Style vs 'Needs Rehabbed'

[Alex Huang]

As I continue to look at property listings, one thing that I always struggle with is establishing the fine line between "needs rehab" vs just stylistically different than my (and 'mainstream') tastes.

For example, I see a lot of properties that are advertised as 'move-in ready' but the pictures show very outdated styles like oak cabinets, oak trim, brass fixtures, etc. Something that looks like a really old person lives in it.

Now, by most of our standards, a house like this would be candidate for a complete update. So how do you approach houses like this and its owners? Is it as simple as just expressing that they 'need' a rehab to get their house ready and expecting that a certain population of sellers will disagree / argue with that assessment (which we would just move on to the next property)? Or is there a recommended process in trying to reason with the sellers to the reality of how outdated their property actually is?