least. Great. Yeah. Yeah. And this is near. The end is near. And, well, not the end to end. Well, the end.
00:00:49:17 - 00:00:56:11
Makayla Mast
Why are you so glad the world didn't end yesterday for the eclipse? Were you on that side of the internet, or is I just 5050?
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Joe Reitzug
I was good with it.
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Makayla Mast
You like where we're at?
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Joe Reitzug
We had a good run. We had a good run. Let's just. Yeah. We're good. No, I don't get why the eclipse would cause the world to end. I don't know. So the moon got in front of the sun. It's not the end of the world, people. Get a grip. Anyways, we are in spring. And spring means projects and improving your house.
00:01:21:05 - 00:01:41:11
Joe Reitzug
And today we're going to be talking about the best home improvement ideas for your money. This was actually a topic that was emailed into us from a past client, Mark and Sarah, who we love so much. They are. They are the best shout out! Yeah, sweetest people and their sweet dog Turkey. Hi to.
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Makayla Mast
Turkey. Hi Turkey.
00:01:42:14 - 00:02:09:23
Joe Reitzug
Anyways, we are going to be talking about what are the best things you can do as far as investing in your home and getting the most bang for your buck. Most of these I should say, are fairly long term projects, but if you're going to do something, these are the things that we recommend. So always exciting. And my wife and I have a ton of experience in this because about two years ago we remodeled the entire downstairs of our home, which is also the recording studio we are.
00:02:09:23 - 00:02:10:23
Makayla Mast
Sitting in right now.
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Joe Reitzug
So the Off the Record podcast, and we love it. It's one of the best things we ever did.
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Makayla Mast
It's it looks it's so well done and I know it took a while. You guys had to live out of your garage.
00:02:21:14 - 00:02:23:05
Joe Reitzug
And yeah, we lived out of our garage for.
00:02:23:05 - 00:02:29:23
Makayla Mast
Upstairs, but oh my gosh, it was it so worth it. It's. Yeah. Every little piece isn't one thing I wouldn't change.
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Joe Reitzug
So. Oh, you're so sweet. So let's talk about that. I think the first thing that people should do is just think about what would make you enjoy your home more. If you're sitting in your home listening to this, take a moment and just think about what would give me the most absolute enjoyment out of doing some changes to my home.
00:02:48:00 - 00:03:06:02
Joe Reitzug
That's kind of what we started with, and it kind of blossomed from there. But I think that's important because no one knows your home like you do, and in 99% of the time, what would make you happy in your home and the improvements that you do are probably going to translate to the people that maybe purchasing your home down the road, if that's what you're thinking.
00:03:06:02 - 00:03:19:22
Joe Reitzug
Or maybe you're just listening to this and saying, we want to do something. What's the best thing that we can do? You know, not necessarily for resale, but just your enjoyment. And I think it's important that you spend a few minutes thinking about that. I know that you guys did that with your house. Yeah.
00:03:19:22 - 00:03:38:10
Makayla Mast
One of the best things we did is so simple. I don't think it was more than $100, but we, we were lucky to do it on our own. But we framed in a laundry room because the house is so old. But the laundry room is kind of in the kitchen and it was just kind of awkward. So we framed it in and then put pocket doors on both sides and oh my gosh, I just think it looks so much better.
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Joe Reitzug
It does look fantastic.
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Makayla Mast
Yeah, that was so personal, right. And I could tell immediately that's what we wanted to change.
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Joe Reitzug
Yeah. And each home is different. Every items that we're going to give you here in this list are kind of generic and should apply to most homes. But in the end, every home is different and every situation is different. You know, take some time and figure out what works for your space and what would be something that you could get enjoyment out of.
00:04:03:11 - 00:04:12:05
Makayla Mast
Yeah, I agree, there's so many things and videos on the internet where it's like a kitchen remodel or a bathroom remodel translates to this, and I just don't think that's true in every home.
00:04:12:05 - 00:04:33:13
Joe Reitzug
What you're getting at, it doesn't work that way. Yeah. And if you are thinking about resale, we have clients all the time that will call us up and say, yeah, we're we're thinking about selling in the next year or two, maybe three. We want to do XYZ, but we want to get your opinion, you know, reach out and we're more than happy to stop by, say hi, bring you a cup of coffee and sit down and talk about what you're thinking about doing.
00:04:33:13 - 00:04:52:04
Joe Reitzug
And we've got a ton of resources as well. So on our page, if you go to LivPortland.com, click on podcast. You'll be able to find this episode. And in this episode we'll have a link to our referral booklet which has all the contractors that we recommend for doing all of the work that we're going to talk about right now.
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Joe Reitzug
I love.
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Makayla Mast
That book. One little caveat to this might sound a little intense, but I think if you're going to do a remodel from personal experience, try not to DIY. If you can afford to save up a little bit longer and have a professional do it the right way because we remodeled our house on our own. And I don't know why we did that, because now we have to do everything twice.
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Makayla Mast
Yeah. And, you know, just from a buyer's perspective, touring homes too, you can tell when something is redone.
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Joe Reitzug
Well, yeah. Not so.
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Makayla Mast
And it's worth waiting.
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Joe Reitzug
If you're one of the top 2 to 3% of the homeowners out there who have that skill set have at it and go nuts. But for the majority of us, myself included, you know, man's got to know his limits. I highly recommend getting a professional involved, and sometimes that's expensive. But you also know that you're going to get it done right.
00:05:42:01 - 00:05:57:07
Joe Reitzug
There's guarantees involved. There's warranties. When you when the time does come to sell, you know that whoever comes in next is going to appreciate that quality. And also home inspectors and appraisers are also going to approach them. And they look closely.
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Makayla Mast
Yes they.
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Joe Reitzug
Do. Yeah. Another piece of advice. Go online, see what other people are doing, get some ideas.
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Makayla Mast
For design or overall project.
