Nick Churton of Mayfair International Realty homes needing some love and attention shouldn't be ignored and still offer great opportunities.

There are homebuyers who demand the best of everything in anything they purchase. They want the latest granite-surfaced kitchen with twin steam ovens, the marble clad bathroom - like the one they had on their last five star vacation - and a decor in fifty fashionable shades of grey. If a house or apartment does not have these things some buyers will not even view.

But this demand for instant satisfaction and perfection means they may be missing out on a couple of important things in buying a home. They are forgoing the opportunity to choose what they really want and instead getting what someone else really wanted – and to change it again would waste a fortune. They are also missing out on the increased value of their home once it has been transformed from agonising to amazing apartment or from horrendous to heroic house.

“But the bathroom went out with the ark”, say some buyers – great! “But the kitchen has seen better days”, say others – wonderful! “But there are bugs”, eek still more – so there are bugs! All these bad things mean one good thing – potential. Grotty can be good.

Yes it means more work and you should always get an appraisal so that you fully understand what needs to be done. But almost anything can be fixed. All you need are the right bones – windows and doors mostly in the right places - and of course the right location: for maximum benefit always choose the smallest house in the best location rather than the other way round.

Today, more than ever, buyers are often looking for finished homes with a high specification. This provides lots of opportunities for buyers who are prepared to roll up their sleeves. Remember condition is temporary but location is permanent. Also, that perfection in real estate is a myth. So forget the 100% home. It doesn’t really exist except in the minds of the romantic. Instead why not buy a 50% home and make it 90%. Choose wisely, modernise well and don’t go over the top and you will end up with more or less just what you want just about exactly where you want it. This usually results in two things. In a rising market it makes you happy and it usually makes you money. And there aren’t many things in life that do both at the same time.