Selling your current house is one of the most important steps in the moving or the home-buying process. Although selling your old home before moving into your new home is not a requirement, the majority of homeowners prefer to not have to juggle two houses and their many expenses at once.
However, selling your home can be a challenge for many reasons. For example, if you’re moving because you want a more modern and up-to-date house, the odds are that your house is on the older side which can depreciate its value.
Unfortunately, the value of houses depreciate each year as technologies advance and new trends rise to popularity. So if you bought or built your house back in 2005, the past 15 years have taken multiple thousands of dollars off of your home’s value.
This loss of value when selling the house can greatly limit your original projected budget for buying a new home and can feel a little insulting. But there is no need to fret, because we are here to help you increase the resale value of your home before you put it on the market.
Whether you are looking for inexpensive, do-it-yourself projects or are open to some minor remodels, we have plenty of tips and tricks. However, we have narrowed down the list to our top five recommendations.
Five Ways to Increase the Resale Value of Your House
- Upgrade Your Curb Appeal: The first thing that a potential home buyer will see when looking at your house, online or in-person, is the exterior and the landscape. Nothing can turn them away quicker than an unkempt lawn or a dirty house. You can eliminate both of these problems by yourself and for a relatively low price.
You can spruce up your landscape several ways including mowing the lawn and trimming any shrubbery, planting colorful flowers or adding a cute walkway, made out of stepping stones, to the front door. Making the exterior of your house more attractive can be as easy as power washing it or applying a fresh coat of paint, two activities that you can do yourself. If you prefer a smaller painting job, repaint your front door a bold color to make it pop.
- Refinish Your Floors: If your older home already has hardwood floors, then you are in great shape. After purchasing a house, one of the first things that many new homeowners do is rip out the carpet and replace it with hardwood flooring. So having hardwood floors makes your home more marketable, but it can also make it more valuable.
If your house is older or you have pets, there is a good chance that the finish on the hardwood has experienced some wear and tear. A simple way to increase the value of your home is to refinish those floors. Although doing this requires some money, you will definitely get a return on the investment.
- Update Your Kitchen: The area of a house that receives the most scrutiny is the kitchen. Oftentimes, this room can make or break a sale because no one wants to buy a house with out-dated appliances or no storage space.
One of the best ways to update your kitchen is by buying modern appliances such as microwaves, dishwashers, ovens and refrigerators. We recommend choosing the stainless steel products. If you’re looking for a smaller project, you can add LED light fixtures or install modern and trendy drawer knobs or faucets.
- Remodel Your Bathroom: If you want to increase your home’s resale value through small remodeling projects, we recommend starting with the bathrooms. Having a modern, trendy and open master bathroom is on the top of every house hunters’ list.
We suggest remodeling your bathroom by adding new tile, repainting the walls, installing a walk-in shower or large bathtub and making sure that there is plenty of storage. No matter the amount of money you invest in your bathroom remodel, you are sure to see a return.
- Easily Accessible and Multi-Purpose Laundry Room: According to a survey done by the National Association of Home Builders, 68% of moderate-income buyers and 69% of high-income buyers prefer to have the washer and dryer on the main floor of the house instead of in a basement or garage. The same survey also indicated that most home buyers with children prefer to have the laundry room double as a mud room and have additional storage, like cubbies, for backpacks.
Updating your laundry room to meet these preferences is a great way to boost the value of your home and make it more marketable to higher income buyers.
Before you start making changes to your home, give us a call. No one knows what trends are most popular, what remodels are most sought after and what local buyers are looking for more than us. Not to mention, we can definitely help you sell your home too, that’s our specialty!