00:06:07:03 - 00:06:27:09
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, both. I mean design features, colors. You know what looks best. Who's done it a certain way? We spent a ton of time online just looking at different doors and windows and trying to imagine how that would fit in what we were doing. Stephanie has that, and I know you do. You guys can see it, talk about it and see and go, oh, that would look great.
00:06:27:09 - 00:06:30:20
Joe Reitzug
And I'm like, I just can't picture it. Yeah, I need to actually see it.
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Makayla Mast
Yeah, I think googling is definitely helpful. Pinterest too. You wrote down here the 30% rule. What is that?
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Joe Reitzug
Well, the 30% is just a good rule of thumb with larger projects. So like we redid the entire bottom floor of our house and, you know, 30% is probably on the high side. But whatever budget you get put together from talking to contractors are doing your own work or whatever, I always add a little bit more.
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Makayla Mast
Oh, okay.
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Joe Reitzug
See. Right.
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Makayla Mast
Yeah, that's great advice.
00:07:00:07 - 00:07:15:15
Joe Reitzug
So if it's $10,000 maybe budget yourself $13,000 just to have that extra amount and know that you're not going to get deep into a project and all of a sudden be like, I can't finish it because I just don't have that money in the budget to do this right now. Right?
00:07:15:15 - 00:07:22:13
Makayla Mast
Almost always house more. You know, they open things up. They forget about flooring in a certain place when you move cabinets, whatever it is.
00:07:22:17 - 00:07:42:04
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, for sure. You know, always does come up a little bit more. Although the contractors that we've worked with, most of them have really come in and done a fantastic job. your dad did our roof and did a spectacular job was not one nickel over. Oh, wow. I know, it's beautiful. Appreciate that.
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Makayla Mast
That's always okay. So I do really like that, right?
00:07:44:17 - 00:08:11:04
Joe Reitzug
Yeah. The other thing is interview contractors. Interview people don't just find one person and go, okay, here we go. Especially if it's a larger job. And some of the things we're going to talk about here are large jobs, but take the time to sit down with a couple of different contractors or get a couple of different bids from different vendors and find out what that number is, because I think you'll find bids vary a lot, but quality also varies a lot.
00:08:11:06 - 00:08:14:10
Joe Reitzug
And you kind of have to do your homework a little bit on those things.
00:08:14:12 - 00:08:25:09
Makayla Mast
Think, and, you know, one contractor might add a line item that you didn't even think of, and then the other contractor might not have added that. And maybe you're not comparing apples to apples, but you want to make sure there's no.
00:08:25:09 - 00:08:46:13
Joe Reitzug
Hidden costs, right? So it's important part of the process too okay. So let's talk improvements Makayla. And these are going to be ranked by the biggest bang for your buck. What can you do that will make an improvement in the value of your home. Right. Let's hear. So let's start off with those and I'll I'll start with the first one okay okay.
00:08:46:15 - 00:09:17:15
Joe Reitzug
Adding a bathroom or converting a half bath into a full bath. Like if you have a three bedroom, one bath and you convert it to a three bedroom, two bath, the value just goes through the roof, you know, and obviously depends on your square footage and everything else. But those are two different categories. And not only the value, the value increases because now you've got all these people that are interested who if it was only a one bedroom house, there's a whole segment of people that are like, yeah, we just can't do that.
00:09:17:15 - 00:09:20:23
Makayla Mast
That doesn't work. That opens up a huge percentage of the market.
00:09:20:23 - 00:09:22:00
Joe Reitzug
And.
00:09:22:02 - 00:09:37:06
Makayla Mast
we just had a listing that's three bed, one and a half bath, and the half bath could perfectly be remodeled into a full bath. It was killing me. But luckily the buyers thought that that was an easy remodel too, so did not agree more.
00:09:37:08 - 00:10:00:12
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, we have a listing coming up here in Hillsboro that was a three bedroom, two and a half bath and made the half bath into a full bath. So. And now instead of A32 and a half, it's a four bedroom, three bath. And that's just a different segment. I mean, people look at that in that price point. It's probably in the five 3540 somewhere in there and home run.
00:10:00:12 - 00:10:03:08
Joe Reitzug
Yeah. Kidding me. Four bedrooms and three bath.
00:10:03:08 - 00:10:03:21
Makayla Mast
Yeah that's.
00:10:04:01 - 00:10:05:00
Joe Reitzug
Let's go.
00:10:05:03 - 00:10:29:06
Makayla Mast
Great space. Not seen very often. So next this one I love because I don't think people look for this when they're walking through homes necessarily. But there are there is hidden square footage oftentimes in the attic or the basement. Basement isn't as normal here in Oregon, but sometimes the attic is tall enough to where you can do a remodel and have some extra square footage.
00:10:29:06 - 00:10:51:10
Makayla Mast
And we've had a couple of listings where the sellers have done excellent remodels and really made use of the space, and it increases the value so much. And in the basement can be a little tricky. A lot of older homes in Portland will have basements, because if you want to legally put a bedroom in the basement, it has to have an egress and then egress is just a a type of window.
00:10:51:10 - 00:10:55:09
Joe Reitzug
That you're talking some crazy real estate. What is an egress, Makayla?
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Makayla Mast
And egress is a window has to be 40in high or lower for people to get out in case of a fire. So you can't be trapped in the basement, right? You know, you could put a living room down there without having an egress, but in order for.
00:11:10:04 - 00:11:17:16
Joe Reitzug
Egress, they have to be able to get in or out most of the time. That's older homes. Yeah. Where you find this hidden space in the attic or the basement.
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Makayla Mast
It's so.
00:11:18:03 - 00:11:39:00
Joe Reitzug
Good. It's I love it. I know, I know, sometimes newer homes have some attic space that can get converted where they call it flex space that doesn't get finished by the builder because they're trying to save on cost or whatever. But then a homeowner comes in and goes, oh, it's a storage, and there's this little half door, and they look inside and it's like, oh my gosh, at all this boom!
