Curb Appeal – 3 Keys To Increasing Your Home’s Value
There are 3 key points to increasing the value of your home; putting more money in your pocket when you sell your home. Frankly a home that looks good sells for more money and they sell a lot faster. Why is this? It’s because we buy homes based off of emotions and not logic. It’s not like filing your taxes; it’s all about how you feel when you’re in the house. So would I feel good when I walk into your home? The ladies are a big driver in the sale of a home and curb appeal really matters, especially to the ladies.
So let’s look at the three key points to making a difference in selling your home and increasing its value.
The first key point is to make a good first impression. So pressure-wash that house, pressure-wash that roof, paint your front door and trim your bushes and trees so that your landscaping looks good. Put in evening curb appeal with inexpensive lighting around the landscaping and walkways. You will be surprised what a difference lighting makes. People do “drive-bys” to see if the house appeals to them. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve driven up to a home and people have simply looked at the outside and said, “Nah, we’re not interested. We’re not even going to bother.” The house could be breathtaking inside but if you don’t appeal to them at first look on the outside you are losing potential sales. Making sure you have that curb appeal, both during the day and at night, makes a difference. People will drive by at dusk or in the evening and inexpensive spot lights and walkway lights make the home feel warm and inviting to them. So take the time to add some lights, keep them lit (timers are a great way to do this if you’re not always going to be home) and spruce up your outside for those drive-bys.
The second key point is to make sure you remember that the back yard really does matter. Guys do have some say and most love their backyards. The ladies love to send their kids out in the back yard or relax there. Pressure-wash your patio or deck, trim the bushes and clean up the leaves. Make it feel good. Make it feel like you would want it to be. Simple additions like a big grill can be a huge difference, especially to the “man of the house” who craves those big BBQ moments. There’s nothing like having a nice big barbeque in the yard with friends and family. One look at the yard and the buyer should see memories being made. These small things can, once again, make a huge difference to the buyer. Make them feel like they can’t wait to get out there in the yard and start making their own memories.
The third key point is to spruce it up. Fresh paint is one of the most amazing things to do to make a house look well-cared for and inviting. Even if it’s just sprucing up the shutters with a fresh coat of paint or the front door, it will make a difference. Be sure to choose the right colors and don’t go too crazy with expressing yourself with wild and bold colors because your tastes may not be the same to someone else’s. If you spend $10 on paint, you’ll get $100 back on your return on investment. Trim any oversized trees and bushes and clean up the walk way. Your home has to look good because most buyers will overprice the improvements if they have to do them. As silly as it may seem they see a door handle that you can replace for $8 and they’re thinking it will cost them about $20. A simple coat of paint and new knobs/handles can transform a dull, dungy kitchen into a beautiful and inviting one; costing only about $500 total while the buyer is thinking they have to replace and remodel the entire kitchen, which could run them $5,000. Needless to say a little time and effort with minimal funds can still produce some excellent results that could make or break the deal.
The reason we put this information together and provided it to you at no cost is that we want to make sure you’re informed. An informed buyer or seller is a smart one and we figure if we get this information out there in the market it will help everybody. Of course we are always available to help you with your buying or selling experience; after all this IS how we pay our bills too, so don’t hesitate to call or email us to help you out!
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