How does your tiki bar affect your house value?

Well, Ive wondered this for a while. What are peoples experiences in selling a house with a full on tiki bar? Does the value drop compared to a more 'conventional' house? Does it mean fewer prospective buyers? Does it actually add value?

A house is generally the primary investment for most people. How do our misty eyed romanticised Polynesian makeovers affect that investment?

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and experiences.

Well, I have had a few experiences on this front.
Two houses ago, we dismantled the tiki bar for fear of it frightening prospective buyers.
Last house I had a tiki room with a large built in bar. Our real estate agent loved the tiki bar and played it up in the ads. The people who ended up buying it (especially their kids) loved the tiki bar.
I'm moving again and have my house and tiki room on the market now. I have a feeling it's a turn off for most of my prospective buyers (I live in a conservative part of Atlanta) The photographer loved it, though.

This is a great question. I can't help but think that the majority of people out there don't want a bar in their house. Either they don't drink, or don't like drinking enough to dedicate an entire room to the endeavor. Tikiphiles are even more rare... therefore, you'd be lucky to find an enthusiastic buyer who wouldn't immediately dismantle your "baby".

I've heard far more stories of people removing the bars from their newly bought homes than people putting them in. The prevailing idea being that the home bar is a relic of the past. Which is probably true. Which is part of the reason we all do it, isn't it?

Anyway. When I put my little tiki cave together, it's for me and mine. To HECK with the real estate market.

-Joe

My opinion, as a gal who spent 5 LONG years dragging folks around searching for their dream home in Florida, is that you should depersonalize your house as much as possible. The whole point of people buying a home is to be able to see themselves living there.... not you! I have seen potential buyers turn and run when the proud owners gushed about how special some feature or another was to them! If you want to take the middle road, you could offer the bar components as a separate sale, that way you would really know if they wanted it. And you would rest assured it wouldn't all hit the trash as soon as you give them the keys!
I also highly caution you against being there when potential buyers are looking at your house. It is a little know fact that people won't buy something until they have criticized it. Which they won't do in front of you. If you are doing a FSBO sent the family out and only have one person in the house. And make sure they take the barking dogs with them...

I think it would depend on where the bar is located. If it is a room in your house the buyers may or may not dislike it. If the bar is in an enclosed patio or in the backyard I think people tend to be a little more responsive. People generally equate outdoors with fun. One of my friends sold a home and the tiki bar patio was a huge selling point. Hopefully most can dedicate the time and energy to building their tiki bar without the intention of moving. I know I have.

I've been in the Real Estate/Mortgage business in Southern California now for over 15 years.....I can definitely say that in all my experiences selling homes that the ones displaying any type of tasteful "Tiki" or Polynesian or Hawaiian theme will sell for generally about 50% more than other non-tiki homes. Also, in doing mortgages, the most important factor is the appraisal. I have witnessed the values on those "tikified" homes up over 40% than non-tikified homes. It seems that when I list a house that has at least 2 tikis in the backyard and one out front it will sell within a week and usually draws multiple offers and creates a bidding frenzy resulting in the house selling at least 25% over listing price! (Or did I dream this all up after 5 or 6 Mai Tais in my home tiki bar????)(Except the part about being in the business!)
SoccerTiki

[ Edited by: SoccerTiki 2005-10-13 07:01 ]

On 2005-10-12 21:36, WenikiTiki wrote:
...you should depersonalize your house as much as possible...

... absolutely...

On 2005-10-13 07:48, alohabros wrote:

On 2005-10-12 21:36, WenikiTiki wrote:
...you should depersonalize your house as much as possible...

... absolutely...

I would have to agree with WenikiTiki and Alohabros. When I start looking for a new house I would want to envision my tastes in that house. I know that the all the Tiki's and my bar in the house I live in and own currently are all coming with me.

Sadly, I'd have to say that in most markets, clearing out all the clutter is the way to go....and sadly, one wahine's tiki treasure is another man's clutter.