00:11:39:00 - 00:11:47:03
Joe Reitzug
They kick out the half door, put a full door in there and finish it. And all of a sudden now you got, you know, 300 more square feet of bonus room or whatever, right?
00:11:47:03 - 00:11:55:03
Makayla Mast
Even if it's just like a playroom for kids or a mini office or a great closet with a lot of storage, it's so worth it.
00:11:55:03 - 00:12:18:19
Joe Reitzug
So Stephanie and I had a house over in Bethany years and years ago. When our babies were first born, early 2000, our house sat on our lot so that one one side of it had this fence was way far away from the house, and I looked up the setbacks to see, you know, what the rules were as far as how far away from the property line, or how close to the property line you could build.
00:12:18:21 - 00:12:39:05
Joe Reitzug
And there was this huge amount of space for an office, and the home didn't have an office at the time. And so we got the permits, had multiple contractors in, ended up going with a guy who did a great job and we had this fantastic office space. Wow. That's awesome. Yeah, with built ins and a door to the deck, private door to the deck.
00:12:39:06 - 00:12:56:06
Joe Reitzug
Oh, cool. Oh, it was fantastic. But sometimes there's hidden places where you can find square footage, whether it's basement, attic, or maybe you're looking at your house going, you know, these big windows here could easily be made into a door, and we could push out to maybe add another couple of hundred square feet or whatever.
00:12:56:09 - 00:13:11:13
Makayla Mast
Definitely. Especially homes on a bigger lot, you know, or an older home on a bigger lot, especially because they didn't used to make home so massive. You know, you can very easily turn an 1100 square foot home on a 8000 square foot lot into a 1400 square foot home and still have a great yard.
00:13:11:13 - 00:13:38:16
Joe Reitzug
Exactly the next one I love, I love, love, love quality windows quality windows are the best I agree. Yeah. And what we're talking about here is if you have an older home that has older windows, you know, the improvement in the technology and everything that goes into the newer windows that are out there now is night and day, and they are expensive.
00:13:38:17 - 00:13:54:18
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, very I mean, and they can get real expensive, but you can get newer windows for not, you know, a whole lot of money, but it is so worth it. And the difference between old windows and new windows, the heat savings. Yeah. Which is.
00:13:54:18 - 00:13:55:06
Makayla Mast
Huge.
00:13:55:06 - 00:13:56:23
Joe Reitzug
Yes. The savings.
00:13:57:01 - 00:13:57:13
Makayla Mast
In heating.
00:13:57:13 - 00:14:19:02
Joe Reitzug
Your home is amazingly different. And then also sound new windows block out any sound outside. I noticed that in our house. Here are 2000 and built in 2004. We had a built in. Yeah, 2004. And even the difference between the old windows we had and now the new windows we have in the downstairs here is night and day.
00:14:19:02 - 00:14:23:23
Joe Reitzug
We close everything up and you can't really hear the rest of the neighborhood around us.
00:14:23:23 - 00:14:24:20
Makayla Mast
So lovely.
00:14:24:20 - 00:14:25:17
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, I think.
00:14:25:17 - 00:14:28:15
Makayla Mast
It just adds such a luxurious feel to a house too.
00:14:28:15 - 00:14:45:03
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, it's such a downer when you go into an older home and it's a beautiful home, but it still has the old meadows and you can see that the home, if you're, you know, if you're working with the buyers and you walk through there and you just see the buyers look like, oh, this is amazing. Yeah. We could see ourself.
00:14:45:05 - 00:14:46:08
Joe Reitzug
Oh yeah.
00:14:46:10 - 00:14:50:19
Makayla Mast
Window there is X amount I didn't budget for.
00:14:50:21 - 00:14:51:19
Joe Reitzug
Yeah exactly.
00:14:51:23 - 00:15:14:01
Makayla Mast
So and side note on windows if you're going to replace your windows please please please do not get stuck in the trap of setting up a call online with whoever you get on Google first, because they don't. Anyone else has experienced this, but they will come to your house and they will not leave for hours. They until you sign a contract.
00:15:14:02 - 00:15:14:22
Makayla Mast
Hours?
00:15:15:00 - 00:15:18:05
Joe Reitzug
Yeah. And the pressure which usually means not a good product.
00:15:18:05 - 00:15:28:19
Makayla Mast
Right. And it can feel scammy and they can charge triple what other contractors would charge. So please reach out to us. I have a great husband and wife team who do windows.
00:15:28:22 - 00:15:34:04
Joe Reitzug
Sounds like you have personal PTSD and I really.
00:15:34:06 - 00:15:36:06
Joe Reitzug
It was a window trauma.
00:15:36:07 - 00:15:41:22
Makayla Mast
So are I'm not kidding. It was like three hours at dinner time and.
00:15:42:00 - 00:15:48:03
Joe Reitzug
Did you go, get out window guy?
00:15:48:05 - 00:15:53:10
Makayla Mast
What is it going to take for me to get you to sign this contract before I leave? I was like, I.
00:15:53:10 - 00:15:54:20
Joe Reitzug
Sign it after you leave, cut.
00:15:54:20 - 00:15:55:14
Makayla Mast
Your price, and I.
00:15:55:14 - 00:16:04:12
Joe Reitzug
Promise, just leave. Yeah. No, that's that's the worst. So great windows, though, are such a thing of beauty, and I just I love them so much.
00:16:04:12 - 00:16:12:18
Makayla Mast
So the next thing on our list is adding space for entertainment. And I think specifically doing this outside is great.
00:16:12:18 - 00:16:16:06
Joe Reitzug
Especially you talking about outdoor living space. Nice.
00:16:16:08 - 00:16:35:21
Makayla Mast
Nice in Oregon we don't have a lot of opportunities to entertain outside, but if you were to add, you know, like a little undercover area in the back, you know, that opens up many more months of the year for you to hang out outside. And I think that adds a ton of value, just the overall feel to your backyard.
