1. Enhance the Curb Appeal
Consider what visitors see first, then attend to those items first. Curb appeal is one of the primary determining factors for potential buyers. And while not a large factor in appraising home value, appearance is paramount in terms of sale price.
So how do you increase the curb appeal of your home? Start by reducing clutter, painting your home’s exterior and improving the landscaping, adding dormers, replacing trim, installing siding or stone work, adding or upgrading a deck, or replacing the driveway and sidewalks.
2. Increase the Property’s Footprint
The size and living space of a home is critical to the appraised value and the resale price of your home. If you have an unfinished space in your home that can be converted into finished living space, start there. Finishing a space is far less expensive than a room addition.
To determine whether a room addition is a good investment, you will need to research the neighborhood a bit. Determine the average size of the homes in your neighborhood; if yours falls well below the average, then a room addition could be a good investment. On the other hand, if you home is larger than most homes in your neighborhood, you may not recoup your investment in a room addition.
Click here to see some great room additions
3. Update Bathrooms
If your home has out of date bathrooms, then updating them is likely to be a good investment to increase the resale value. Most buyers are attracted to a home with modern, spacious and up to date bathrooms.
Click here to see some great bathroom remodeling projects
4. Update the Kitchen
As with bathrooms, updating an older kitchen will often increase the resale value of a property. You can cut costs by refinishing cabinets, installing new appliances, counter tops and flooring and improving the lighting in your kitchen.
Click here to see some great kitchen remodeling projects
5. Increase Storage Space
The majority of house buyers today want plenty of room to store things like vacuum, ironing boards, bedding, and toys, so anything you can do to increase the amount of space and functional storage capacity of your home will help add resale value and is often less expensive than major renovations, repairs or room addition projects.
6. Add a Garage
If your home doesn’t have a garage or your garage is too small, adding garage space can be another good investment to increase resale value.
7. Fix any major faults
If your home has an older roof, heating and air conditioning system, water heater or other major component that is either at or past its useful life, then you almost have no choice but to replace such components.
Delaying major repairs and replacements might lead to other maintenance costs down the road. For instance, if you have a leaky roof, it could lead to dry rot and other costly problems.
Down the road when you decide to sell your home, neglected repairs can get in the way of a clean contract.
8. Paint and Redecorate the Interior
Be sure to use neutral colors when repainting your home’s interior. Remember that interior decoration is very personal. Future owners may not like your choice of shades or the prospect of struggling to paint over them. If you decorate your home with bright or dark colors, be prepared to paint over it with neutral colors prior to putting the property up for sale.
9. Increase and Improve Outdoor Living Space
This is similar to adding a garage. The return on investment for adding outdoor living space(as a screened porch, deck or patio) can be very good and is generally less costly than adding interior living space. It can also enhance the curb appeal, which is the most important aspect in preparing a home for sale.
10. Replace Siding and/or Windows
Replacing windows can be another high-return investment. If your home has unsightly windows, or windows made from wood or aluminum, then replacing them with modern double glazed windows will increase both the exterior appeal and energy efficiency of your home.
Brought to you by: My First Home an authority for First Time Buyers