04
25 Ways To Increase The Value And Salability Of Your House
Below are several low cost ways to increase the value of your house and make it easier to sale. Not everything will apply to your situation and you will need to use your own best judgment to decide where your time is best spent.
Repaint the front door (first impressions count)
Touch up the paint on the exterior of the house and repair any cracks or holes.
Replace burned out or dim light bulbs
Clean out and organize your garage.
Buy inexpensive brackets and hang up tools so they are out of the way.
Go through every room and de-junk your house. Be ruthless and get rid of anything that you haven’t used in the last year or two.
Get rid of any ratty old pieces of furniture.
Invest in a new set of hand towels, for the bathroom, that are just for show. You also may want to replace soap dispensers, etc.
Clean of your bathroom counter.
Get things organized and into drawers rather than strewn across the countertop.
Thoroughly clean the shower/tub in the bathrooms (including any grout lines). If the shower head is worn and gunky, spend a few bucks and replace it with a bright shiny new one.
Organize your closets. Go through them first and throw out (or take to your local thrift store) anything you don’t use anymore. Clean the closet thoroughly so that it smells nice and fresh. You may want to hang a new rail or install a shelf or other organizer to make the closets look as spacious as possible.
Identify and eliminate any unpleasant odors. The most common causes of odors are leaks around bathroom fixtures, mold in areas that trap moisture, tobacco smoke and animals.
Many potential buyers will not consider a house that has had animals inside, so clean up any pet areas and remove any signs (or smells) your pets have left in the house. Obviously when showing the house you will want to keep your pets outside if at all possible.
Remove heavy window coverings that block out light. (Brighter rooms look bigger)
Get a small tub of drywall compound and a drywall sander and repair any small cracks, holes, dents and nail pops.
Make sure to check where door knobs may be hitting the wall and causing a dent in the wall. Then touch up with a little paint. If there is a large area that needs repainting you may just want to repaint the whole wall.
Clean and wax vinyl flooring so that it shines. If you have wood floors clean and polish them with the appropriate treatment depending on how they are finished.
Add a wallpaper border to brighten up a kitchen or bathroom. Just make sure to choose a tasteful design with moderate colors.
Repaint the fronts of old, dated cabinets Replace missing or broken drawer handles and cabinet pulls. If they are out of date, replace them all.
Repair and repaint any broken moldings around doors and windows.
Replace broken knobs or buttons on appliances.
Clean the stuff off the front of your refrigerator and shine it up.
Do the same with the oven and make sure to clean the inside of the oven.
Older homes may have dark wood paneling that dates the home and makes the room look small and uninviting. You can either, remove the paneling, repair the wall and repaint it or sand the paneling and paint right over it. Use a good primer first, dark paneling may take a couple coats to fully cover up.
As hard as it may be, keep your laundry/utility room neat and organized. If necessary hang a shelf to provide room for extra storage.
Brighten up a basement by removing any unnecessary window coverings and by installing higher wattage light bulbs.
Take a look at your cars, boats and other possessions. Buyers will judge how well you have taken care of your house by how well you have maintained your other possessions. If necessary, get them washed and waxed.
Keep in mind that you want to appeal to the most buyers possible so you will want to stay away from any extreme colors or designs. The best idea usually is to keep base colors neutral so that you can use contrasting colors as an accent.
Find out more sure-fire ways to
increase the value of your home as well as other
home
improvement resources by visiting
http://easyhouseremodeling.com,
a popular home remodeling website that offers information, tips and free
remodeling advice.
Tags: for sale by owner, house remodeling, increase value, listing, renovation, selling home
Leave a Reply