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Selling a home is one of the most significant decisions you'll ever make, and it comes with a lot of responsibilities. Sometimes adding and removing some accessories from your home can help to spike interest from potential buyers, and a lot has been said about the importance of replacing carpet to this effect. Although doing so has had varying results,  home sellers seem to be torn between replacing and not replacing the carpet before selling their homes.

Having brand new carpet can help to increase your home's value, as it becomes the focal point of attention to potential buyers. It's not a requirement to replace the carpet before selling your home, but you should do so if the carpet is worn out or doesn't compliment the fresh coat of paint in the room.

This article will look at whether your home increases in value by replacing the carpet with hardwood or laminate flooring. We'll also have a price comparison between carpet and a laminate floor, and discuss the type of flooring to increase the home's value.

Does a Home Gain More Value by Replacing the Carpet?

As a homeowner looking to sell their property, the best thing you can do to get top dollar for your home is pick the right projects to improve its market value. This means applying a fresh coat of paint and repairing any damaged areas. Sometimes you might need to do minor modifications like adding or removing some things you think would affect the asking price.

Carpet is usually the biggest topic, with some sellers removing it entirely. However, replacing carpet should only be done if it's worn out and will reflect a poor image, or if it doesn't compliment the new paint, if applicable, in your home.

The best place to start is almost always with carpet cleaning. Especially if you haven’t had your carpets professionally cleaned in over a year. A good professional cleaning can remove stains and bring old carpets back to life. 

If you feel like your carpet is beyond saving, having a brand new carpet installed is often the right strategy for attracting potential buyers. For starters, the carpet helps them create a mental image of their new home, which often ends up sparking interest in the property.

The carpet creates a home-like environment, even if the viewers don't like the color or texture, as it gives them a clue of how they can plan the interior if they buy the home. 

When marketing homes for our seller clients we love to be able to comment in the remarks “New Carpet” and show it off in the pictures. 

However, removing the carpet entirely is not a bad thing. 

Does Replacing the Carpet with Hardwood Increase the Home's Value?

If you’re removing the carpet to install new hardwood flooring in your home, you and the potential buyer could see this as a nice upgrade. Hardwood flooring is probably the best investment you can make on a property in terms of aesthetic appeal and longevity.

Installing hardwood flooring is not a cheap project, and you might not be able to recoup all the costs. 

If you have an older home and you know there is hardwood under the carpet, by all means rip up that carpet and refinish the hardwoods.  

Nothing can help turn a prospect into an actual buyer like a shiny new hardwood floor around the house. If you have the budget for it hardwood is a desired flooring choice amongst buyers. 

There are many other things you can do that will impact the value of your home when selling. Many of those things are in our Get Sell Ready Guide.

Does Replacing carpet with Laminate Increase the Home's Value?

Laminate is a preferred option for some homeowners due to its longevity, but a majority will always prefer hardwood or carpet if they're in great condition. Laminate flooring doesn't add much value to the home, but it's an improvement if the floor is in disarray and requires repair.

For starters, laminate flooring is a cheaper alternative to hardwood flooring, which reduces the total repair cost. Secondly, this type of floor lasts longer and maintains the shiny feature for an extended period. However, it's relatively noisy compared to carpet or a hardwood floor due to its poor sound absorption capabilities. There's also the issue of repairing the floor once damaged, as laminate requires complete replacement, compared to hardwood, where you can replace the damaged area only.

This type of flooring is perfect for someone renovating a home within a budget, and it might be enough to convince buyers to consider your property. However, many would prefer a new carpet to laminate.

Which is Cheaper? Carpet or Laminate?

Carpet is more affordable than a laminate floor, although laminate lasts longer, can withstand harsher conditions, and is easier to clean. However, carpet allows you to customize the home, as you can change and replace them with any color or texture.

Alternatively, carpets are warm and comfortable, giving your home that unique feeling, while laminate flooring can get cold or warm depending on the weather. Carpets are also less noisy as they can absorb more sound, with laminate being the opposite. For this reason, carpet tends to be the stronger choice in a condo environment.

