Your Real-Estate Business

Last week I was having breakfast with a few friends, all of whom are in the real estate business in one way or another. Two are licensed Realtors, three are investors and rehabbers and I'm a Realtor and an investor so I count as two (And not just for my size for your smarties out there).
The topic of showing properties came up and the Realtors jumped on this feeling they were the experts in this area.
Both felt that the owners of the house should not be there, because they usually get in the way and talk too much, costing themselves money. Bill told a story of one owner who told him and his buyer that they (owners) were moving to Colorado and needed to sell. So the buyers offered 30k less than asking and the owners took it. Key lesson "Shut your Mouth" Bill wonders if even that was too much, would the owners have gone lower still!
Lisa, the other agent in the group, mentioned that she always counsels her clients that landscaping is very important and buyers will pay more for a better landscaped house, as well as a house that is freshly painted.
Well the investors, including myself, jumped on this one. Why would anyone in their right mind pay extra for plants they most likely will have to replace every year or so. Landscaping needs to be updated all the time so it's a diminishing return on investment. As for fresh paint ,that is a minor issue to fix and not that expensive.
But on the other hand, a house with a poor design or small kitchen is very hard to overcome and can be very expensive to replace. I found myself surprised at the different mindset here between the investors and realtors. One looking at something (e.g. painting) as a quick and easy fix, not really even an issue,  and the other group giving it lots of weight and even considering it a deal killer.
So this got me to thinking (which always gets me into trouble) and asking a few questions:
1) How much extra (if any) would you be willing to pay for the pretty landscaping and fresh paint?
2) Would you buy a home that maybe had a small kitchen or smaller closets if there was good landscaping and house had a fresh coat of paint?
3) How many people do you know that have said to you we chose this house because it needed no work but the kitchen or baths were smaller than the one we wanted?
Send me an E-MAIL PAUL with your responses .Here is what my unofficial group came up with:
# 3 They hear it all the time and I have said it myself with the house we live in now.
#1  The Realtors figured the cost increase was about $ 4500.00 dollars more. I found that a little high. So I checked the MLS and only looked at sold listings, trying to keep all factors the same ( Yes I know this is not scientific but just a quick snap shot ) I looked at 3/2 with covered parking, 1600 to 1800 square feet and same age( 2002)  and neighborhood. This ended up giving me 30 homes.
Here is what I looked for:
All homes had tile and hardwood floors and granite counter tops.
I looked for Realtor listing info that said fresh paint throughout, new paint, updated, landscaped. I looked at all the pictures or video tours that the Realtors made available. (By the way all homes with video tours sold for more money) So this is what I used for my criteria. As I said, this is just a snap shot and obviously needs a lot more investigating. I also took into account the square foot price so I could make the adjustment for size.
And I was quite surprised. The difference was

$ 3964.89 for a paint job and a few trees.
I wanted to figure out how much more this really cost the buyer when you add closing cost and interest over 30 years. It adds $ 22.51 to the monthly payment or $ 8,104.40 to the total cost of the purchase for something you have to redo every year or couple of years.
I called the gang from breakfast and told them the results of my little survey. The investors all felt that was about right for the cost, some saying they could get it done for a lot less. The two realtors felt it was worth the extra cost especially if they are first time buyers who typically don't have extra money for paint and landscaping. There you go! So tell me your thoughts on the subject.
Have a great month. Paul