By Casey Louw
(IGrow Writer)
Discovering Jenny Heron
This July, I chatted to Jenny Heron, the dynamic property investor and author of Flip for Success: Proven Facts for Successful Property Flipping.
In this Book Review Interview, you get a front-row seat to our conversation, which showcases how Jenny’s hands-on knowledge and sense of style transform tired and rundown homes into extraordinary, sellable showpieces across Cape Town. You can buy your copy of Flip for Success: Proven Facts for Successful Property Flipping at any major bookstore, such as Wordsworth or directly through Jenny’s website.
Jenny was previously an estate agent for Keller Williams in Cape Town and now spends her time as an investor who buys, improves and flips properties. Jenny’s book is easy to understand, with actionable advice on how to turn a profit. It’s particularly relevant to high-value property owners and IGrow investors looking to sell their properties through IGrow Real Estate International.
IGrow Wealth Investments encourages the buy-to-let model, where you hold onto your income-generating property assets as long as possible with what is referred to as the Retain, Refinance and Reinvest model. However, some of our investors eventually resell, and IGrow Real Estate International understands the ins and outs of selling investment properties for profit.
This IGrow company also specialises in selling primary residences, both to South Africans and to clients from overseas who are looking for an investment property or special homes in sought-after locations like Cape Town. This is where Flip for Success: Proven Facts for Successful Property Flipping is a must-have. It’s a guide to presenting your property in its best possible light to make the best return on investment when you sell.
Jenny’s top tips to prep your home for sale and show days
In this Book Review, Jenny shares tips every home seller should have in their arsenal. Jenny believes boosting “curb appeal” or the look of your pavement, entrance, and home exterior is vital. This would be the first thing to address.
“Curb appeal can add 7% to the asking price. It also attracts people who are driving by or those browsing on the internet, encouraging them to view the property.”– Jenny Heron (Flip for Success: Proven Facts for Successful Property Flipping: Page 61).
Pay attention to the finer details in your home to add appeal
Jenny emphasises the importance of paying attention to detail, particularly ambient lighting and fixtures, as well as using space effectively: “Say hello to a home office – using ‘dead space’ or an unused space, making it functional and adding value.”
You also need to set the mood for a show day, creating an experience buyers won’t forget. Picture walking into a showhouse filled with the aromas of freshly-baked vanilla biscuits and the allure of real coffee brewing. Imagine a layout created with staged furniture, fresh flowers, and accessories that offer a homely, welcoming appeal – that’s Jenny Heron’s special touch.
Whether you’re preparing to stage or sell your IGrow property, this is one of the best books to read on the market. It encapsulates the winning formula for captivating buyers’ hearts and ultimately sealing your ideal property deal.
Now, let’s dive into our conversation!
BOOK REVIEW INTERVIEW:
Casey: I can’t wait to discuss your book with you. I really enjoyed reading it and found it very useful and insightful for our IGrow Real Estate Seller audience.
1. Can you give me a summary of your career in real estate to date?
Jenny Heron: I’ve always been involved with interiors and homes, and with real estate, going back many years. I’ve done interior decorating, paint techniques, picture framing, home staging, and then obviously the flipping of properties.
I joined Keller Williams because I wanted to learn more about the nitty-gritty of the buying and selling of homes.
I wanted to learn about the various processes and legal aspects of buying and selling properties. It was a very valuable experience and I had lots of fun!
Casey: Were you based in Cape Town when you were an estate agent?
Jenny Heron: Yes, I was.
2. Do you know much about IGrow Wealth Investments?
Jenny Heron: Yes. In fact, I get emails from IGrow Investments because I’m on your mailing list.
I always feel that your company offers a lot of support and shares valuable knowledge to those who want to deal with property and turn it into a business or an income.
Casey: Our CEO is very pro-education and has lots of free online tools to help our investors. Jacques has even written an eBook exploring how you can start and grow your property portfolio.
Jenny Heron: Yes, that’s great! I’ve always wanted to get involved with IGrow and haven’t as yet, but I think it’s a wonderful opportunity your company offers to those interested in creating an income from property.
Casey: Yeah. I think the helpful part is that they accompany you from getting a home loan on your behalf, to helping you choose property strategically through our free consultation with a property investment specialist, and they have rental agents that will manage the tenants and property for you. It’s like a one-stop shop for property investors.
Jenny Heron: Right. Yes, there’s so much that IGrow offers. The support is incredible.
3. What inspired you to write Flip for Success: Proven Facts For Successful Property Flipping?
Casey: I really enjoyed your book, as it’s very easy to digest for someone who may not know much about property.
Jenny Heron: That’s exactly why I wrote the book. I’d accumulated so much knowledge and expertise and really learned through my mistakes!