Carpets are also safer for children than laminate. However, laminate can withstand foot traffic better than carpet, making it ideal for living rooms and balconies.

What Type of Flooring will Increase a Home's Value the Most?

Hardwood flooring tends to improve a home's value and help to convince potential buyers to consider buying a home. Carpeting also works well, but only if you choose the right texture and color. 

Although a type of flooring might determine how well a property performs on the market, it all comes down to what buyers have in mind. Also, the location's climate determines the type of floor that works better, given that hardwood tends to rot easily in wet areas. What works well in Arizona might not be as effective in Miami.

Final Thoughts

You don't need to remove carpets before selling a home unless they're in bad condition and you believe they'll compromise the asking price. Many homebuyers prefer hardwood over laminate and carpets since they last longer and have an appealing look.

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Download our Get Sell Ready. For many home sellers, they waste their time and money getting their home ready to sell. They waste their nights, weekends and money.  the biggest hurdle to real estate investing is getting started. Some quick, small attention to detail, can have a big impact on the first impression of your house, helping it sell quickly and for the highest market price.

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You've been working hard all year and finally took the plunge to become a vacation rental owner. You're enjoying meeting new people and watching them explore your city, but you're not seeing the profits you were hoping for. You know that with a few tweaks, you could be making more money and hosting even more guests!

There are a few main things you can do to increase your vacation rental income; such as getting your rental booked more often, using dynamic pricing during off-season. Also upgrade your property so you can ask for a higher price. Put a repeat and referral system in place. And think of ways to decrease costs, which also puts more money in your pocket.

In this article we'll review a few of these ways to increase your vacation rental income. In a previous article about investing in short term rentals I mentioned , the challenge with being in the short term rental marketplace is you're not just a real estate investor you're a hospitality manager.

You're providing an experience for your guests, not just providing a place for tenants.

The secret to higher revenue, more profits and increasing rental income is keeping that top of mind. Develop a hospitality mindset.

For the actual tactics and tips, keep reading.

How to maximize your profit

As I mentioned above, the challenge with being in the short term rental marketplace is you're not just a real estate investor you're a hospitality manager. You're providing an experience for your guests, not just providing a place for tenants.

Here Are A Few Tips To Increase Your Vacation Rental Income

• Respond quickly to inquiries.

The faster you can get back to potential guests, the more likely they are to book with you.

Being quick to respond to inquiries is key in making sure you don't lose out on any potential guests. Often, people are browsing through a number of different options and if they don't hear back from you quickly, they may move on to another option. Make sure you have someone assigned to check your emails and messages regularly so that you can reply as soon as possible. A speedy response conveys that you're interested in hosting them and are available to help them with anything they need. It also makes for a great first impression!

• Make sure you have a good internet connection. 

Guests will need access to the internet for things like checking in and out, booking reservations, and finding information about the area. (Unless your vibe is off-grid and getting away from it all. Could be the move in today's world.)

• Furnish the property with everything guests will need.

This includes things like linens, towels, dishes, cookware, and spices. You may also want to provide things like shampoo and soap. Coffee and a coffee maker are a big deal. Don't forget the coffee.

• Things in the house for guests to do

Having things for guests to do is a great way to keep them occupied and entertained. This could include things like books, games, movies, streaming service or even a ping pong table.

The weather isn't always going to cooperate with a guest's stay, so to make sure they still enjoy themselves, make sure there are things around the rental.

• Have a welcome package that includes information about the property, the area, and local attractions

Provide contact information for the property manager or owner, and make sure that someone is available to answer any questions or address any problems that guests may have. Guests will appreciate having everything all in one place.

• Have a good marketing strategy 

Taking photos of the home with your phone is a big no-no. Hire a professional photographer for this job. Make sure you write an informative property description. List all the nearby amenities and benefits of staying at your place. The best stores, coffee shops, restaurants, and parks. Anything that could be of interest to your potential guests. 

• Create a listing on websites 

Use sites like Airbnb, HomeAway and VRBO. These websites allow guests to search for properties to rent by location, amenities, price range and more. 

