{"id":28324,"date":"2026-08-24T15:15:30","date_gmt":"2026-08-24T22:15:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/?p=28324"},"modified":"2026-08-24T08:50:24","modified_gmt":"2026-08-24T15:50:24","slug":"smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/","title":{"rendered":"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In 2025, Karen Doering listed a home in a challenging market where comparable properties were sitting unsold.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cBeyond the renovation, we need to address the problems,\u201d says Doering, a sales representative with Bosley Real Estate in Toronto. \u201cPeople need to walk in and believe the house is ready to go.\u201d The plan focused on addressing visible blemishes and making the home feel move-in ready. Updates included new kitchen hardware, new countertops and updated lighting.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Combined with professional staging and a targeted marketing strategy, the house sold within days while competing listings remained on the market. Doering estimates the improvements contributed about $45,000 to the sale price.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In a perfect world, every new listing an agent prepares for market is in pristine condition, poised to sell quickly and at the best price. In reality, that\u2019s not always the case. With the right plan and budget, a home renovation can strengthen a listing and protect a client\u2019s future resale value. But not every upgrade delivers the same return, and some can even narrow a property\u2019s appeal.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>Where Renovation Dollars Go The Furthest?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">When renovating a home you plan to live in long term, designing for personal taste makes sense. But if a listing is on the horizon, that approach can limit return. Mehrdad Amini, owner and general contractor of Amini Construction, suggests that homeowners planning to stay at least five years should \u201cbuild it to your liking.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">\u201cHighly personalized renovations that fit a client\u2019s lifestyle are more difficult to realize a return on investment,\u201d Doering says. Return on investment should be top of mind for any sales representative preparing a property for sale.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">According to Edward Wang, a broker with The W Group Real Estate, the two rooms that typically deserve the most attention are the kitchen and bathroom. \u201cChanging handles and pulls has a big impact on the overall look and feel of a space without doing a full renovation,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Doering would add another often-overlooked area: storage. Mudrooms, closets and pantries can significantly influence buyer perception. In her experience, storage reflects the overall functionality of a home.\u201cHomeowners are asking, \u2018How am I going to live day-to-day with my family in this home?\u2019\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">What should newly purchased homeowners tackle first to maximize future resale? Once a client moves in, Wang recommends prioritizing three areas: painting, flooring and the kitchen.\u201cPainting is the easiest thing you can do to immediately update the look and feel of the space and make it your own,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Flooring is also best addressed early, especially before move-in. \u201cOften, especially when people buy older homes, there can be up to five different kinds of flooring. You should consider updating them to create a more cohesive look throughout.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">When it comes to the kitchen, however, Wang advises living in the home before committing to major changes. Understanding how the space functions \u2014 and where it falls short \u2014 can prevent costly missteps.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><strong>What Upgrades Miss The Mark?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">What renovations don\u2019t pay off? Some upgrades are more polarizing than profitable. Doering, Wang and Amini agree that in-ground pools can divide buyers. \u201cPools are 50-50,\u201d Amini says. \u201cThey either love them or not.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In Wang\u2019s experience, assuming two homes have the same layout and condition, he does not typically see a significant price difference based solely on whether there is a pool. \u201cAlmost zero,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Doering also cautions against \u201cover-renovation,\u201d where finishes exceed what is typical for the home or neighbourhood. \u201cIn the current marketplace, competition is increasingly based on value determined by comparable sales,\u201d she says. \u201cHigh-end renovations might not reflect the price realized.\u201d<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">In some cases, over-customization can lead to what Amini calls \u201creverse renovations\u201d \u2014 converting highly specialized spaces, such as media rooms, back to their original purpose. Adding a bedroom back into a property, for example, can improve resale value by broadening the potential buyer pool.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Doering recalls working with a client whose three-bedroom home had originally been designed as a four-bedroom property. The main bedroom had been expanded at the expense of the fourth bedroom. By restoring the original layout and converting the oversized bedroom back into two rooms, she estimates the price difference at $150,000 to $200,000 \u2014 not necessarily the value of the additional bedroom alone, but the impact of opening the property to buyers who would not consider a three-bedroom home.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">While every property and budget differ, the principle remains consistent. When Realtors help clients focus on the math, not just the emotion, renovations are far more likely to translate into stronger returns.