I wanted to help people understand the whole background of what to do and what not to do, how to stick to a budget, and all the practical things that one has to know, just to make it an easier road for them. Because when I started, I jumped in boots and all, and there were no practical books out there to help you.
Casey: Really?
Jenny Heron: Not one. And I’ve had so many people show an interest in flipping a property, and have asked me to help them in any way I could.
And I just thought, let me put this all into a book. My biggest thing is that it gives me so much pleasure to share that knowledge and help others.
Casey: The way you laid it out and the fact that it wasn’t like a huge, thick book make it so much nicer, because it’s simple and easy to digest, and it makes sense.
4. What would you want a reader of your book to walk away with as key takeaways?
Jenny Heron: I think what I’m hoping from reading my book is that people will gain complete confidence and adhere to all the sort of rules that one should follow when you flip a property or buy a property for rental purposes.
You want to renovate it and add value. I think that is one of my key points. So that buyers or tenants can see the value.
5. Taking some elements from “ Chapter 14: Stand Out in the Crowd!”, what would you say are the top 5 things you should do to prep your house for sale?
Jenny Heron: You have to make your property memorable because there are so many properties on the market.
When a person is buying a property, they will often view at least 8 to 15 properties, before they make a decision on which one to finally purchase.
Your property must stand out in their minds as memorable. And by that, I mean by adding those wow factors- like beautiful lighting. But it really starts at the front gate with curb appeal. Because you want to invite people in by having an attractive exterior leading up to your house.
You have to attract people to view the property, and attract buyers online when they are searching the various property platforms. I remember one day stopping outside a house, and the pavement was such a mess, I almost didn’t go in! Then I went through the front door, and I couldn’t believe how nice the house was. I just fell in love with it.
I always feel that fabulous eye-catching lighting in a lounge, large dining room or kitchen adds visual value. And then, accent walls with wallpaper, an interesting paint shade, or stone cladding add appeal. Fireplaces, too, are great focal points, so enhancing them as much as possible is important.
You have to make your home interesting. It’s all very well to go through and renovate and put new floors in, and paint walls etc., but if it doesn’t have character and doesn’t have the right feel, you won’t attract the right buyers.
So, it’s very important to add atmosphere to a home.
I’m a great one for space-saving ideas, and anything a little bit interesting and out of the norm. My favourite thing to do is to put a fold-out ironing board in the kitchen. That really, you know, just adds a little bit of practical uniqueness.
I also focus on entertainment areas. Because, being South Africans, we all love to entertain, and so I think fire pits are a wonderful idea where people can congregate and braai, in a welcoming atmosphere in a lovely garden or patio setting.
Those would be my standout elements.
Casey Louw: I saw something in your book where you said you’ve noticed people needing a home office. Have you ever made specific spaces for home offices?
Jenny Heron: Yes. I think it’s a very important thing to introduce these days because so many people work from home, so that adds value as well.
6. What would you say should be on a house seller’s to-do list before their house goes on show?
Jenny Heron: It depends on whether you’re selling a furnished property or an unfurnished property.
If it’s furnished, it’s important to go minimal to open up visual space. Get rid of clutter, and you should have no personal photographs or personal paraphernalia. One has to de-personalise the space.
Jenny Heron: The buyer needs to concentrate and visualise whether they can fit their furniture into certain spaces and what it’s going to look like.
If it isn’t furnished, I do believe in home staging. You don’t have to completely furnish a home, but just put in a couch with some cushions, a coffee table, curtains create the cosiness, and strategically placed pots with colourful shrubs are a must.
Placing made-up beds in the bedrooms is also important because, very often, people can’t imagine what size beds they can accommodate in those rooms.
Casey: Just to define home staging, that is, you make it look as if it were a lived-in home by placing furniture strategically throughout the house?
Jenny Heron: Yes. I used to have a staging business, and I had all sorts of furniture that I would move into an empty house, or my own homes that I was selling, together with soft furnishings and accessories.
You can hire someone to home stage for you quite reasonably. At the end of the day, it can help sell a home much faster, and it helps buyers visualise living there. And it’s all about creating atmosphere.
Then cleanliness is a big thing. Clean windows, clean carpets, nice smells. That’s a must. Smell is very important. No mustiness, no damp smells, no cat smells.
Carpeting is also relatively inexpensive these days. It immediately elevates a room. It makes it feel soft and luxurious, and people love that new carpet smell. I do emphasise placing greenery throughout; it fills those empty spaces and brings the outdoors indoors.
Casey: Do you mean a plant or also a bunch of flowers?
Jenny Heron: Well, I usually bring in flowers and plants, both for colour and interest. It just elevates the space and makes it look inviting.
