The following article is a column submitted by Diane Harper, who is the 2021 president of the Ashland Board of REALTORS.
ASHLAND — As a smart seller, you’ll want your home in tip-top shape — but you don’t want to eat into your profits by overspending on home improvements. You won’t be around to enjoy them anyway.
The key is to focus on the most important repairs to make before selling a house to ensure every dollar you spend supports a higher asking price. Smaller and less expensive updates in combination with good staging will have a great return.
But how do you know what things to do before putting your house on the market? Prioritize these updates — and consider letting the rest go.
1. The Most Important Repair to Make Before Selling: Fix Damaged Flooring.
Scratched-up wood flooring; ratty, outdated carpeting; and tired linoleum make your home feel sad. Buyers might take one step inside and scratch the property from their list.
Want to know how to increase the value of your home? Install new flooring. If your home already has hardwood floors, refinishing does the job.
2. Fix Water Stains.
You’ve learned to live with the results of a long-fixed plumbing snafu, but for buyers, a water stain suggests there could be a dozen pesky problems hidden beneath the surface. That’s why this is one of the things to do before putting your house on the market.
First, make sure the problem is fixed: Bring in a plumber to look for leaky piping or poor yard drainage if your basement is damp. Diverting rainwater from your foundation may cost as little as $800, and repairing a leaking pipe costs approximately $300.
3. Repair Torn Window Screens. So super inexpensive — and even DIY-able. You can purchase a window screen frame repair kit from a home improvement store for $10 to $15.
Considering the simplicity of this repair, making the fix is always worth it — and so are other small but highly visible issues.
When you’re debating how to increase the value of your home, nix any small problems, snags, or ugly spots that might make buyers scrunch up their brows.
4. Update Grout. Is your grout yellowing or cracked? Buyers will notice.
New grout, on the other hand, can make old floors look like they came straight from the showroom.
This is another small fix with a big impact: Simple bathroom re-grouting may cost just $1 to $2 per square foot, increasing to $10 per square foot for more complicated jobs. And if you’re handy, you can save even more DIY-ing it.
5. Resuscitate a Dying Lawn. This one’s gonna take some work, like a brown, patchy, weedy lawn. Fixing the problem doesn’t cost a ton of money — and you’ll get it all back (and then some!) once you sell.
Hiring a lawn care service to apply fertilizer and weed control will cost about $375. Once you sell the home, that comparatively cheap fix could recoup $1,000. That’s an unbeatable 267% return on investment.
6. Erase Pet Damage. Did your (sort of) darling kitten scratch your bedroom door? Fix the damage before listing your home. Otherwise, buyers may consider the scuffs a canary in the coal mine.
If you have pet damage, buyers may look for pet stains on the floor.
7. Revive an Outdated Kitchen. A full kitchen renovation is rarely worth it when it comes time to sell — even though buyers love a fresh look.
The problem is, this $65,000 upgrade isn’t something that buyers will pay you back for. Sellers recoup about 62% of a full-on kitchen renovation.
If you’re updating the space just for your sale, focus on low-cost, high-impact projects instead. Painting wood cabinets, updating hardware, or installing new countertops or appliances could be enough.
Setting up your home for selling success doesn’t have to be expensive. Focus on the most important repairs to make before selling a house by picking projects that do more than look pretty.
Choose updates that get your home in selling shape and justify a higher asking price. And remember, the next time you’re in the market to buy or sell a home contact a REALTOR, a member of the Ashland Board of REALTORS..
