Buying a home can take time and a lot of money, but so does selling it. To make selling your house easier, here are 10 home renovation tips from real estate agents that will help every house owner pay back the investment he did for the house.
The first thing you need to do is remodel the kitchen. This is what every prospective house buyer will check first. If the kitchen amenities are already in place and installed like the gas range, the plugs are properly placed, so on, this can be a big plus to selling your house faster.
In some cases, the house owners can even upgrade the kitchen systems which include the cabinets and all the other appliances in the area. This will up your house value.
"If it's more than 15 year old, upgrading the kitchen, cabinetry and appliances to modern standards will net you more money during [the] time of sale," said Joe Polyak, a real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty in California.
He added, "Upgrading the appliances to a certain level of luxury -- KitchenAid versus Bosch, for example -- can significantly increase value. Be careful though. You don't need to put Wolfe appliances in a condo in a blue-collar condo complex."
Second, the house owners should open the floor plan which means they need to renovate some of the house interior by demolishing some parts which the contractor sees unnecessary. This is one of the most sought-after features of the house for prospective buyers, according to Polyak.
Third, you could also install or at least repurpose the entire flooring of the house. John Bodrozic, co-founder of digital home management tool HomeZada, said, "Updated hardwood floors or new carpeting can help sell a home."
He advised that if you can do it yourself, you can save a lot of money. But if you need a contractor to do the entire thing, you'd need to get three to five bids to make this possible. You have to budget around $1,544 for the average hardwood refinishing. If you want a new flooring and new carpet to place, you need around $1,493 for carpet and $4,432 for wood.
Fourth, you should paint the interior of the house to make the entire home refreshing and updated. Maria Samuels, marketing specialist at furniture manufacturer InstyleModern, explained that what the house buyers are looking for most of the time and what their standards are for a new home is the updated interior of the house per se.
Because of this, the house owners, if they wanted to attract new owners, would need to transform the house to a totally new space by adding some appropriate splash of colors. "Not only does paint make a room look clean and bright, but it can also change your outlook on your home and living environment," she said.
Fifth, part of what they should consider in the interior is the lighting fixtures which they should also need to upgrade. "It can take a room from looking sterile and unwelcoming to cozy and soothing," Samuels said.
Sixth, the house owners should upgrade the energy consumption of the house aside from installing or upgrading the lighting system of the entire house. They need to have energy-efficient appliances as well as LED lights which are known to have less energy consumption than using regular lightbulbs.
Diana George, founder of Oakland-based Vault Realty Group, said, "These products save homeowners money and contribute to a smaller carbon footprint."
Seventh, what the house owners often neglect is changing the entry door. To make the old house more appealing to the new owners, they need to change the appeal of the house itself by changing the main door. This will boost the home's value by the same amount.
Eighth, another inexpensive project you could do to improve your home value is to add a patio which is really an eye-catcher. If this is well placed and well designed, this can boost up thousands of dollars more for the price of the house.
Ninth, part of the renovation is to fix the vinyl siding by just replacing them. The new vinyl siding usually costs around $12,000. It is a bit pricey, but the house's resell value could increase around $9,700 more.
Tenth, aside from the kitchen and some additional features to look out for, the house owners should also renovate or remodel the bathroom. According to Karen Gray-Plaisted of Design Solutions KGP in New York, any bath renovations are worth the money.
"If the home has good bones and quality finishes, the home seller will reap most, if not all, of the cost," she said. "The impact a new light fixture can make can take a house from being dated to feeling new. I find upgrading light fixtures in bathrooms and kitchens to be worth every penny spent."
