Two months ago I listed the home of an older couple in SW Mpls. It was built in around 1948. There was blue carpet in the living room, hall, and both bedrooms on the main floor. I asked the owners if they had hardwood floor under the carpet. Their answer was yes. On the Multiple Service Form (MLS) we stated there were hardwood floors.
To the sellers this most likely was not a big thing. They were of the generation where wall to wall carpeting was more desirable than hardwood floors. They saw the red oak only as a sub flooring. I remember my mom telling me, as I was a little girl, how lucky we were to afford wall to wall carpeting. She told me stories of waxing and then taking the wax off the hardwood floors and how they would discolor. As a very little girl I do remember slipping on newly wax floors. To young buyers hardwood floors are very important. They have no interest in carpeting and blue carpeting is at the bottom of their list.
The buyers closed on this house and proceeded to take up the carpeting . The bedrooms has beautiful hardwood floors. A buff and some poly and they would look grand. The hallway and living room were plywood. What a surprise to everyone. There were contractors during this period that did not put hardwood everywhere.
A word of caution. You might see hardwood in closets, in some rooms, but never state hardwood is throughout the first floor except for kitchen and baths unless you know for sure it is present. The outcome here is going to be a cash settlement. No Realtor, buyer or seller wants this to happen. Always error on the conservative side. That all saying, "Seeing is believing." is so true.
Comments