If you’re thinking of selling your home within the next few weeks or months, preparing your home to go on the market can help you get the best price. Aside from making sure all major areas in the home are in good working condition, there are other simple home improvements that can entice buyers and get you to a sold home faster.
While the following home improvements seem like minor changes, they can be the difference between multiple home offers and none at all.
Kitchen remodels can set you back thousands of dollars, but unless your kitchen has seen better days – think broken cabinets and decor best suited to the 1970s – you can make some dramatic changes by making small tweaks.
You can do simple things like replacing hardware, including drawer pulls, handles and sink faucets. Check your cabinet doors to make sure they close properly and aren’t crooked. If you have mismatched appliances, consider ordering new matching panels for them.
If you’re feeling adventurous, paint your cabinets to give them a facelift or even replace cabinet doors if the rest of your cabinetry is intact.
Homes that appear dark and dingy are a turnoff for many buyers.
To help make your home as bright as possible without adding windows, swap your curtains with sheer ones, ideally in brighter colors (white is also good). Remove any outdated draperies and make sure to keep window treatments as open as possible when showing the home.
Yes, it’s pretty much common sense, but it bears repeating – having a home that’s clean and free of clutter is more appealing to buyers. Paring down your possessions and having plenty of space in the home will make it easier for buyers to envision themselves living in the home.
Tidy up shelves, clearing as much as you can, and store extra items in your garage or, if you need more space, in a storage unit. Possessions to remove include seasonal items, toys, and bulky and excessive furniture.
While you’re clearing out clutter, consider rearranging furniture so it looks less crowded.
Clearing out the clutter from your closets can show prospective buyers there can be plenty of storage space – a major selling point for a home. If you have small storage areas, spend some money on adding closet systems to your pantries and bedroom closets to maximize space. You can take it a step further and add in other types of storage, like a small shed in the yard or shelving systems in the garage, to showcase how much space there is for storage.
You can find many of these items in home improvement stores.
If you have holes, scratches or kids’ drawings on the walls, it’s probably a good idea to clean and patch those areas. Painting the walls can also really freshen up a space, make it bright and help a buyer see themselves living in the home.
Painting neutral colors like white, grey and tan is best if you want to attract as many offers as possible. Painting the walls can take a weekend or less and won’t set you back a ton of cash.
Besides kitchens, bathrooms are one of the places that buyers remember most. Like kitchens, you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars on a remodel. Making changes like switching up the hardware and light fixtures and adding in shelving for extra storage can do wonders for the space.
Dingy and outdated carpet can turn off even the most eager of buyers. If you’re looking for a budget-friendly option, rent a carpet cleaning machine and get the flooring looking nice and new. Otherwise, it could be worth it to replace the flooring with new carpet, laminate flooring or even tile.
As the saying goes, you can only make one first impression – make sure it’s a good one. Aside from making sure that the outside of the house is clutter-free, work on the curb appeal. Consider some potted plants or shrubbery, a nicely mowed lawn and a freshly painted door. Even changing up the hardware, like adding new doorknobs and light fixtures, can go a long way.
With some effort and a little bit of cash, you can make some home improvements that will appeal to prospective buyers and hopefully sell your home faster. You’d be surprised at how much minor changes can improve prospective buyers’ opinions of the property.
