Optimize Your Sales Price
Doing a lot of work
to a car before you trade or sell it to a dealer is not generally a good
idea. In most cases, you won't recapture the cost of the repairs.
They can do the repairs for less than you can. Not to mention, you are
selling to a wholesaler who needs to sell it again to the end user and still
make a profit.
A home sale is
totally different. The owner is selling the home to an end user.
Since the buyer, in many cases, is using their available funds for the down payment
and purchase costs, they don't have money to spend on repairs or decorating the
home. They would need to live in it "as is" for a while which
may not be as appealing as finding a home that is refurbished, up-to-date, and
ready to move into.
Even if the buyer
would be willing to get a home improvement loan after the sale, it would be a
separate loan at a higher interest rate making their payment higher than
financing it all in one mortgage at the lower first mortgage rates.
The seller may
experience some inconvenience going through the remodeling process, but it
will, most likely, result in a higher sales price in less time.
Occasionally, sellers say they'll let the buyer choose their own colors but not
all people have the imagination to know what something will look like after it
is finished. It is better to go ahead and get the work done before
putting it on the market.
The bathrooms and
kitchen are the most important rooms to update. If the finish on the
cabinets is bad, have them painted. New countertops and appliances can
make a world of difference. Paint, countertops, and fixtures in the bath
give the home a great feel.
In addition to the
repairs, a major cleaning and decluttering can make a home look and feel better
than the competition.
The first step is
to go through the home and pack up or get rid of things you don't need or
things that detract from the home like excess furniture, exercise equipment,
personal artwork, etc. Now, do the same with the closets and
cabinets. By getting rid of things, there will be more room and they'll
look larger.
Next, walk across
the street from your house and give it a critical look. How is the
drive-up appeal? Would you want to go inside to see the rest if you were
a buyer? Are the trees and shrubs trimmed? Yard cleaned up?
Do you have blooming flowers in the beds? Does the front door and mailbox
need a new coat of paint? Do you need to power wash the outside of the
home and the sidewalks and driveway? Do the windows need washing?
Buyers are visual
people and beauty is always rewarded. Restaurants know that people eat
with their eyes first and they go to a lot of effort to plate the food so it is
visually appealing. The same approach works for selling a home. Ask
your agent if they have ever taken a buyer to a home that refused to go inside
because they didn't like the looks from the street.
Your real estate
professional can make specific recommendations and assist you in finding
someone to do the work. This is what they do. TRUST THEM!
