There are two groups of houses going on the market. There are people that HAVE to sell the home even if they lose money. Only you know how much money you can afford to lose (or make) if you HAVE to sell... This is a very personal decision. There are people that WANT to get a certain price and they will not sell below that price. Obviously, they don't need to sell. For these folks, they have time to dink around and see what happens to the house when it is not 'perfect' for a buyer. If you are someone that HAS to sell even if you lose money (for many this is the case...), then your product has to be as good as the next house at a better price. If spending $2000 on granite gives you the edge, then it may be the difference between selling versus not being able to sell at all. You and your seasoned real estate agent has to really do the market research to know where this point is for each market... I look at houses all the time because I am always looking for an investment. This is an ugly market out there. I see houses that have failed to sell for 2 to 4 years. Because of the internet, I can see the exact history of what has happened to the house. (on the market, off the market, on and off again etc.) The market history is extremely transparent. NCrealestate guy is right in that 50% or so of the houses fail to sell at all after several months. The scary thing about that is that if the house does not sell quickly the first time around, the house wears a badge of 'unsellable'. People wonder why it did not sell and serious buyers only look at fresh products and pass up the stale inventory. Another factor is that a buyer will NOT have the money to redo the kitchen/bath for many many years because they can't borrow the money. There are no equity loans etc. So the buyer has to imagine living in this house AS IS for many years. There are very few buyers out there that can/will put in the sweat equity and are looking for a fixer upper. So if you are selling a fixer upper, it has to be steeply discounted for a very limited number of buyer. (not a good marketing strategy) Even if a buyer puts in the sweat equity, there is no guarantee that they can turn around and sell it at all. So the risk is too high for most people. That type of buyer is GONE! Put your mental block aside and just do what has to be done so you can sell. Educate yourself about the local market. Once you are knowledgible about the market, you will feel better about your decision.

I love the brown/blue combination and just redid a bedroom into a dressing room but had the same thoughts of it being too much of a fad (Love the George W. comment! lol). I painted the walls milk chocolate, have cream colored frieze carpet and sour cream color vanity and dresser. I used the aqua/blue as an accent color for an upholstered chair, small painted cabinet and an area rug by the vanity in shades of aqua/seafoam, cream and bit of rust. This way I can change those things if I tire of it. I need to post some pics but my digital camera is just awful and can't get the colors to appear true on screen. How about cream colored bedding and use chocolate just as an accent in throw pillows, picture frames, and other accent items? I picture a nicely done cream colored hand stitched quilt with matching shams with your beautiful color on the walls.

Karen, thanks for the laminate information. I personally think the color that you have now will be very good...in the photos, the plates and other black things certainly work, so I believe the counter-tops will also. Do you mind me asking, what price range you are selling your home for? Our house does not compare to the "mansions" that some people on this forum has, but it is considered "upper priced" for this town...(approx. 18,000) and most are military and they can not afford it....so the market is very limited. That is the reason I don't know if putting $$$ into solid granite would ever be redeemed....but need to replace the counter-top with something. There has only been 1 house in the last 2+ years here sold in our price range....approx. $370,000.

Good Morning, I was sorry to hear about your lost slabs. (Makes me want to run down to my slabyard and put an GPS device on my reserved slabs.) We also have light granite selected - our's is called "cafe creme", but what I wanted to say is that there seems to be a lot of variation from one slab to the next. I saw a bundle of "Colanial Gold" that was so white - I thought it must be miss-marked, but it wasn't. I guess you'll just have to look at each one. I've seen some light Colonial Cream, as well as the White Springs, and Kashmir White. Some of the light granites tend to have a lot of grey - which may or may not be what you want. Good luck!