Refinishing Hardwood Floors To Entice Buyers
- Home Case Studies Refinishing Hardwood Floors To Entice Buyers
Dog damaged Floor near Front Window
Living Room looks much cleaner, fresher now that it is refinished
Living Room Floor is sanded ready for finish
Oak Floor now inviting to prospective buyers 
Freshly coated oak floors are more appealing
Old hardened yellowed stain needs help!
This widow wisely chooses to refinish her hardwood floors to entice buyers
This customer, recently widowed and clearly still grieving, had to make fast decisions to get her house presentable and on the market. After dealing with her husband’s long illness, certain things just had to be put off. So now it was time to get cracking. Drawing on her real estate background she knew she had to carefully budget and plan where her money will be well spent.
Most likely she intended to paint, restore the hardwood floors, put on a new roof, new carpeting and flooring and fill in the pool. All this had to be carefully addressed with good advice, decisions and sound documentation as she faced some estate issues.
Determining The Best Course of Action For the Hardwood
The good news is there was no imminent board replacement needed, but clearly the old finish had aged so much it looked like a shiny turtle shell- thick, shiny, yellowed and unsightly. Add to it remnants from the dog’s habit of running and barking in the front window every time a pedestrian walked by, there was no mercy for that floor!
Hearing the delicacy of her situation we set about giving her guidance and advice as if we were in her shoes. So instead of refinishing all her hardwood we strongly suggested she refinish the main areas of the home, but recommended she carpet the second and third bedrooms in addition to the master she already intended to carpet. New carpeting would be more cost effective than refinishing. Also, carpet does have some benefits, and surprisingly once we explained the benefits of carpet in a bedroom (which we will release info about that might surprise anyone), it was a no brainer.
We gave her pricing, and explained the benefits of our water based commercial grade finish, and how it would be a low VOC smell so as not to chase away any buyers. Unfortunately, some finishes leave strong VOC smells from the toxic chemical formulations, and can hang for weeks, not at all what you want when selling a home. She took our proposal, asked for a few moments to review her finances, returned and gave us the go-ahead. She was confident in her decision, and appreciated that we were guiding her in a manner that was best for her. I think as much as she knew the work would be done correctly, she equally appreciated we had her back, and that we would not take advantage of her vulnerable situation.
Ready, Set- Sand
The sanding was straightforward, but discovered some discoloration from the dog’s water bowl and perhaps some accidents under the area rug in the dining room. Hopefully some bleaching will be the ticket. As we moved along with the sanding we applied a few coatings to bleach the floor that improved things but not 100%. But with budget in mind both areas of concern would be covered most likely with furniture, and the homeowner was totally ok with the outcome.
Ready Set Seal and Finish
With all the rough cuts and fine cuts done, all the edges dealt with, and corners hand scraped we were ready to seal. Going with a clear coat we applied the seal and finish. The result, a light airy fresh look to match the updated paint. Reinstall the railing, and we were done.
Our client was over the moon happy! She noticed the care, the workmanship, how we cleaned and organized each day. In summation she was very relieved that we did what we said we would do for her, and brought healing to her soul during this difficult and lonely time. Working for her it was our pleasure to help ease her pain and help her as she sells her home and makes plans to move back home to Texas.