00:16:35:23 - 00:16:41:08
Makayla Mast
Maybe it looks like a little more landscaping or adding some concrete, but I think that goes a really long ways.
00:16:41:11 - 00:17:01:08
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, stamp concrete is inexpensive and an absolute game changer. Firepit, little garden area, outdoor kitchen if you want to get crazy are fantastic ideas. All of those are to add a huge amount of value to the home. Yeah, I think and people are looking for that now. Definitely.
00:17:01:10 - 00:17:08:01
Makayla Mast
Especially the little kids cars. You just want to be outside even without little kids. I mean, I feel like I live on my backpack.
00:17:08:02 - 00:17:30:17
Joe Reitzug
I know it's nice and it's nice. In Oregon, there is nothing better than sitting and having dinner outside and relaxing. That's a good one. And that goes to, you know, the story that you can tell about your home, especially when you're selling your home. If people can go outside and go, I could see us having the Joneses over and dinner out here on the patio, and that's a seller.
00:17:30:21 - 00:18:04:13
Joe Reitzug
Definitely. This one is maybe the most expensive one. And I say that out of personal experience. But the major kitchen remodel, right? So we're foodies in my house. We've talked about that. I posted that all that stuff, and I love to cook. And when my wife and I started talking about redoing our place, I was like, okay, it's got to start with the kitchen because I want a place to be able to cook for my family and, and entertain and have it be a fun spot.
00:18:04:13 - 00:18:17:08
Joe Reitzug
And we spent a lot of time thinking about that. Finally pulled the trigger on it when we did the entire downstairs. And I love I love my kitchen now so, so much. So pretty. Yeah, you.
00:18:17:08 - 00:18:27:00
Makayla Mast
Spend so much time in the kitchen. I mean, you especially do it because you love to cook, but I think in all homes it is the focal point is what people are going to be.
00:18:27:06 - 00:18:52:13
Joe Reitzug
Yeah. Looking for. Yeah. And there's really creative ways that you can incorporate, you know, the cooking experience with the social experience and in that flow. And you know, I think a lot of people, it just takes spending a little bit of time thinking about it and maybe even getting a professional. And you know, we had some different options and we ended up with our configuration and how we did things from a recommendation from a designer.
00:18:52:15 - 00:19:08:21
Joe Reitzug
Then we met with and she met with us. We sat down and she heard what we were trying to do. And she goes, man, have you guys ever thought about instead of an island doing it this way? And immediately I was like, yes, that's what I want. I never would have thought of it, right? Because, you know, you're supposed to have an island and all that sort of stuff, right?
00:19:08:23 - 00:19:12:18
Makayla Mast
But you do have an island. It's just not what your typical standalone island looks like.
00:19:12:18 - 00:19:15:12
Joe Reitzug
Traditional. Yeah, yeah. So, it's the.
00:19:15:12 - 00:19:16:12
Makayla Mast
Feeling though, like you.
00:19:16:12 - 00:19:23:00
Joe Reitzug
Said. Yeah, but there are so many people that when they walk into a home, the kitchen makes or breaks things.
00:19:23:01 - 00:19:24:00
Makayla Mast
Oh, 100%.
00:19:24:00 - 00:19:30:01
Joe Reitzug
For me personally, it's kitchen, primary bedroom and the outside.
00:19:30:03 - 00:19:32:03
Makayla Mast
Exterior, like the outdoor.
00:19:32:03 - 00:19:34:16
Joe Reitzug
Living, outdoor living. What about for you? What's your top three?
00:19:34:17 - 00:19:37:07
Makayla Mast
Oh, kitchen, primary bedroom.
00:19:37:07 - 00:19:38:21
Joe Reitzug
And curb appeal I love.
00:19:39:01 - 00:19:54:04
Makayla Mast
I love rolling up to a cute house. I know just makes me happy. And I think to like going back to the kitchen remodel, if you don't feel like you have the bandwidth to knock down walls, or hire a designer and do all of these things, that can take a really long time and cost a lot of money.
00:19:54:06 - 00:20:00:10
Makayla Mast
There are smaller ways you can refresh the space. Countertops aren't crazy expensive. There's a lot of different.
00:20:00:10 - 00:20:01:22
Joe Reitzug
You can fix cabinets.
00:20:01:22 - 00:20:20:13
Makayla Mast
You can have someone come in and paint the cabinets. Appliances are relatively inexpensive. You know, having a matching set, with the stove, dishwasher, and refrigerator makes a huge difference. And then cabinet pulls are under $10 apiece. Yeah. So talking about quite a bit of money, but hopefully that option is less.
00:20:20:13 - 00:20:30:12
Joe Reitzug
Intimidating to people. We're not talking 50 grand, 75 grand. We're talking a couple thousand. Yeah. Yeah. So and that's actually DIY, DIY friendly. Not for me.
00:20:30:12 - 00:20:33:12
Makayla Mast
But for me.
00:20:33:14 - 00:20:55:22
Joe Reitzug
Yeah. Sorry I got no skills with that. It's mostly got no patience. That's what I've been told. I have very little love with that. Go figure. So let's those are the major improvement items that we would recommend, but let's talk about some of the the other items that I think people are like, oh, I want to do this, I want to do that.
00:20:55:22 - 00:21:05:13
Joe Reitzug
And they have us over. And it's like, I did tell you this, but you've got some deferred maintenance, right? Right, right. Yeah, yeah.
00:21:05:19 - 00:21:17:16
Makayla Mast
And it stinks because the first, you know, set of items we talked about is the more fun that's what you want. And, you know, but when it comes down to a successful sale for the highest dollar and.
00:21:17:18 - 00:21:19:17
Joe Reitzug
Just plain taking care of your home.
00:21:19:17 - 00:21:20:04
Makayla Mast
Right.
00:21:20:09 - 00:21:21:23
Joe Reitzug
Unfortunately, the care of you.