• Encourage guests to review the property 

On sites like TripAdvisor or wherever they booked from, guests can leave a review of your property and their stay. Positive reviews can help attract new guests and generate repeat business.

• Set up a website with a direct booking calendar.

You can create your own vacation rental website very easily. Think about how to reward repeat guests and referrals from them with special deals. Once you have some loyal guests you can start to even out your cashflow and make your occupancy rate more predictable. 

Direct booking is more popular than Airbnb and VRBO combined.

If you don't have a way for guests to direct book not only is it costing you in booking fees. You're probably leaving a lot of money on the table.

There are a lot of different software options to create your own website.

Once you have your website set up, make sure you add a direct booking calendar. This will allow guests to book without going through the third-party site.

• Use dynamic pricing. 

Uber and ride-sharing apps do this. When there is higher demand, the price increases. Less demand, lower prices. You could do the same thing with your vacation rental property. During the summer, weekend, a special event going on, you maximize the price. Middle of winter, weekday, no events, the price gets very low. Maybe low enough price to attract a guest thinking, "Why not get away for a couple of nights at that price?"

• Update your property 

It goes without saying, the property needs to be clean, fresh paint, new furniture, etc. But also take an honest assessment of your property and look at the features and amenities.

Can you only charge so much because the vacation rental is dated or not as modern as others?

Keep in mind, guests have a choice. They are going to spend their hard-earned money somewhere. Are they going to spend it with you? Or with your competition? Many people and families only get to have a special vacation once a year. Why would they spend it at your property?

What amenities are guests willing to pay extra for?

Take a look at your competition. Assess what they're doing, offering, and the prices.

Does one vacation rental have a hot tub, charges more and always seem to be booked?

Does one place have an outdoor kitchen or gas grill? Fire pits? A putting green?

Conclusion

Vacation rental properties are a great investment and can be lucrative if you know how to keep your property occupied. In this article, we’ve outlined some of the key ways that will help you increase revenue from your vacation rentals. Keep in mind that it takes time to get started with these strategies- they won't work overnight but by following our tips, you'll eventually start making more income than before!

If you are looking for more information on vacation rental properties, please check out our other blog posts or contact us for help! We're always happy to help.

Check Out These Related Resources

Investing In A Short Term Rental (Is It Better Than Long Term Real Estate Investing?)

12 Things To Consider When Buying A Vacation Rental Property

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All real estate is too expensive.

There can't possibly be any deals to be found out there if you're a first-time homebuyer, right?

We're always previewing property for clients and because we're always looking at buying another rental property.

Recently, we were looking at condos we are already familiar with.

Here's an example of how we look for good real estate deals in a hot market.

A condo had shown up on our radar about two weeks earlier. And for some reason hadn't sold and in fact, the price was reduced. So we started thinking maybe we can make the numbers work.

I'll share with you the reason why we think this home hadn't sold and a few other things to look for if you're looking for a good deal in real estate. 

In general, what it comes down to is if you're looking for a good real estate deal, you have to look for the bad. Bad data, bad photos, and bad condition. 

How To Find Good Real Estate Deals

1) Bad Data

If you're looking for a good real estate deal in a red hot seller's market, it's like looking for a needle in a stack of needles.

One of the first things you want to look for is bad data.

You might be wondering, how can data be bad? Data is data, right? Kind of. The problem is that the data that's being entered into the MLS is coming from humans. Those humans being real estate agents or real estate agent admins, or people that might work at the MLS, doing it for the real estate agents.

Sometimes that data gets entered incorrectly.

For example with this property that Katherine and I were looking at, it was a two-bedroom condo but the way that the data was coming out to the property websites, it listed as only having one parking space.

If you're looking to live there as an owner-occupant, or even looking at it as s a real estate investment, like we are, having a two-bedroom condo with only one parking space isn't ideal. 

However, Katherine went digging into the information a little bit deeper and found out that it did in fact have two parking spots, even though a lot of the places that it's being marketed online showed it as only having one.

That's an example of bad data.

Many potential home buyers just glossed right over this listing. They skipped it. They probably saw it online, looked at it, thought it looked kind of nice, but then noticed it only has one parking spot and go well, "where are we supposed to park our cars at?"

