If you’ve been thinking about selling your home at some point in the near future, you’ll want to start getting ready as soon as possible. For many homeowners, this includes grabbing a set of tools from the shed and getting your hands dirty. For others, it means calling a tradesperson. Selling a home in our current real estate market can be facilitated by having a fully functional, aesthetically attractive home. We suggest focusing on these 3 areas:
Home Exterior: New paint is one of the most cost-efficient ways to improve the experience and value of your home. If you can’t paint the entire home, focus on painting the trim and exterior doors. If it’s the summertime and you have a patio or deck on your property, give it a good pressure wash. Replace the locks on the front door with shiny new ones, buy a new welcome mat, add seasonal planters at the entrances and replace the outdoor lighting
Kitchen Upgrades: The kitchen is one of the most important communal areas of any home. It’s a common mistake for sellers to overdo kitchen upgrades with fancy granite or marble countertops and all-new stainless steel appliances. Although this looks sleek and modern, some buyers will be turned off by these types of upgrades because they will automatically assume that the house is more expensive as a result of them. In any case, be sure that all appliances are in working condition and that the kitchen looks tidy and attractive. Replace the knobs and handles on the cabinets, swap out the sink faucet, if the light fixture above the dining room table is dated swap out for a more modern pendant light fixture, and lastly add some fresh flowers or a small plant to the kitchen or dining room
Bathroom Repairs: As with kitchen upgrades, it’s possible to go crazy renovating a bathroom space with all-new showers, toilets, tubs, and cabinetry. This may not be necessary to add value to your home, provided that your bathroom is in proper working order and fresh in appearance. A good bathroom space will be both functional and aesthetically appealing. Small repairs like painting the walls and replacing tile grout can work wonders. Clean out your exhaust fan and repair chips in the bathtub or sink to make the fixtures look new. It’s also worthwhile in some cases to replace old light fixtures with more user-friendly or energy-efficient models.
One final suggestion: hire two professionals. One to clean your carpets and/or polish your wood floors and another to deep clean your home. In the scheme of a home sale, this small investment will save you time and make a great first impression on potential buyers.
