§ Episode November 5, 2023 23:24 Scott Dillingham

Real Estate Renovation Tips for Investors: Avoid Costly Mistakes

November 5, 2023 · Scott Dillingham

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In this episode of the Wisdom Lifestyle Money Show, host Scott Dillingham chats with Nick Messina, a realtor from Team Goran at RE/MAX Care Realty in Windsor, Ontario, and Kass Dipasquale, founder and principal designer at Kass Design Studio in LaSalle, Ontario. The discussion dives into common pitfalls real estate investors face during renovations, such as personalizing spaces too much with unique colors or layouts that limit appeal. They emphasize keeping designs neutral and modern to attract broader buyers, while sharing strategies to maximize resale value without overspending. From avoiding emotional decisions to focusing on high-ROI updates like kitchens and bathrooms, the guests provide practical advice tailored for busy investors looking to flip or rent properties efficiently.

Drawing from real-world experiences, Nick and Kass highlight cost-saving tips, including using affordable materials like luxury vinyl plank flooring instead of hardwood, and simple refreshes such as repainting cabinets or adding backsplashes for big visual impact. They stress the importance of planning with visuals like mood boards on Canva or Pinterest, consulting professionals early, and calculating returns before starting work. For sellers, the duo recommends light fixtures, vanities, and staging with plants to create a welcoming yet depersonalized space. As of November 2025, with Windsor's real estate market showing steady demand amid local developments, these insights help investors navigate renovations to boost equity and avoid equity-draining errors.

The episode wraps with warnings about "ugly" renovations—like neon walls, mismatched styles, or bizarre features—that can deter buyers, and encourages building a team of experts for success. Whether you're a first-time investor or seasoned homeowner in Ontario, this conversation offers actionable steps to renovate smarter, with a nod to LendCity for mortgage options that can incorporate renovation costs to fuel growth.

Key Takeaways

Avoid Personalization Pitfalls: Steer clear of unique colors or custom features like neon walls or odd layouts; opt for neutral whites and modern generics to appeal to more buyers and ease resale.
Focus on High-ROI Areas: Prioritize kitchen updates (70-100% return) with cabinet refacing or backsplashes, and bathrooms (around 70% return) by modernizing at least one fully while quick-fixing others.
Cost-Cutting Strategies: Use luxury vinyl plank flooring to save $5 per square foot over hardwood; calculate ROI with spreadsheets and consult realtors like Nick for post-renovation value estimates.
Planning Essentials: Start with a clear vision using mood boards on Canva or Pinterest; depersonalize spaces for staging while adding warmth with plants to help buyers envision their life there.
Team Building for Success: Assemble professionals early—realtors, designers, and lenders like LendCity—to avoid DIY disasters, such as improper wiring, and ensure renovations align with investment goals.
Stand Out Wisely: Subtle uniqueness can make a property memorable, but over-the-top elements like trophy animals or blood-drip paint effects can scare off buyers; balance appeal for flips versus personal homes.

Links to Show References

Nick Messina's Contact: Phone - (226) 782-4552; Instagram - @messina.nick
Kass Dipasquale's Contact: Phone - (226) 881-2194; Website - kassdesignstudio.ca; Instagram - @kassdesignstudio
LendCity Mortgages (for Pre-Approvals and Renovation Financing): lendcity.ca

(00:02) - Welcome to the Wisdom Lifestyle Money Show
(00:10) - Expert Insights on Real Estate Renovations
(04:04) - Strategies for Cost-Effective Renovations
(06:34) - Key Renovations to Maximize Home Value
(09:01) - Avoiding Common Renovation Pitfalls
(12:30) - The Importance of Vision in Renovations
(19:52) - Final Tips for Investors and Homeowners

Transcript

Introduction

Welcome to the Wisdom Lifestyle Money Show. I'm your host, Scott Dillingham. The show is designed to help Canadians invest better in Canada and the United States. We are the North America-based mortgage financing lender and provide education to both countries.

Discover how you can become a better investor and access the financing you need. Welcome to the Wisdom Lifestyle Money Show.

I'm your host, Scott Dillingham. Today, I've got Nick Messina with us from Team Gorin Remax. And then I've got Cass with us from Cass Design Studios.

Welcome, guys. Thank you.

The Core Idea

Thanks for having us. Thanks for having us.

Yeah, no worries. So today we wanted to have a different perspective on real estate renovations, specifically focusing on real estate investors. A lot of investors buy properties that need renovations or they have a property and they want to do renovations to them. And the thing is, a lot of challenges with investors is they lack the time.

I find they're really busy and they don't really want to get their hands on with the renovations. But then a lot of times we find that they make some big mistakes, right? That, you know, loses them some equity and potentially lowers their resale value. So this is why we wanted to have two experts on from different angles, but both can touch on the renovations.