00:21:22:00 - 00:21:24:19
Makayla Mast
Yeah, the deferred maintenance is something that you need.
00:21:24:19 - 00:21:29:01
Joe Reitzug
To think about. What's the number one deferred maintenance item that you see?
00:21:29:03 - 00:21:32:15
Makayla Mast
as if I don't talk about this enough. Roof and gutters.
00:21:32:17 - 00:21:41:06
Joe Reitzug
that was such a soft pitch to you to get Makayla mask. Talking about roofs need, like, special.
00:21:41:06 - 00:21:41:20
Makayla Mast
Music that.
00:21:41:21 - 00:21:44:01
Joe Reitzug
Comes on whenever we get to talk.
00:21:44:06 - 00:21:50:04
Makayla Mast
Because then everyone's going to turn it off. Shut up. We get it. That's a whole weekend of.
00:21:50:04 - 00:21:52:15
Joe Reitzug
Podcast riff talk with Makayla.
00:21:52:17 - 00:21:53:21
Makayla Mast
Spare everyone.
00:21:53:23 - 00:22:04:01
Joe Reitzug
Okay. Yeah, well, you know, everyone in town, so you could. That's a big guest list right there. And a good resto, a brand new roof. There's nothing better.
00:22:04:01 - 00:22:04:21
Makayla Mast
I can't agree.
00:22:04:21 - 00:22:16:18
Joe Reitzug
More. We just visited a house this morning that we're going to be listing or putting on the market, and it had. They didn't even tell us either. It had a brand new roof and I was like, oh yes, shovel seller.
00:22:16:19 - 00:22:20:17
Makayla Mast
Oh, usually they lead with that. That's the first thing they say on the phone. Guess what?
00:22:20:18 - 00:22:23:04
Joe Reitzug
Guess what? I just spent 20 grand on a new roof.
00:22:23:04 - 00:22:40:19
Makayla Mast
Yeah, a lot of times to like my grandma, she, you know, it was probably 24 years ago that she needed a new roof. And, you know, she knew she's going to be in the house for a long time. So she's like, I want to replace it twice. Yeah, in my lifetime. So she did a metal roof.
00:22:41:00 - 00:22:41:13
Joe Reitzug
Oh, wow.
00:22:41:17 - 00:22:47:08
Makayla Mast
And that's, you know, for people that don't know that last a lifetime, supposed to as long as it's installed correctly.
00:22:47:11 - 00:22:51:21
Joe Reitzug
Correct. And you get the right metal that doesn't rust. Right.
00:22:51:23 - 00:22:59:20
Makayla Mast
Sure. But there are options. But, you know, if you're, you're think your roof might have a little bit more life in it, you did.
00:22:59:22 - 00:23:06:06
Joe Reitzug
She said there's options. And I'm like, oh, here we go. That's the lead into what?
00:23:06:07 - 00:23:14:16
Makayla Mast
You can, have somebody come repair it and maybe even give it a cert, which means they're giving it an estimated life.
00:23:14:18 - 00:23:19:15
Joe Reitzug
At least 3 to 5 years. Yeah, yeah. don't see a whole lot of those anymore. They'll do, you.
00:23:19:17 - 00:23:25:10
Makayla Mast
Know, because roofing company still on a promise that a roof will last. That long, you know, because it might not.
00:23:25:12 - 00:23:26:08
Joe Reitzug
I get that, but.
00:23:26:08 - 00:23:28:00
Makayla Mast
Regular maintenance helps with these.
00:23:28:01 - 00:23:33:21
Joe Reitzug
Things as well. Yeah. and what goes with the roof gutters?
00:23:33:23 - 00:23:35:13
Makayla Mast
At least in Oregon.
00:23:35:15 - 00:23:45:04
Joe Reitzug
Pacific northwest. Yeah. Getting those things cleaned every so often is just such a great thing you can do to help your gutters last longer.
00:23:45:06 - 00:23:48:18
Makayla Mast
we went to South Carolina last. Earlier this? Nope.
00:23:48:18 - 00:23:50:06
Joe Reitzug
Last year.
00:23:50:08 - 00:24:08:01
Makayla Mast
and about 50% of homes didn't have gutters, and I just thought that was so interesting. So it must be true in more desert areas too, like, you know. Yeah, Arizona, New Mexico. But, here they're so important because obviously we get this flooding of rainfall.
00:24:08:06 - 00:24:14:04
Joe Reitzug
And we also have all the greenery that drops onto the roof and then into the gutters and clogs all that. yeah.
00:24:14:04 - 00:24:26:11
Makayla Mast
And, you know, if those are clogged or installed improperly, it can overflow and ruin your landscaping or your siding. Those two things really are what keep your home healthy from the outside in. And that's usually what buyers are.
00:24:26:11 - 00:24:45:14
Joe Reitzug
Most concerned about. Yeah. If if you're selling your home and Makayla and her clients walk up and your roof is hurting, yeah, that's not a good first impression because we know how much that's going to cost. Buyers go 1.5 times that and get freaked out. Yeah, right out of the shoots.
00:24:45:16 - 00:24:48:05
Makayla Mast
They just think about how they don't have that cash on hand.
00:24:48:05 - 00:24:57:10
Joe Reitzug
Right. And will the seller pay for right? Sometimes the seller's like I think that's the buyer's problem. And the buyers like, maybe I won't buy your home.
00:24:57:10 - 00:24:59:23
Makayla Mast
Yeah, I've been living here for 20 years. Why would that be my problem?
00:24:59:23 - 00:25:09:16
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, exactly. So. Okay, so roof and gutters, the other one that I love is that new coat of paint. Right.
00:25:09:18 - 00:25:10:23
Makayla Mast
Such a long way.