So they move on to the next property.

Katherine and I dug a little bit deeper and found out it checks off even more boxes. And that's why we went to look at it.

IN MY OPINION

Bad data is never intentional. It's never malicious. The listing agent or the admin doesn't intentionally mean to enter the wrong data. It could have just been some wrong information passed from one place to the next.

It's kind of like the telephone game. The information starts from here, it gets passed to here, it gets passed to here, supposed to be put on this form, and then supposed to be entered into the MLS. And somewhere along the lines of the data might've got miscommunicated or someone just might've hit the wrong key.

Mistakes happen, but when those bad mistakes happen, there's an opportunity to find good real estate deals that others have skipped over.

2) Bad Photos

Look for bad photos if you want a good real estate deal.

The difference between bad data and bad photos; Bad data could be an honest mistake. Bad photos is being lazy or being cheap.

There have been so many times when we were working with buyers, out looking at properties because they saw a good property online based upon the pictures. Then when they get to it in person, they're extremely disappointed because it looks way better online than it actually does in person.

This actually happens in the reverse also. 

The photos look bad online and then when they get to look at it in person, they're pleasantly surprised.

I don't quite understand why listing agents don't spend a few hundred dollars to hire a professional photographer to get great-looking photos because web appeal is the new curb appeal.

Back when I started selling real estate in 1997. So many buyers would just do a drive-by of the property.

They would check out the neighborhood, look at the curb appeal, how it looks from the street and go, “that looks like that could be someplace that we would be happy to call home”.

Schedule a showing with me and then I showed them the inside.

Now, you're just looking at properties online, right? You're either looking at it on your computer or you're swiping through your phone.

So I don't know why a listing agent wouldn't spend a couple of hundred dollars to get great looking photos, but many don't. This laziness or cheapness could be to your benefit. 

Before you skip a listing just because it doesn't look good in pictures, double-check. If the only thing you don't like is the pictures, maybe it's worth a look. 

THE REALITY

There's still a lot of listings that don't have great photos on them. It doesn't mean it's not a great property. So just because you see bad photos online, doesn't mean it's not going to be a good deal.

3) Bad Condition

I know you have a certain idea of what your home should look like. If you're spending $500,000, $700,000, or even $1,000.000 you expect it to look a certain way. HGTV shows like House Hunters, Property Brothers, etc, have not helped with reasonable expectations for home buyers.

You're seeing buyers that absolutely need to have granite or quartz countertops. You have to have hardwood floors, and the home has to look impeccable.

Here are some thoughts from real estate agent and YouTuber Graham Stephan on why finding a property that needs a little bit of rehab might be the way to go.

"Renovate. And this is the best way to add equity to a property is by spending money, fixing it up, and then you will profit. The difference between what you're in it and what the home is worth after you're done renovating it.

And from my perspective, this is usually the easiest and best way to increase the value of a property and most places that need renovation priced themselves accordingly. And by doing the work yourself, you're able to often do it much cheaper than if you're able to pay for someone's already completed work. And by doing that, you make the difference between what you're in it. And again, what the property is worth when you're done. Now with this comes the really fun part, and that is putting your own style and touches and finishes in the property. Now, even though I recommend going pretty neutral, especially if you're going to be doing something to rent out or for somebody else, you can still put your own touches and personality on this and still have just so much fun renovating a property and just kind of making it your own."

Other thoughts from a real estate agent with a YouTube channel called Meet Kevin, and he calls this process, Buying in the Wedge.

"So let me first clarify why I recommend you get something that needs cosmetic work. If you get something that needs cosmetic work, you're buying in the wedge of a market.

Here's what I mean. If a property is worth $500,000 as a total fixer-upper and it's worth $625,000, fixed up, a flipper might be able to pay $475,000 for it, because remember they also have to budget in selling costs and holding costs. Which somebody who's going to live in the property at least to start with and then maybe rent it out in the future. It doesn't have to be considered. On the other hand, most buyers aren't willing to get into cosmetic remodels. So that's where you have a little bit of a wedge. The flippers are on the low end and they cannot afford to pay what somebody can pay that's going to keep the property, live in it for a little bit, remodel it and maybe rent it out in the future.

