I will add that we met with several realtors when we were considering moving up to a bigger place, and one refused to tell us what she would advise that we update unless we signed with her. We went with the other realtor, who not only gave us this advice before signing, but also brought in a colleague to assess our place with her. We felt that showed a strong professionalism, and it turned out we were right given what she did for us when we listed, sold, and bought our new place.

The first response is wrong. Realtors (at least good ones) absolutely will do this and will do it for free. As many have mentioned, it is part of a way to pick up business. We did it and it was very eye opening. We actually talked to a couple Realtors to try to determine whether we needed to update a really out of date kitchen: both advised not to but had a lot of other ideas for other things to do in the house. It was very helpful. Not sure which one, but we will definitely use one of the Realtors when the time comes to sell. The best is to find somebody who knows your neighborhood well.

AroundTheBlock wrote:Another option is to do a home inspection yourself. You can hire a home inspector at anytime and they can tell you what buyers are looking for when reviewing a home.

My company always hires a home inspector prior to listing our properties for sale. As for knowing what the going rate is for your property, that information can be found online fairly easy.

But does it mean that the homeowner is obligated to disclose everything the inspector finds when he is ready to sell?

Another option is to do a home inspection yourself. You can hire a home inspector at anytime and they can tell you what buyers are looking for when reviewing a home.

My company always hires a home inspector prior to listing our properties for sale. As for knowing what the going rate is for your property, that information can be found online fairly easy.

OP here. Thanks all, appreciate the input. I was surprised by the first response since I figured a realtor would do this as part of building business and picking up a potential client. Appreciate everyone else confirming that. Thanks again.

You can also be looking at the listings in your area, going in open houses, etc. and see how they compare to yours and how they are priced. I'm not moving anytime soon but I check out every house in our neighborhood that goes on the market. I have a good idea of how I would price mine if I wanted to sell it, based on the houses that are comparable and what they sold for (because I check the sale price after it's recorded, not just the listing price).

I think a professional stager could do it actually.

We did this with a realtor in our old neighborhood. About 6mos before we ended up listing he came in and talked to us. We liked his advice and demeanor and followed up with us periodically and guess what? We interviewed him and another agent and picked him. He also got his 6% vs the other agent that was willing to go to 5%.

I am a real estate agent and do this all the time as well as have the "add on and stay or move to something bigger" conversations. It is called building business and a referral base. When people offer me money for these consults, I just ask them to send a donation to a charity they like or Children's Hospital. I have a good reputation in the community and that is more important to me than anything.

In my neighborhood, some of the agents offer to do this for free. I think they like to know what the houses in the neighborhood are like. They are actually dying to get into houses to see what's there. Even if they never get to sell your house, the knowledge they gain by spending an hour in your home may help them sell other houses!

"Yes, good realtors will meet with you, give you some free advice, and follow-up periodically to see where you are in the renovations and home-selling process."

Agree 100%. Good realtors will gladly give an hour of their time to give you advice, knowing there's a good chance they'll get a listing at some point. Just be clear upfront about your plans and what you're looking for at this time.

Yes, good realtors will meet with you, give you some free advice, and follow-up periodically to see where you are in the renovations and home-selling process. After developing this relationship, they most likely will get your listing when you decide to sell. Just keep in mind that their advice is only as good as the date that they give it and the market could change by the time you sell. In other words, if a realtor tells you it would be a good investment to finish a basement and you do it, five years from now buyers in your neighborhood may not be interested in finished basements.

If you are looking for someone to help you pick paint colors or figure out how to bump out your living room, you probably need an architect, int designer or contractor.

^^^Great response, from a real estate agent.

I'd just wait and have the conversation when you're ready to sell. No time consuming, expensive project is worth doing. You'll get a punch list from a good agent when the time comes.

Yes they do, and expect to be paid for it if you are not offering them the potential of a listing. What were you planning on paying them?

Hi everyone, we're not selling yet, but I'd like to know now where we should put our money--i.e. what fixes are most important for resale, what we can/should leave as is, what people are looking for when they want to buy in our neighborhood. I thought I'd ask a local realtor to come by and give us some advice, even though we may not move for a few years. Is this something realtors do regularly? Is there any downside to doing this? Thanks.