00:25:11:04 - 00:25:34:04
Joe Reitzug
So rough gutters, paint. If those three things haven't been done in the last well, rough in 20 years at least looked at in the past 15 to 20 years and the paint hasn't been addressed in probably that long either. It's probably a good sign that that's where you should maybe focus first before you know the crazy indoor stuff, right?
00:25:34:06 - 00:25:55:10
Makayla Mast
And paint doesn't cost as much as you think it would. You know, if you're siding isn't in great health, that's when it can get really expensive. But if you, you know, have most of your landscaping away from the home and you don't have some massive three storey house, usually it's it's pretty affordable. But if you do have a three story house, my heart goes out to you because that's when it does get spendy.
00:25:55:15 - 00:26:17:18
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, big ladders. The great thing about new paint is it comes with new caulking. right. That's the thing I noticed when we painted our house was I'd be outside and I'd be looking at my siding going, there's a gap, but the caulking cracked there, and there's a gap. Wherever there's gaps, moisture, water can get in there and can affect your siding.
00:26:17:22 - 00:26:27:03
Joe Reitzug
With a new paint job, you're going to get all that stuff scraped out, and then new caulking put in and the paint seals it. And man, you're it's like a new house.
00:26:27:05 - 00:26:35:11
Makayla Mast
Yeah. I'm great. Just refreshes. Everything looks so great for the curb appeal and those exterior photos that people obsess over on the internet.
00:26:35:11 - 00:26:41:20
Joe Reitzug
One of the items that I think improves value, but we kind of put into the deferred maintenance spot, is.
00:26:41:20 - 00:26:44:05
Makayla Mast
Painting our facing cabinets. That's a good.
00:26:44:05 - 00:26:45:17
Joe Reitzug
One. That is a good one.
00:26:45:20 - 00:26:47:11
Makayla Mast
It's like what you were talking about new.
00:26:47:12 - 00:27:02:06
Joe Reitzug
Oh sorry. Changing up flooring. Oh yeah. Flooring. Yeah. You know you can do all sorts of beautiful, wonderful stuff in your house, but if your floor is worn, it's not a good combo.
00:27:02:11 - 00:27:05:10
Makayla Mast
If you've never taken your shoes off in your house.
00:27:05:12 - 00:27:10:03
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, well, it's not as much that. But like, we have pets, right?
00:27:10:03 - 00:27:11:06
Makayla Mast
It happens.
00:27:11:06 - 00:27:17:09
Joe Reitzug
We had our. And you guys are probably like Joe. Good lord. What did you do to this house? But we had our floors done.
00:27:17:11 - 00:27:20:03
Makayla Mast
And the answer is three boys.
00:27:20:05 - 00:27:43:11
Joe Reitzug
We know we have three boys, we have two dogs. This is we've had three in this house now and it just got hammered. The floor is dead. And so obviously we had to redo those as well. But there are all sorts of incredibly beautiful choices you can have out there. The engineered vinyl and all that is really, really cool.
00:27:43:13 - 00:27:47:08
Joe Reitzug
It used to be where you said vinyl and people were like, oh no, you can't put that in a nice home.
00:27:47:08 - 00:27:48:08
Makayla Mast
Run away fast.
00:27:48:10 - 00:27:54:17
Joe Reitzug
Right? Exactly. And now with the choices that are out there, you can hardly tell. Sometimes I can't.
00:27:54:17 - 00:28:05:13
Makayla Mast
Tell me either. Remember the house we were up the other day? We have to look it up. Yeah. And we were like, looking at the, What's that called? The register. Yeah. See if it was hardwood or not.
00:28:05:13 - 00:28:19:05
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, yeah. Little pro trick. If you're in a house and you want to see if there's hardwood floors, go to the fence and the fence will pop up and you just kind of look underneath the carpet, or you can see underneath what is currently there and see if there's hardwoods.
00:28:19:06 - 00:28:42:07
Makayla Mast
Great tip. I didn't even know that. This is a little public service announcement about four. So try your best to just have 1 or 2 types of flooring, maybe three throughout the home. I think it makes houses so choppy when there's like, yeah, five different types of flooring and, you know, tile in the kitchen and the bathrooms and then yeah, carpet in the bedrooms, you know, and a lot of times that's just how homes were designed.
00:28:42:07 - 00:28:56:10
Makayla Mast
So it's kind of hard to get around. But it is worth like yeah redoing some trim, shimmying up the floor to make things match. I that's the most feedback we get in a house that has. Yeah five types of flooring people just can't stand.
00:28:56:10 - 00:29:07:12
Joe Reitzug
The flooring is actually one of the more affordable things you can do to I think. Yeah, compared to a lot of the other things that we've talked about here. Right. But yeah, let's go back to your painting or re facing cabinets. Sorry about that.
00:29:07:12 - 00:29:08:14
Makayla Mast
No that's okay because.
00:29:08:14 - 00:29:10:18
Joe Reitzug
I do think that is a.
00:29:10:20 - 00:29:14:22
Makayla Mast
It is deferred maintenance. You're right. And it yeah it's like the curb appeal of your kitchen.
00:29:15:04 - 00:29:16:05
Joe Reitzug
00:29:16:16 - 00:29:31:23
Makayla Mast
and it's so easy to. Nick. I was vacuuming too fast the other day and Nick to make out now, which makes me nuts. but, you know, like Joe said, relatively inexpensive. You can, for the most part, maybe sand and touch up your cabinets with a little painter's brush brush.
00:29:32:03 - 00:29:36:23
Joe Reitzug
That is a DIY that I think I could actually do. Yeah, definitely. Yeah.
00:29:37:01 - 00:29:42:16
Makayla Mast
I think it scares people because it's not nothing like a wall, but I think it just takes patience.
00:29:42:18 - 00:29:43:01
Joe Reitzug
Yeah.
00:29:43:04 - 00:29:45:02
Makayla Mast
Sitting in your kitchen for a day or two.