So, yeah, flippers over here on one end. And then you got the move in ready buyers who were buying the place for $625,000. And then, and you ideally have you."

Want to Talk Real Estate? Have Questions? Start A Chat with Katherine or Darin 

Buying In The Wedge

I really liked that idea, that phrasing, that terminology of Buying in the Wedge of where the contractors is at, and what the fair market value most likely is.

There are some good deals to be had inside that wedge of where the condition is not great but you can find a great deal.

We had this happen while representing the seller. A wholesaler, a home flipper was trying to get a deal at a certain price on a property.

We knew that the fair market value after it was fixed up would be close to $450,000 to $500,000. The wholesaler and the home flipper we're looking to buy the home for $215,000. That would give them a lot of room in order to update the home, get it to a certain standard of what the market was looking for and make a very healthy profit. But we knew in representing the seller that we could also put it in the market at a much higher price. Of course not the $450,000 to $500,000. But get the seller a lot more money, put more money into their pocket than what that home flipper was willing to pay.

So when we put it into the market, a first-time home buyer was able to get a great deal on it and didn't actually have to update it immediately to move in. It was in livable condition. It just hadn't been updated in a very long time. And now this home buyer had a great real estate deal, they had a roof over their head and they were going to be able to:

• update,
• remodel this home based upon their timeline,
• on their budget
• and to what their preferences were of what they wanted that home to look like.

I would certainly say that that home buyer bought in the wedge.

So how do you find these good real estate deals that have the bad data, the bad pictures and the bad condition?

Well, you could obviously watch the real estate market every day like a hawk.

If you're signed up on our website persingergroup.com, you're going to get an email every single morning with an update of what's new in the market, the new listings, what went pending, what closed and what price that closed for. The website also updates every 15 minutes. So you could come back and check throughout the day, basically to see what listings are coming on the market in real-time.

The other way that I'd recommend to find these good deals is by using what we call the CIRCLE BACK TECHNIQUE.

The Circle Back Technique

A lot of websites, ours included, are going to be talking about how fast they update like persingergroup.com updates new listings every 15 minutes. And so there's a lot of push in the industry of like new, most current homes for sale. But the Circle Back Technique is about going back and looking at homes that are still for sale, not the homes that were listed this week, but homes that were listed maybe last week or three weeks ago, four weeks ago.

What persingergroup.com allows you to do that pretty easily. If you hit the saved as a favorite, the little heart icon when you're searching for homes, it's going to compile all of your favorites.

Because there's some hidden gems in there.  

So even though it's an extremely hot seller's market. It doesn't mean that you can't find a good real estate deal.

Are you going to be able to find the perfect home? Probably not. But you can find a good real estate deal if you're looking for the bad.

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If you're thinking about moving to Coeur d’Alene, you might be wondering what the winters are like, how cold it gets and how much snowfall there is. You'll find all four seasons in Coeur d’Alene. However, the weather and temperatures may not be as severe as you would expect.

So, how much snow does Coeur d’Alene Idaho get during the winter?

The City Of Coeur d'Alene's average snowfall is 42 inches of snow per year. The US national average is 28 inches of snow per year. It's surprising to most people how little snowfall Coeur d'Alene receives.

Now that you know how much snow Coeur d’Alene gets, learn more about the weather and what's it like to live in Coeur d’Alene during the winter time.

How much snow does Coeur d’Alene Idaho get?

How much snow does Coeur d’Alene Idaho get?

The image below from howmuchwillitsnow.com shows that Coeur d'Alene has received less than four feet of snow on average each year for the past six years.

Somewhat interesting is how few days there is snowfall. The blue squares represent the days of snow.

How much does Coeur d'Alene compared to other cities

When comparing Coeur d’Alene to other notable spots or even nearby Spokane, you can see that the snowfall is not extreme.  In many ways it's not as bad as you think it would be. 