7. Do you have any proven tips for a showhouse day? I’ve heard that baking fresh muffins and having them out or brewing fresh coffee makes a house feel like a home to prospective buyers. I see that you mentioned baking vanilla biscuits on the show day, as a buyer relies on their sense of smell and it gives a good first impression. What are your top tips to make a house sellable on a show day?
Jenny Heron: You mentioned coffee, and coffee is a big one. Everybody loves their coffee, and so I put out mugs and boil the kettle. If a buyer comes in, they can make themselves a cup of coffee, and I provide a plate of freshly-baked vanilla biscuits.
Casey: That sounds so inviting!
Jenny Heron: It makes the atmosphere less formal, and they can just come and relax, have a cup of coffee and walk around the house, without feeling hurried or pressurised.
We touched on smell earlier, and I always use candles with a lovely fragrance, in the kitchen or the bathrooms. If you can create a warm, inviting feel and a relaxed atmosphere, it helps so much in the selling of that property.
And everything, of course, must be as neat as a pin. There must definitely be no workers around. I’ve viewed properties for sale that have had people still painting, laying brick pathways, or digging in the garden, and that’s just a no-no.
I want to create something that, when the buyer leaves, they remember!
Casey: Almost like a unique experience in the viewing itself.
Jenny Heron: Exactly, it’s so very important!
8. What are your property investment plans for the future?
Jenny Heron: I can never stop doing what I do because I love it. It’s so much fun, stressful sometimes, but the end result always gives me so much pleasure.
Hardware shops are my favourite places. I don’t enjoy clothes shopping, so I will spend hours in a hardware store, keeping informed with all the improved products that come onto the market. You’ve got to keep yourself up to date with all the products and contemporary finishes, as these can produce better finishes and save you both time and money.
I just love what I do, giving a home a new life and then presenting it to interested buyers who really appreciate the effort I’ve put into the home. It gives me such pleasure!
I’m always looking at property, keeping up to date with market prices, and upcoming areas. Sometimes it’s not the right time to consider flipping. I always have to watch my bottom line- one has to make a worthwhile profit at the end of the day.
9. Do you have any more books on the horizon? Are you planning on any more writing endeavours or blogs?
Jenny Heron: Yes, I do. I have an active blog on my website where I put up interesting articles on the correct positioning of lighting or the most practical flooring to use in certain areas, or what to use to create visual interest.
Casey: Great! I’ll share your blog link. Any books coming up?
Jenny Heron: I have got something in the pipeline, but it’ll be more about how to add value to properties. There are two types of value:
There’s real value which is by adding on an extra bedroom, making a bedroom into an en-suite, or turning an unused space into a practical area.
Then there’s also perceived value, which is in the finishes, interesting add-ons, and space-saving ideas.
Casey: In your book, you were saying that all that sort of thing adds so much to the quality of the overall look and feel of a property.
Jenny Heron: It does. You’ve got to add in a little bit of luxury and some surprises, as buyers definitely see value in these elements.
Casey: Thank you so much, Jenny. Your book is a really handy read, with great practical tips which our IGrow property sellers can implement. I’ve discovered even more ideas from you in this interview that will be of great benefit to our readers.
Jenny Heron: It’s a pleasure! Thank you so much for contacting me, and I’m glad you enjoyed my book.
-End of Book Review Interview –
Conclusion
If you want to sell your home, or as an IGrow investment client, and if you are considering selling one of your investment properties, Jenny Heron’s Flip for Success: Proven Facts for Successful Property Flipping is one of the best books to read before you put up your “For Sale” sign.
This Book Review Interview explores Jenny’s proven strategies that turn homes for sale into in-demand listings, starting from the outside in. She lets sellers know that curb appeal is the same as your first handshake, and leaves a lasting impression.
The interior atmosphere is what follows. The personal touch that adds atmosphere, such as lighting a candle in the bathrooms, baking vanilla biscuits, or rearranging or staging furniture to accentuate the continuity of space and flow, leads to the best result!
This Book Review Interview shows that every seller can apply Jenny’s top tips and insights to add value to their home, ensuring a speedy sale, and to create demand and buyer interest. Flip for Success: Proven Facts for Successful Property Flipping is more than a guide to help you sell your home; it’s a roadmap for selling the smart way!
Are you ready to turn your IGrow property investment into a well-presented, appealing home that buyers won’t forget?
Jenny Heron shows you the way. Make sure to buy your copy of Flip for Success: Proven Facts for Successful Property Flipping at any major bookstore, such as Wordsworth or directly through Jenny’s website.
Book a consultation with an IGrow Real Estate International agent today if you’re looking at buying or selling prime property. They can guide you through the process and ensure you get the very best prices, with world-class marketing muscle to back their expertise.
