Tips to Maximize the Value of Your Home

Home prices in Greenwich peaked in August 2007 and it will take at least 5 to 7 more years for them to return to those levels, a leading real estate agent predicted on Tuesday.

Prices have been in decline for the past 3 years,  Russell Pruner, owner of Shore & Country Properties in Riversde, told a gathering at Greenwich Audubon, but it's not the first time residential real estate values have dropped.

"In the period since 1942, Greenwich has declined 14 times," Pruner said, although the current 3-year decline is unprecedented.

Stability is returning to the low end of the market and homes priced above $5 million are coming down," he said.

"Greenwich still has its Triple-A bond rating," he was quick to add.

On the optimistic front, Pruner had a report on first-quarter sales for 2011 in Greenwich that listed sales of three homes in excess of $10 million, the same number as the previous year in a comparable period.

And 10 homes in the $5 to $7.5 million range sold in this year's first quarter, up from 4 the previous year.

Pruner's comments came during a panel discussion on the subject of what to do to maximize the value of your home. Matthew Kolk, editor-in-chief of East Coast Home & Design magazine and a board member of Connecticut Audubon, moderated.

Pruner was joined on the panel by four home improvement experts representing the professions of architecture (Jeffrey Kaufman of JMKA Architects of Westport and Greenwich), interior design (Gail Green of Green & Company, Inc., in New York), landscape architecture (Dickson DeMarche of the Laurelrock Company in Wilton) and high-end home contracting (Scott E. Hobbs of Hobbs, Inc. of New Canaan, New York and Bridgehampton).

They were full of tips of what to do and what to avoid doing to increase the resale value of your home. They also shared their insights  about changing styles and trends.

The basics of making your home most appealing haven't changed, according to the experts.

Yes, a modern kitchen and modern bathrooms are a must, according to Green, but equally important are creating a welcoming entryway at the front door as well as an intangible quality that gives people good feelings about the house.

The entryspace "sets the pace for how the rest of the space flows," Green said. "It's like wearing a great suit with a plastic tie" if the pieces don't match.

DiMarche recommended that spiffing up a house for resale should start from the outside first.

Attractive landscaping can increase the value of a home by up to 15 per cent, he said, as well as reduce the "turn time" between putting the house on the market and clinching a deal by 6 weeks.

"If there's no curb appeal, I'm out!" remarked Pruner.

Hobbs, whose company builds luxury custom homes, recommended the services of one of its departments: the annual-maintenance staff.

"We're firm believers in preventive maintenance," he said, cautioning that a $1,000 roof repair, for example,  if not attended to, can become  a $10,000 major headache.

He suggested homeowners keep a log of home repairs and upgrades both to keep maintenance on schedule and within budget but also for use as a handy selling point to put potential buyers at ease.

Pruner said those in the market to purchase are far more knowledgeable about energy efficiency and green construction practices than ever before, and that they want a healthy home built with non-toxic materials.

"Interior environmental quality is a big deal," said Kaufman. "Mold, radon, toxic building materials and lead paint can cause a home to be a sick house. Parents of children with asthma and other health problems are well-informed."

Green renovations, including energy-saving windows, doors and insulation, are good selling points, said Kaufman.

"It's becoming a rarity in Greenwich not to have geo-thermal heating," noted Pruner.

The trend is for more and more such green innovations and pesticide-free lawns.

Pruner is also detecting a trend away from "McMansions" with massive square footage to smaller-scale well-built homes.

"I can foresee the newspaper headline: 'McMansion taken down for more modest house,'" he said.