The process of buying and selling homes and the desire to upgrade the property either before or after the sale have long been familiar features of the residential Chicago real estate market, but now one local real estate office is bringing those two elements closer together than ever.
RE/MAX At Home, 3215 Algonquin Road, Rolling Meadows, Ill., recently opened an on-the-premises home design center where consumers can get professional design assistance from on-staff designers and installation experts, as well as select from a wide array of high-quality products, including fixtures, flooring, counter tops, stone tile, cabinets, carpeting, California closets, windows siding, roofing, HVAC equipment, window treatments and much more.
The new 6,000-square-foot
“The idea of putting a home design showroom in the same building as our real estate office was a major reason we built this new facility and moved into it last year,” explained Tarabein. “It is all part of making buying or selling a
He points out, for example, that many home buyers want to understand, before submitting an offer, what it would cost them to make specific improvements to a property they are considering.
“Our home design center makes that much easier to accomplish,” Tarabein said. “Working with our professionals, buyers can develop a renovation plan, select products and get an estimate on the cost of completing the project in just a few days without a lot of calling and running around. Of course, they always can alter the plan later, but this way they have a realistic sense of that it will cost to make the changes they desire.”
In a similar vein, home sellers can use the new design center to plan for improvements they may want to make before putting their home on the market.
“These days, sellers know their home has to look its best to be competitive, and our design center gives them the ability to quickly estimate the costs of common pre-sale improvements, such as new carpeting or new countertops.”
The third category of customers Tarabein expects to serve is those who decide to remodel their existing home rather than move to a new one.
“In the current market, with homes generally taking longer to sell and average prices down from their peak, a substantial number of homeowners who would like to move are deciding to remodel instead,” Tarabein said. “What we offer them is a combination of design and real estate advice so that the dollars they spend on remodeling today will help maximize the long-term value of their home.”