So here we are. So welcome, guys.

Deep Dive

Thank you. So let's talk about some of the worst things that an investor can do when they're renovating their home.

I'll start with you, Nick. What do you find, or what have you seen that was really ugly that lowered someone's value? Like, what did you see that an investor should avoid at all costs? I find a lot of the time people tend to navigate towards what they think might be the best situation for their home.

Okay. Things like painting to their liking, updating to an extent, again, to their liking. And when it becomes more unique, it's harder to sell. I think it's better to go modern, more generic, to open up to the public and get as much traffic as possible.

So I would say anything that really is a unique situation and anything custom to the client is probably not a great idea. Okay.

Practical Steps

No, I like that. And what do you think, Cass? Honestly, I nicknamed it because it's, what I see is they're putting their emotion into it. It's what they like and what they want and what they're going to gravitate towards, which is fine if you were keeping the home.

But if you're renovating to sell and you're renovating to flip or invest or anything like that, you want to keep it geared towards the masses. Yeah. And, you know, you know me at this point, Scott. I do like the unique things.

I like to go that route, but it, those are the times where you're going to want to follow the trends. Yeah.

Right. And appeal to those wider audiences ultimately.

Key Takeaways

Yep. Now, so then that brings up another question, right? Because a lot of people, I've heard that as well, right? You want to be neutral, right?

And then so you see all these beige homes, right? That's so ugly in itself, right?

Just the beige. Builder beige.

Yeah, it's so ugly. So what, you know, I'd like to hear from both of you, but what have you guys seen or what do you recommend your clients do to keep it neutral, but more lively than just beige everywhere? It might sound a little bit standard, but honestly, I tell my clients a nice fresh coat of white paint goes a long way.

Resources

Yeah. It is a little bit neutral, a little bit standard, but it does open up the possibilities for people to come in and it helps them envision what they would want to put and what they can see themselves being in that home and doing with it, right?

So. Okay. A nice white, fresh coat of paint definitely goes a long way.

Nice. What do you think, Cass? I mean, I virtually want to say very similar things and I think it depends what the goal is in the moment because a lot can be done with staging a home as well.

Yeah. So, you know, when you keep the renovations and the bones of things as neutral and bright and airy as people say, then a little bit, the better. But a lot can be done with just decorating with plants. So, like I'm sure Nick knows, it's the game of depersonalizing and taking away a lot of things and so you still don't want it to feel cold but I like to decorate with plants and staging can go a long way.

Introduction

Yeah, no. 100%. I mean, you want to definitely keep it, you know, staged, looking well at the same time, like you said, depersonalized so that people can envision their family in the home but at the same time you want to keep that balance of it looking good, right?

Yeah. 100%.

Big time. Yeah.

Thanks. Now, right now in life everything's so expensive and a lot of people want to cut their costs so how can we, I know we've only really touched on painting but how can we have an investor do some work but really cut back on the cost of doing the work? Do you guys have some suggestions your clients or investors have done?

The Core Idea

I'll take this one. So, I got a couple things in this realm of things.

So, I just did, what did we call it? How to maximize your profits, your ROI for investors. We did it in the investor hub that Lens City hosts. We've got a whole online community and part of when I was doing that event what was coming up is the actual dollars and cents.

So, I want to answer this question in two ways, right? Sure. there's a way from a material standpoint to, you know, get the cheaper. You can get LVP, luxury vinyl plank as opposed to hardwood.

You'll save like five dollars a square foot. That's a hefty amount when you're talking investing. But then there's the other way that I want to take things and so this is a little bit of a plug though because I was asked to do another event for short-term rentals and I'm actually going to have some numbers. So, there is an actual mathematical equation on what your current rent is, what your new rent would be and taking into consideration all of the money that you've spent on the renovation as well.

Deep Dive

So, that's to come. I don't have that answer right now but yeah.

Fair enough. Yeah, something to keep in mind. Yeah, and I got to just say about the vinyl plank like we did it in the one office over there. I've done it in the basement of my rentals too.

If there's ever water it's pretty good like you got to take it out to dry under it because you don't want mold to grow under but beyond that like you can just relay it back down. You don't have to throw it out and redo it all.

So, the product itself yeah. You just need extra because if you've cut along right, you've cut along the wall let's say and then when you put it back together there's going to be spots where you're like I'm missing style now you can't get it. So, you got to have extra for that too but super cool product. So, then what would you suggest let's turn this to a seller because you can both answer this but let's say somebody's selling their home and they want to renovate and I know a lot of times the best advice is don't do anything like leave that up to the buyer but let's say it needs it and you absolutely have to do something what do you guys recommend as some key renovations that someone can do to maximize the value of their home?