Why You Should Consider Remodeling Before Selling Your House
With the 2017 Fall Parade of Homes right around the corner, you may just find a perfect new home or a builder you love. So, now’s the time to think about how to prepare your current home for sale. Our Guest Blogger, Brooke Moore from Homelight, shares some excellent tips for you. And don’t forget to tour the Remodelers Showcase (Sept. 29-Oct. 1) to find the right remodeler — but watch out, you might just decide to stay there once you see how amazing your “new” old house can be (like the photo above, Home #R1 on this Fall’s Remodelers Showcase by Julkowski, Inc.
Over half of home sellers in 2016 invested in remodeling. It may seem counter-intuitive to invest money in a home you’re leaving, but, for several reasons, home updates can be the answer for how to sell your house. If you spend your presale budget carefully, renovations get results.
With some remodeling projects, you’ll see a high return on investment in the selling price. Other updates make for more offers from buyers and a faster sale.
A minor update to your kitchen can return as much as 90 percent of your investment, and a beautiful, modern kitchen like in #R30 from JCarsten will knock the socks off potential buyers.
A house sitting unsold over time is not a good thing. You may be left struggling with two mortgages while you wait…and wait. Properties that languish on the market can get a sketchy reputation, like a dark cloud that settles over the listing, making the house less and less attractive to buyers.
How to avoid this problem? If your house is old, requires TLC, or could just use some updating, be honest with yourself about how this will affect the sale. Lots of buyers won’t care about the “personality” or “charm” of a fixer-upper; they’re only going to see future expense and the work to be done. They may lose interest, or they may demand you compromise on the price.
A new front door will return over 90 percent on your investment. And revamping your entryway to create a warm welcome to family and guests is priceless, like the one in #R61 from Stay at Home.
Top realtors agree that “as is” can be the worst thing to put in a listing. Even if you’re ready to sell for less to a flipper, they still may want things fixed before they sign a contract.
A study sponsored by the financial group BMO found that 80 percent of buyers decide if a house is right “at first sight,” making an immediate emotional connection that they later support with the facts and numbers. This study also found that 71 percent of buyers reported their biggest fear in making an offer was “the unknown,” suspecting problems to arise in a house kept in poor condition.
These numbers indicate how important first impressions are when selling, and how a house with that “wow” factor benefits the seller. The Cost vs Value Reports from 2016 and 2017 list the remodeling projects that are your best investments:
- You will break even on refinishing hardwood floors, but their positive visual impact is significant.
- Insulating the attic, reseeding the lawn, and enhancing the landscape for curb appeal will get you more than 100% ROI.
- A new front door or garage door will return 90-plus percent and add much to curb appeal and that sense of a well-maintained, welcoming house.
- New siding has about a 75 percent ROI and adds to that effect, just as the floors do inside.
- A minor kitchen remodel will get you 90-plus percent, and an updated, good-looking kitchen is a big draw for buyers.
- Bathroom remodels have about a 65 percent ROI, but an outdated, tired bathroom is a turn-off and a red flag of future expense for buyers.
These remodeling projects can vary in urgency from market to market, and even from season to season, so your REALTOR® is a great source of advice on how to prioritize. Having confidence that your house will sell fast and sell well is priceless.