I have had a lot of people asking me to come look at their home to help them get ready to sell. I love adding value, and I think this is one area where having an experienced eye and strong understanding of the market really helps me do that. Here are some thoughts on where investing in your home can add the most value in the order of cost/benefit significance. :
CLEAN!!! – Do a deep clean or hire someone to come and get the nooks and crannies. Buyers will look everywhere. Open everything you can open and clean inside of it. If your home is beautiful and then the buyer opens a door where everything inside has an inch of dust, you will lose them 90% of the time.
Carpet and Paint – Simply making your home pop can add a lot of value to those people that are coming to look at your home. If you think about it, many people are taking 20-30 minutes to decide on making one of the largest investments of their life. The more you can stand out in a good way, the better off you will be. Making your home look clean and fresh will go a long way in doing just that.
Kitchen – First off, if you do a full remodel you are likely to, at a maximum, get 50% of your investment back. If you are going to redo a kitchen completely, do it when you buy so that you get to enjoy it. Unless you bought your property at a deep discount, you are not going to see that money come back to you. There are several things you can do in the kitchen for less cost that will add value. Paint the cabinets, and/or add a tile back splash. These cost effective improvements can do a lot for you.
Bathroom – Same note as the kitchen. You will not get your money back if you do a full remodel. Here are the cost effective moves: Update the fixtures. Re-caulk and re-grout the shower.
Whole House – Replace dated light fixtures. You can get new fixtures for less than $50 a piece. Take advantage of that.
All of these are great ideas. You might have more benefit from some than others depending on the rest of your house. Also, ask other people about colors. I learned early on that some sellers cannot be trusted to pick complementary colors. If that is you, I am happy to help.
Call me and let me help you. You can reach me at 515.639.0047 or RyanLynch@KW.com. I am very good at what I do and I would love to be on your team.
~Ryan Lynch