00:29:45:05 - 00:29:56:00
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, exactly. So, let's talk about some of the would be nice to have things done right. Oh, yes. Can we start with AC,
00:29:56:02 - 00:30:01:04
Makayla Mast
Global warming. We used to not have to have AC in Oregon, and now it's.
00:30:01:06 - 00:30:21:13
Joe Reitzug
We had an 85 degree, 80 degree day in April earlier this month. Yeah, I think yeah. It's crazy. I remember when I started right after the Civil War in the 1860s here in real estate in Portland. I feel so and so you're.
00:30:21:15 - 00:30:25:16
Makayla Mast
I thought you're talking about, like, the ducks and the beavers. That's a really weird.
00:30:25:21 - 00:30:35:11
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, I, I was just saying back when I started in real estate, and whenever I say that with you, I think that. Lord, he sounds old. Cali.
00:30:35:13 - 00:30:35:22
Makayla Mast
you did.
00:30:35:22 - 00:30:43:11
Joe Reitzug
The North and the South had just finished fighting. I remember when I got licensed.
00:30:43:13 - 00:30:45:14
Makayla Mast
That was funny.
00:30:45:16 - 00:30:47:13
Joe Reitzug
no, but when I started in real estate.
00:30:47:16 - 00:30:49:12
Makayla Mast
It was before I was born.
00:30:49:14 - 00:30:51:10
Joe Reitzug
And so we were there.
00:30:51:12 - 00:30:53:13
Makayla Mast
Make you feel worse now?
00:30:53:15 - 00:30:56:01
Joe Reitzug
Wow. Yeah.
00:30:56:03 - 00:31:01:20
Makayla Mast
That more of just makes me look like your young, dumb baby. No more than you looking like an old sad.
00:31:02:01 - 00:31:26:18
Joe Reitzug
You are a seasoned, grizzled real estate veteran that has learned all this so quickly, and it's taken me 29 years to learn all this. It's not true. Yeah. So anyways, we digress. But when I started no, not no more Jeff okay, good. When I started there was no AC, hardly anywhere. I mean, I'm serious. Makayla. 20% of the homes had AC.
00:31:26:21 - 00:31:36:13
Joe Reitzug
That's great. 25% just wasn't necessary. And now what do we get for five, six, seven days of 100 plus degrees here? Oh yeah. Yeah.
00:31:36:13 - 00:31:38:22
Makayla Mast
It's people who don't have anything. And I think.
00:31:39:02 - 00:31:42:04
Joe Reitzug
It's pretty morbid, but historic.
00:31:42:06 - 00:31:44:02
Makayla Mast
And dark past. Yeah, but.
00:31:44:05 - 00:31:47:09
Joe Reitzug
The rooftop went sideways.
00:31:47:11 - 00:32:02:07
Makayla Mast
With, Well, just working with buyers. I mean, that's pretty much a non-negotiable for most buyers now. Yeah, it goes along the lines of the conversation of how many bedrooms they want. If they usually throw in AC, like, I don't even want to entertain a house that doesn't have AC.
00:32:02:07 - 00:32:11:22
Joe Reitzug
And you must. From a seller's point of view, you almost have to add a credit now I think. Yeah, most situations. So yeah,
00:32:12:00 - 00:32:17:02
Makayla Mast
Sorry, if you have central heating, it's pretty easy to add cooling.
00:32:17:02 - 00:32:31:04
Joe Reitzug
Yeah. Most newer houses are wired for it too. So you should be in good shape there. But yeah, it's one of those things if you can add AC that's a big value add plus enjoy your home in the summertime, right?
00:32:31:06 - 00:32:35:17
Makayla Mast
Don't be sneaking off to restaurants to get the AC. If you don't have to.
00:32:35:17 - 00:32:36:15
Joe Reitzug
Yeah. Have you done that?
00:32:36:15 - 00:32:38:21
Makayla Mast
No, but I'm sure you do.
00:32:38:23 - 00:32:41:04
Joe Reitzug
Wow. Okay. I never thought of that.
00:32:41:06 - 00:32:42:09
Makayla Mast
Just sit in a sweat bath.
00:32:42:09 - 00:32:48:17
Joe Reitzug
Starbucks is AC right? Works great. what about landscaping improvements?
00:32:48:22 - 00:32:55:06
Makayla Mast
Oh, this one's so good because it is a DIY. If you're willing to pick up a shovel or whatever.
00:32:55:08 - 00:32:55:21
Joe Reitzug
I'm not.
00:32:55:22 - 00:33:02:16
Makayla Mast
I know, shaking your head. Luckily your wife is, and she does a beautiful job. I will.
00:33:02:16 - 00:33:05:08
Joe Reitzug
Say she's got the green thumb is what I tell.
00:33:05:08 - 00:33:25:12
Makayla Mast
Her. I love it, but mature landscaping even if it's not mature. But again, it just highlights your home. It kind of just brings it all together. Yeah, having it for, you know, the outdoor entertaining that we talked about, but also just the curb appeal. I mean, it's so easy to just take care of the lawn and add a few plants or flowers.
00:33:25:14 - 00:33:32:18
Makayla Mast
Things do so great here in Oregon. We're actually having a special guest who's going to talk about what plants.
00:33:32:18 - 00:33:34:12
Joe Reitzug
So excited to talk to her.
00:33:34:12 - 00:33:39:06
Makayla Mast
We should, plant for, you know, maximizing curb appeal or for what season.
00:33:39:06 - 00:33:41:20
Joe Reitzug
But, can you share who we're going to be meeting with?
00:33:41:22 - 00:34:00:15
Makayla Mast
Her name is Sherry Durack, and she is the owner of a root pouch, which is a fabulous local company that, they invented. They're basically pot liners and they're. But the soil that's in the pot liner is fabulous soil, you know, that's been groomed and made for that customer.
00:34:00:17 - 00:34:01:04
Joe Reitzug
Too.
00:34:01:04 - 00:34:02:08
Makayla Mast
Yeah, they do very well.