But I can definitely see a backyard tiki bar (patio, deck, etc.) being a big plus. My tiki paradise, however, is in lieu of a proper dining room. Giant shelves for albums, display shelves for mugs, fishing nets and floats hanging from the ceiling, a bar, coffee table, rattan couch, chairs -- with all my fab crap, any typical non-visionary buyer would have a HARD time seeing that it actually would make a beautiful dining room!

So before I put my home on the market (YEARS from now -I just got in!), I'll put most everything from my home bar in storage. The idea is not to show off my cool stuff to unappreciateive strangers. It's to make them give me a whole lot of their money :wink:. Besides, the idea for my bar is for it to be close and intimate. Buyers want to buy large and spacious. Therein lies the rub.

My Tiki bar itself isn't worth much, but the contents would definitely add a little to the overall value. I have between 25 and 30 different kinds of rum, 18 kinds of tequila, etc... not to mention the 'overstock' of the stuff I really like in the back-bar / garage. At least a few thousand dollars in booze and mixers on hand at all time.
IT's hard to stop once you get a good collection going. :drink:

-T.J.

OK Ok quick and to the point. Outside good. Inside gotta go!!

Yep - our home tiki bar is also in what used to be our dining room - which also happens to be immediately on the right when you enter the house. & we're in Wisconsin.....the conservative, safe midwest housing attitude & home tiki bar in the dining room don't match-up well. We've been thinking that we'll need to dismantle it before we put it on the market, or potential buyers may not give the rest of the house a chance! Lots of spackle (shelves mug shelves screwed into the wall all over the place!) and probably a new paint job.

Dismantling it is not something we're looking forward to at all, but fortunately we don't have any impending plans to move - probably a few more years before we decide to pick-up & move out West.

:drink:

On 2005-10-14 06:56, Tonnikan Jinn wrote:
My Tiki bar itself isn't worth much, but the contents would definitely add a little to the overall value. I have between 25 and 30 different kinds of rum, 18 kinds of tequila, etc... not to mention the 'overstock' of the stuff I really like in the back-bar / garage. At least a few thousand dollars in booze and mixers on hand at all time.
IT's hard to stop once you get a good collection going. :drink:

-T.J.

Man, I thought I had a lot of booze in my house! When are you having a party???

Geeezzz....
Don't sell the contents of the bar (alcohol, mugs, etc), just the bones itself. Keep the other stuff for your next bar and let the new owners stock up. You wouldn't sell a house with a full refrigerator, now would you?
I can tell you that when we were looking for a place, we looked for quirky things (such as hand-done touches, interesting tilework, vintage fixtures, brick paths, tiki bars, bamboo plantings and such) as a positive thing. These things often show that someone loved the place and put some thought and time into it. Some places we looked at had been recently painted and "dumbed-down" to appeal to the masses, and guess what ... we are not the masses. Boring.
You market to a certain type of people. Appeal to the masses, or not. Remember, not everyone is looking for a plain, ordinary house.

Way true, JonPez-

I'm leaving behind the cool shelves I put in above the windows in the kitchen and tiki room (for displaying my crap), the big white look-like-built-ins in the living room (for displaying my crap), the white shelves in the back of the closet and above the clothes up to the 10' ceilings (for holding my wearable crap), the beautiful old medicine cabinet I and a friend put in in the bathroom (to hold my grooming crap) along with the pedestal sink underneath, etc. And I'm leaving the vividly painted walls, dammit! Most people LOVE my adobe red living room and the Lucy Ricardo lips red '50's kitchen, plus my aqua bedroom and celadon green bath. I refuse to return everything to white!!

Some "stagers" (professionals who "stage" your home for potential buyers) recommend strip-to-boring-white, but most now say put ON a great color to perk up the home. Invest some money to make loads more. I read one tale where they spend $20,000 on a house's (well, mansion's) entrance, clearing away a fountain, etc., and made $200,000 more than the original asking price the sellers had in mind to ask! But they all agree to take away as much personal clutter as possible, even rearranging the furniture to give more 'flow'.

I will have a very, VERY full storage facility when I start trying to sell my home one day.....yeesh....

And the buyers will still see a lot of my tiki stuff, mind you. Even if I take away 3/4, my remaining 1/4 would be a B*TTload.