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/realestatemagazine.ca\/in-a-slow-market-smart-renovations-can-move-stubborn-listings\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">In A Slow Market, Smart Renovations Can Move Stubborn Listings<\/a> by Jamie Burke | REM Real Estate Magazine<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In 2025, Karen Doering listed a home in a challenging market where comparable properties were sitting unsold. \u201cBeyond the renovation, we need to address the problems,\u201d says Doering, a sales &hellip; [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/\">read more<\/a>]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10,12,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-28324","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-home-lifestyle","category-listings","category-real-estate"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market &#8226; Rory C Real Estate | Oakwyn Realty<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market &#8226; Rory C Real Estate | Oakwyn Realty\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"In 2025, Karen Doering listed a home in a challenging market where comparable properties were sitting unsold. \u201cBeyond the renovation, we need to address the problems,\u201d says Doering, a sales &hellip; [read more]\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@RoryClipsham\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@RoryClipsham\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Rory Clipsham\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Rory Clipsham\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0672b9777e67473b9bd9247df49499c7\"},\"headline\":\"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-24T22:15:30+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":781,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0672b9777e67473b9bd9247df49499c7\"},\"articleSection\":[\"Home | Lifestyle\",\"Listings\",\"Real Estate\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\\\/\",\"name\":\"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market &#8226; Rory C Real Estate | Oakwyn Realty\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-24T22:15:30+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/\",\"name\":\"Rory C Real Estate | Oakwyn Realty\",\"description\":\"Rory C Real Estate Updates | Home Selling &amp; Buying\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0672b9777e67473b9bd9247df49499c7\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\"},{\"@type\":[\"Person\",\"Organization\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/0672b9777e67473b9bd9247df49499c7\",\"name\":\"Rory Clipsham\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-CA\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/10\\\/RoryC-white-w-tagline.jpg\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/10\\\/RoryC-white-w-tagline.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/10\\\/RoryC-white-w-tagline.jpg\",\"width\":504,\"height\":504,\"caption\":\"Rory Clipsham\"},\"logo\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/blog\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2019\\\/10\\\/RoryC-white-w-tagline.jpg\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/www.roryc.ca\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/pg\\\/BurnabyandCoquitlamHomes\\\/about\\\/?ref=page_internal\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/roryclipshamhomes\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/RoryClipsham\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market &#8226; Rory C Real Estate | Oakwyn Realty","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market &#8226; Rory C Real Estate | Oakwyn Realty","twitter_description":"In 2025, Karen Doering listed a home in a challenging market where comparable properties were sitting unsold. \u201cBeyond the renovation, we need to address the problems,\u201d says Doering, a sales &hellip; [read more]","twitter_creator":"@RoryClipsham","twitter_site":"@RoryClipsham","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Rory Clipsham","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/"},"author":{"name":"Rory Clipsham","@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0672b9777e67473b9bd9247df49499c7"},"headline":"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market","datePublished":"2026-08-24T22:15:30+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/"},"wordCount":781,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0672b9777e67473b9bd9247df49499c7"},"articleSection":["Home | Lifestyle","Listings","Real Estate"],"inLanguage":"en-CA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/","url":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/","name":"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market &#8226; Rory C Real Estate | Oakwyn Realty","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/#website"},"datePublished":"2026-08-24T22:15:30+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-CA","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/2026\/08\/smart-renovations-can-move-listings-in-a-slow-market\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Smart Renovations Can Move Listings in A Slow Market"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/","name":"Rory C Real Estate | Oakwyn Realty","description":"Rory C Real Estate Updates | Home Selling &amp; Buying","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0672b9777e67473b9bd9247df49499c7"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-CA"},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/0672b9777e67473b9bd9247df49499c7","name":"Rory Clipsham","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-CA","@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/RoryC-white-w-tagline.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/RoryC-white-w-tagline.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/RoryC-white-w-tagline.jpg","width":504,"height":504,"caption":"Rory Clipsham"},"logo":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/RoryC-white-w-tagline.jpg"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pg\/BurnabyandCoquitlamHomes\/about\/?ref=page_internal","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/roryclipshamhomes\/","https:\/\/x.com\/RoryClipsham"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28324","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28324"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28324\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28325,"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28324\/revisions\/28325"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28324"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28324"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.roryc.ca\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28324"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}