Doing some renovations before listing makes a home feel newer, cleaner and up to date. Let’s walk through some of the ways you can add greater value to your home before listing it for sale.
Don’t underestimate a can of paint
If you're planning on putting your home on the market, surely you've heard that painting your walls before hanging that “for sale” sign is a must. After all, years of living in a space leave traces that buyers may find less than attractive, from dents to holes in the walls and the shadows left by pictures and furniture. It is a reasonably cheap and easy fix to give your home a good spruce up and make it attractive for potential buyers.
Since the recommendation is to make your home as neutral as possible so that prospective buyers can envision themselves living in the space, painting the walls also allows you to remove personalized spaces, like a child’s room or a hand-painted fresco that might be meaningful to you, but might not be to everybody’s taste. This also allows the potential buyer to visualize “their” color on walls. Many sellers revert to painting all the walls white. There is no more neutral or classic shade, and white gives your home a clean and airy feel.
The most popular part of your home is your kitchen
The kitchen often serves as the gathering room for family and friends. If you’ve recently upgraded your kitchen appliances, it might be time to replace/upgrade your countertops. New drawer knobs, pulls and faucets in a matching style give a room a cohesive, modern look, and this small, inexpensive upgrade alone can have a big impact on buyers.
Take a look at your bathrooms
If the cabinet is in good shape, updating faucets and knobs might be all you need to do. Replacing the shower head with a larger “rain” head will give it a modern look. Replacing the toilet will also give it a newer, cleaner feel.
Is your flooring outdated?
The floors inside a home see the most traffic and ultimately wear and tear. If you have carpet and it was there when you moved in, consider replacing it. Carpets can only be cleaned so many times before they start to look dingy and a potential buyer who sees fresh carpet vs. something that needs replacing will be more appealing.
Curb appeal is everything
You get one chance to make a first impression and curb appeal is huge. Make sure your flower beds are clean, trees trimmed, add fresh mulch, and consider adding some color with a pot of flowers by the entrance. Powerwash the driveway and walkways and consider replacing the mailbox if it’s seen better days.
When it comes to renovating a home before selling it’s important to take your market into consideration. Trends vary nationwide, so ask your real estate agent what buyers look for in your area.
With HouseAmp’s Pay-At-Close program, we help you list for more, sell faster and reduce headaches during the closing process. We provide a low-cost loan that you don't have to worry about paying back until the home sells, helping you make more profit. Contact us to see how we can help get you started.
