For sellers
Pre-listing renovation, priced and managed by me.
The industry standard is to refer this work to a third-party company that fronts the cost and collects a markup at closing. That model exists because most agents can't do the work. Mine can.
How the usual model works — and what it costs you
Concierge-style pre-listing programs front the money for renovation and recover it from your closing proceeds, plus a fee. The work is subcontracted to a vendor network. The agent coordinates. Nobody in the chain has both the licence to price construction and the accountability for your sale price.
You end up paying a margin for coordination, and the scope is frequently a generic checklist rather than a decision about your specific comparable set.
How this works instead
- Pre-market walkthrough. I walk your house as the listing agent and the general contractor at once. Free, no obligation, ideally three to six months before you want to list.
- Comparable-set analysis. What do the updated homes in your zoning actually sell for, and what specifically distinguishes them from yours? That gap defines the entire scope.
- A scope with a stop. Every item is justified by the comps, and the budget is capped by the neighborhood's ceiling. If a line does not clear its own cost, it does not go in.
- Approvals first. HOA architectural committee, covenant administration, or historic district review — filed before materials are ordered, not after.
- The work. My company, my crews, one point of accountability.
- List. With the inspection findings already resolved and paperwork in hand.
When I tell sellers not to do it
Regularly. If the gap between your current condition and the updated comparable set does not exceed the cost of the work, the honest answer is to fix the inspection items, list, and let the market pay for the renovation. I would rather tell you that than sell you a project.
What gets prioritised
Always first: the inspection-report items — roof, foundation, HVAC, drainage, electrical panel, unpermitted work. These are negotiated against you at full cost plus a risk premium once you are under contract.
Then, capped by the comps: kitchen, consistent hard-surface flooring, exterior envelope, concrete, primary bath — in the order that your specific market rewards. Which order depends on where you are selling →
Who this is for
- Long-tenure owners in Sugar Land, Katy or The Woodlands whose homes are original and whose competition is not.
- Memorial and Spring Branch owners deciding between selling as-is to a renovation buyer or capturing the bracket jump themselves.
- Heights owners who need systems and structure documented properly before a sophisticated buyer pool starts asking.
- Anyone who has been told "you should update the kitchen" without being told whether it pays.
Frequently asked questions
What is pre-listing renovation?
Renovation work completed before a home goes on the market, scoped specifically to raise the sale price above what the work costs. Done properly it targets inspection findings first and visible improvements second, capped by what the neighborhood's comparable set will support.
Do you front the cost of pre-listing renovation?
Payment structure is discussed case by case at the walkthrough. What is different here is that the work is scoped, priced and managed by Mike himself rather than referred to a third-party vendor network, which removes the coordination margin from the equation.
How far in advance should I start pre-listing renovation?
Three to six months before you want to list. Approvals alone — HOA architectural committees, covenant administration, historic district review — take real calendar time, and rushing the work produces exactly the finish quality that buyers discount.
What if the renovation isn't worth doing?
Then I will say so. If the price gap between your current condition and the updated comparable set does not exceed the cost of the work, the right move is to fix the inspection items, price correctly and list. That answer is free and it happens often.