Jan 20, 2011
Thanks to TV channels like HGTV and magazines like Better Homes and Gardens, home buyers want updated homes. They want the newest and greatest. One request I hear all the time is “as long as it has granite counters”. Some of my clients could care less where the house is, as long as it has granite. I have had buyers change there price range thousands just so they can find a house with granite counters.
I agree granite is nice, really nice. It is a great product that makes homes look and feel opulent. But should you choose one home over another just because it has granite? If that makes you happy, sure! Sellers know that about buyers; tons of research is done every year on what buyers want. Sellers don’t run out and get the latest trendy thing to put in there home just to sell it, but flippers do.
Home flipping is not bad or evil, most of the time, the flipper provides a kind of community service. They take large financial risks to take a run down property and convert it into something people want to live in. If they do it well, the flipper can make lots of money. They should, its hard work.
However, some flippers are not as honest as others, and they know buyers want granite counters. Flippers will spend money on granite counters and nicer kitchens, and next to nothing on the rest of the house. I have seen homes with beautiful kitchens but cracked slabs. Whats more important, the kitchen counters or the house falling down around the kitchen counters. Flippers some times use the granite counters to make you forget about the cracked slab, or the rotten roof.
Granite counter availability
Percentage of homes sold in 2010 with granite/marble kitchen counters, for the city of Austin, by price
You can find granite counters at any price. I found a house that sold last year for $107,000 with real granite counters. But that is far from the rule, and more the exception. In general you have to spend at least $350,000 to get a 50% chance of having granite counters. $600,000 before you have a 2 in 3 chance. Even if you spend over $1,000,000 you still are not 100% sure you will find granite counters in the house of your dreams..
| $149,999 or under - | 2.9% |
| $150,000 – $199,999 - | 13% |
| $200,000 – $249,999 - | 22% |
| $250,000 – $299,999 - | 33% |
| $300,000 – $349,999 - | 44.7% |
| $350,000 – $399,999 - | 51.4% |
| $400,000 – $449,999 - | 61.17% |
| $450,000 – $499,999 - | 60.37 |
| $500,000 – $549,999 - | 61.32% |
| $550,000 – $599,999 - | 62.2% |
| $600,000 – $699,999 - | 68.07% |
| $700,000 – $799,999 - | 63.82% |
| $800,000 – $899,999 - | 78.35$ |
| $900,000 – $999,999 - | 81.81% |
| $1,000,000 – or over - | 75.59% |
I think it is important to share information for many reasons. First, it helps buyers figure out what they can reasonably expect to get for their money. Second, it helps sellers know what other homes have in that price range. Lastly, it gives agents like me, real detail about what is available in the market. I think it is up to agents to know this information, share this info, and figure out ways to use this info to better the business. If your Realtor is not thinking outside the box, give me a call and lets brake down the walls of normal and figure out something new and exciting together.
Buying and selling homes is just part of what I do. Keeping the public enlightened with new and thought provoking ways to look at the market is the other. Since you are already reading this, when you are ready to buy or sell, give me a call.
About Ed Neuhaus
Broker and founder of Neuhaus Realty Group. I started working in real estate as soon as I could push a lawnmower and help clean up investment properties for my parents. Investing in real estate has always been a passion and now I have turned that passion into a way to help others. Buying and selling homes for others is just one way I think I can make the world better. No sales pressure, no gimmicks, just an honest work ethic gets the job done. Let me know how I can help you. Give me a call today at 512.366.3720