How cold does it get in Coeur d'Alene

Coeur d’Alene offers plenty of opportunities for outdoor recreation. But what happens when the snow starts to fall and the temperature starts to drop? How cold does it get in Coeur d'Alene? 

This is not Southern California or even Western Washington. It's going to get cold.  Things start to get cold in December, lasting until mid-March. Even though it can be sunny during the wintertime, it can have its moments of fogginess. 

Fortunately, winter in Coeur d'Alene gets cold, but it's still not too cold. It hits a winter low average in January at 24.5 degrees.

For comparison;

• Bozeman, MT hits 13.3 degrees.
• Denver CO, is 17.9 degrees.
• Boise, ID hits a January low of 23.7
• Bend, OR is 23.5 degrees

How bad is it driving in Coeur d'Alene during the winter

If you're relocating from somewhere else that doesn't have snow or it rarely snows... you might be concerned about driving in the snow.

The difference between places like Seattle or areas of California that rarely get snow, the city of Coeur d'Alene is prepared for it. They have the right equipment to plow the streets and make driving safe.

From the Coeur d’Alene city snow guide:

The City’s street system has grown from 140 miles of streets in 1990 to over 265 today. Due to limited resources, City crews must maintain a disciplined priority system. Keeping major streets open is the City’s key priority. By focusing first on major streets, emergency routes are maintained to keep essential services functioning after snowfalls that would otherwise paralyze the City.

Commencement of Snow Removal:

In accordance with the adopted Snow Plan, plowing does not typically commence unless there are 4 to 5 inches of snow accumulated on the roadway or 2 inches accumulated with forecasts of more snowfall. 

Citywide plowing completion goal:

The adopted Snow Plan sets the goal of completion of a citywide plowing operation after a major snowstorm, at no more than 40 hours.

Plowing Priorities:

The City’s Streets & Engineering Director and staff will direct snow removal and ice control operations to established priorities outlined in the adopted snow plan.  

1. Emergency routes
2. Major thoroughfares and dangerous hills and curves
3. Arterials 
4. Bus routes
5. Residential streets
6. Cul-de-sacs

How bad are winters in Coeur d’Alene?

Coeur d’Alene is in North Idaho. North is the keyword there. That means shorter days during the winter.

In 2022, the shortest day is December 21, with 8 hours, 25 minutes of daylight. So, that could easily mean you leave for work in the dark and get home in the dark.

But as for it being brutal, harsh and piles and mounds of snow, not the case. Coeur d’Alene isn't even much colder than other cities like I've mentioned.

Plus the great thing about visiting, or living in Coeur d’Alene during the winter is all the things to do.

Things to do in Coeur d’Alene during the winter

You could take a cruise to the North Pole.

This unique experience of the Coeur d’Alene North Pole Cruise is something children and adults will enjoy. On your journey to the North pole, and you'll get to see some of the most amazing sights and lights along the way.

When it's cold out you can enjoy ice skating at CDA On Ice.

An outside seasonal ice skating rink is made in McEuen park. It runs from the last weekend of October through January.

Go sledding on Cherry Hill

This 30 acre park is located at the intersection of Hazel Ave. and 15th St. The park is near a giant hillside that becomes a popular sledding destination when the snow starts falling.

Head up to Schweitzer Mountain

Schweitzer Mountain is a great place to go skiing and snowboarding in the winter. The mountain has almost 3,000 acres of skiable terrain, making it one of the largest ski resorts in the Northwest. Schweitzer also has a number of different runs for all levels of skiers and snowboarders, from beginner to expert. And if you're not up for skiing or snowboarding, there's also tubing, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing trails at Schweitzer Mountain.

OTHER SKI RESORTS NEAR COEUR d'ALENE

• 49 Degrees North Ski & Snowboard Resort
• Lookout Pass Ski & Recreation Area
• Mount Spokane Ski & Snowboard Park
• Silver Mountain Resort

Conclusion

So if you're curious about how much snow does Coeur d’Alene Idaho get or how bad the winter is because you're hoping to enjoy the outside. Rest assured, you can. 

Winters don't seem too bad if you take advantage of all the winter activities available!