Design & Decor Blog

Ooh, it’s Friday rant time!

I think I can safely say that TV has reached saturation point when it comes to house flipping shows. Don’t get me wrong, there are a handful of great entries in this genre (stand up, Sarah Richardson!); but more often than not, they’re cringe-worthy. It actually kind of frightens me when I think of the housing market swamped with properties that are falling to bits under a facade of “quick fixes” and awful DIY treatments that only serve to conceal serious (and expensive) problems.

Not to mention the fact that watching a crew repaint everything that once had a semblance of character into a big beige borefest, is inherently dull.

That’s why, when I spoke with acclaimed Toronto-based interior designer Timothy Mather of TMDesign a while back, I was fascinated with his opinion on preparing a house for re-sale. Timothy had designed an absolutely mind-blowing home for a client that we’d featured in our April 2006 issue, and the boldness of the fuchsia sitting room off of the kitchen struck a note with me that still resonates today. (I don’t have the image rights to it, unfortunately, but you can check it on Timothy’s website under “Portfolio”/”Houses”/page 12 of 27.) It’s bold, beautiful and everything the homeowner wanted. And, when it came time for the client to sell the property last year, Timothy saw that primary re-sale strategy that’s burned into our minds busted wide open.

“A lot of people have this idea that if they’re preparing for re-sale, everything’s got to be beige,” he says. “When this house went on the market, all the agents told my client that she had to repaint the whole place white, but this client is not a vanilla person. She said, ‘Absolutely not! That’s not who we are.’ What you’ve got to remember is that there’s always that one perfect buyer for that house; you’ve just got to ride it out.” The result of riding it out? The house still sold for more than its asking price! A testament to Timothy’s brilliant design!

Where do you stand on this one? I’d love to hear what you think!

See the rest of my interview with the supremely talented Mr. Mather in the June 2009 issue of STYLE AT HOME magazine, on newsstands the first week of May!