Real estate can be unpredictable and will not consistently profit the average homeowner. The typical homeowner may expect to recoup their investment. It means they will have lived rent-free for however long they resided in their home. However, there are several things a person can do at little to no cost that will increase the sale price.
First Impressions
Appearances contribute to a significant factor when selling a house. Taking the time to do a little landscaping, cleaning the walls, and steam cleaning carpets go a long way towards increasing property value. In addition, a clean, fresh-smelling house will always help open a buyer’s wallet. One trick to creating a fresh scent of mixing one part water with one part Pine-Sol in a spray bottle. Spraying this mixture a couple of times throughout your home will positively respond to any potential buyer.
Space Control
The bigger the house, the more money you can expect to get. Unfortunately, there’s not much you can do to make an empty home look bigger; however, if you are showing your house while still living in it, then a few tricks can create the illusion that your rooms are more significant than they are.
Prospective buyers like to imagine what a house will look like with their furniture, so having your personal effects around will help with this. Keeping a tidy home when selling is common knowledge, but try keeping most of your stuff organized and out of sight. It reduces the clutter and allows for a more open area to be seen.
Moving furniture against walls will also open the floor space up. For example, if you have a flat-screen TV, consider spending the money to mount it on the wall. TVs and the stands they sit on take up any dead space. Mounting a TV can add at least 15 square feet of floor space. It may signify a lot, particularly to a buyer with a family.
Some people decide that having a yard sale would help clear many possessions before moving. It is a good idea but may not be the answer to freeing yourself of your worldly possessions. If holding a yard sale turns out not to be as successful as you anticipated, and throwing away this stuff is not an option, then you can look into renting storage space.
While renting storage space is not a very common practice when selling a home, it does have several benefits—moving what you can into storage forces you to prepare for your actual move Before the last minute. Also, clearing out extra items that you can do without for a while will open up rooms, closets, and garages.
A garage is a commonplace that homeowners decide to use for storage. So having a clean garage will help improve a buyer’s offer. The same goes for closets. How much of the material in your cabinets have remained unopened since you moved here? Put these items in storage if you think you can’t part with them. Closet space is a crucial consideration when purchasing a property. A well organized and free of clutter closet will show a buyer exactly how much space there is.
Walls and Floors
Everybody has been advised to repaint walls and replace the carpet in a home they are about to sell. Of course, you won’t be given the same old suggestions here, but you will be asked to consider taking this advice to the next level.
A fresh coat of paint is an easy and relatively inexpensive way to give your house a new look, but a buyer will be expecting this. As long as the aroma of freshly painted walls can be detected throughout the house, why not use a two-toned colour scheme? Using two different types of colour on your walls takes a little more experience than simply repainting a room with one painting. However, it will show a buyer that you put a little more effort into selling your home, and they may believe that you hired a professional painter to make this happen.
Replacing your carpet is one way to add value, but everyone knows this trick and clean floors are expected by most home buyers. The way to take this approach to a new level is by changing the type of floor you currently have. If replacing the carpet is something you already plan on doing anyway, why not upgrade to a better floor type? If your bed has tile presently, then replace it with carpet. If carpet is the material being returned, go with a wood floor. The added value that a new floor type will bring will typically pay for the replacement and perhaps more.
Driveways and Garages
It is an area of your property that is usually overlooked. If there are oil spots or other stains left from your vehicle or outside activities, then take time to clean them off. The most straightforward technique to remove dirt is to use a power washer. These are pretty standard pieces of equipment, but if you don’t know anyone who has one to borrow from, then check with your local hardware store. Hardware stores usually have construction equipment for rent at a reasonable price.
If rental prices are too expensive for you, then take a look down the aisle with washers for sale. Pressure washer prices have become very reasonable over the years, and a homeowner can find many uses for owning one of their own. For instance, they are helpful when washing cars, cleaning off the siding to a home, and maintaining BBQ grills. Of course, there are more uses, but these seem to be the most common.
Wood Staining
Wood staining is the last idea that someone would consider when trying to improve the value of their home. It is a skill that many have never attempted but is very easy to do. While the process may take some time, the results are worth the wait. A few of the items which can be stained are kitchen cabinets, doors, closets, door frames, baseboards, and window frames. Considering almost everywhere you look in a home has areas that can be stained, the new and fresh look may be worth your time to think about.