00:34:02:08 - 00:34:24:02
Joe Reitzug
Yeah. That's the Hillsboro Company. Yeah I'm excited to talk to her about that because I mean boy a lot of different ways you can use that around your, your yard and in what you're doing. So definitely curb appeal is a must. And everyone likes to come home to their home and go oh yeah. Looks good. Which brings me to front door.
00:34:24:02 - 00:34:32:00
Joe Reitzug
Garage door updates. Good car. Not inexpensive but not horribly expensive. Surprisingly so.
00:34:32:02 - 00:34:40:00
Makayla Mast
Especially the front door. you can get a lot of, like, contractor stores. I don't even know how to warehouses.
00:34:40:00 - 00:34:54:23
Joe Reitzug
I don't know, you can also just paint your front door. Right. Stephanie had our front door painted, and, I think she whispered what she was going to do when I was asleep one night. I didn't remember her telling me that I was going to come home to a blue door, but I did.
00:34:55:01 - 00:34:56:06
Makayla Mast
It looks great.
00:34:56:08 - 00:35:06:15
Joe Reitzug
Well, it was a shocker when I first walked up to it, but it grew on me and I like it. And you know, you see more front doors that have different colors and stuff and it's cool.
00:35:06:15 - 00:35:07:19
Makayla Mast
It adds a lot of character.
00:35:08:01 - 00:35:08:12
Joe Reitzug
Yeah, I.
00:35:08:12 - 00:35:23:04
Makayla Mast
Think and the the garage door isn't as exciting, but it does do a lot for that curb appeal. Yeah, mainly you just want your garage door to work and that goes along with painting your exterior too. Yeah, paint your garage doors. It goes a long way.
00:35:23:06 - 00:35:44:14
Joe Reitzug
this last one is something that's near and dear to my heart because we love spending time outside in the summertime, especially, but really all year long, if it's not pouring down rain, you know, we spend time outside. But exterior lighting is so good. There's so many different options. And it goes back to that. I can't really see it until I see it right.
00:35:44:14 - 00:36:03:07
Joe Reitzug
I can't imagine in my head. And we went online and we're looking at different stuff and this and that, and there's so many cool ideas about what you can do with lighting and, it just adds such a cool element to your backyard, your front yard, you know, all parts of your house. It's one of those ways that's for not a lot of money.
00:36:03:07 - 00:36:11:17
Joe Reitzug
You can really spruce things up and make things look really cool and add a really warm element to where you live.
00:36:11:18 - 00:36:22:23
Makayla Mast
So even just changing up the fixtures, you know, you don't necessarily have to go in and add more spaces for lights. But fixtures can go a long way and they're relatively inexpensive. Home Depot.
00:36:23:00 - 00:36:39:09
Joe Reitzug
It's so funny because I see these homes that have these really cool outdoor spaces, outdoor kitchen and all this stuff, and the lighting is just not great. It's like, yeah, you should really think about doing something different with this. It's hard to say that right?
00:36:39:11 - 00:36:40:22
Makayla Mast
You know, you almost got there.
00:36:40:23 - 00:36:41:23
Joe Reitzug
Yeah.
00:36:42:01 - 00:36:44:08
Makayla Mast
Thousand dollar pizza oven.
00:36:44:08 - 00:36:49:23
Joe Reitzug
You know, and you have no light for at night. What is going on here?
00:36:50:03 - 00:36:50:16
Makayla Mast
That's a great.
00:36:50:16 - 00:36:51:14
Joe Reitzug
Point. Yeah.
00:36:51:16 - 00:36:54:04
Makayla Mast
I'm gonna go home and assess my exterior lighting.
00:36:54:06 - 00:36:55:16
Joe Reitzug
Are you. Yeah.
00:36:55:18 - 00:36:56:02
Makayla Mast
You got me.
00:36:56:02 - 00:37:08:05
Joe Reitzug
Thinking. Yeah. Yeah, it is a great way to do it. So that is our show about the best home improvement for the money. What do you think? I think there are some great things out there.
00:37:08:05 - 00:37:16:20
Makayla Mast
I think so too. What would you say? I think these repairs are like 3 to 5. If you're thinking of selling in 3 to 5 years, or do you not want to put a time.
00:37:16:20 - 00:37:38:04
Joe Reitzug
Limit on it? I say do them sooner than later if you can save up or if you have the money right now, go do these things. Even if you're not thinking about selling just for the improvement. I mean, we did our whole downstairs. We have no intention of selling, but it was kind of one of those things where where, you know, you see so many people that do these things right before they sell.
00:37:38:06 - 00:37:57:18
Joe Reitzug
Now we're ready to sell. Well, you didn't get to enjoy it. And that's really you know, what I would encourage people to do is if you feel like something would add to the enjoyment, that you get from living in your space in your home, do it now. Get the enjoyment out of it. Even if you're thinking about selling, you know, 3 to 5 years, whatever.
00:37:57:22 - 00:38:00:13
Joe Reitzug
Do those things that are going to help you enjoy it between now and then?
00:38:00:18 - 00:38:03:17
Makayla Mast
Yeah, especially that AC so you don't who.
00:38:03:17 - 00:38:26:12
Joe Reitzug
That's number one on my list right. That's a big one in our in our lives. Anyways thanks for listening. Yeah thanks everyone. And visit LivPortland.com. for more information on this. And, I think we should post this list. What do you think that's. That'd be helpful for all those that aren't taking notes out there.
00:38:26:13 - 00:38:27:02
Makayla Mast
In your car.
00:38:27:06 - 00:38:33:16
Joe Reitzug
In your car. We'll have this on, on LivPortland.com. Thanks, everyone. Have a great day.
00:38:33:18 - 00:38:46:16
Makayla Mast
Thanks for joining us today. If you're interested in finding out more about Joe, myself or the LivPortland team, you can go to LivPortland.com. Thanks for giving us a listen and see you next time on the Off the Record podcast.
