Renovation Tips

Getting ready to sell your house? Renovations probably aren’t at the top of your mind, especially since you won’t be there to enjoy the sweet upgrades you’ve made. However, fixing up your house before you sell it is one of the most important things you can do if you want to get top dollar for it. Making a few upgrades will help the sale— and you’ll make the money back once it sells. Here are some things that should be renovated and which renovations should be avoided:

Renovate this!

  • Repainting the interior walls is one of the easiest ways to give your home a face lift. You especially want to apply a fresh coat of paint if your walls aren’t a neutral shade, such as a white or grey, because most potential buyers want to be able to picture themselves making a home for themselves there, which is harder to do when the walls are a screaming red or highlighter yellow (not to mention the old floral wallpaper that your grandmother picked out for the bathroom). You can do this yourself or better yet, hire a professional. 
  • Changing up the flooring is also a good idea, especially if your flooring is outdated (shag carpet, anyone?). As with the paint, any carpets should be a neutral color. When it comes to hardwood floors, refinishing them is always an option.
  • An updated kitchen is always a smart idea as most buyers are drawn in by a modern kitchen, however, going all out can be expensive. Just replacing old cabinets or installing new lighting might be enough to get those offers rolling in. If you’re willing to put out more money, installing a new countertop can really give the kitchen a new look. While granite and marble counters can run you up to $200 per square foot, there are cheaper (yet still stylish) alternatives in stainless steel, quartz, or cement.
  • Like kitchens, people get excited over a nice looking bathroom, but remodeling bathrooms can be pricey. The experts over at HGTV suggest caulking and glazing your bathtub, both of which are easy enough that you can do yourself!

Don’t Renovate this!

  • Don’t add onto the house! While it may sound like a good idea to have a fully finished basement or attic, these things don’t necessarily add value to your home, so you’d end up eating the costs of what would turn out to be a very expensive project.
  • Adding a pool might sound like a great thing, but many buyers aren’t willing to purchase a house with a built in pool because they are high maintenance, expensive and dangerous. 

When it comes time to update a house, just remember one simple rule: don’t go crazy. If something doesn’t need to be upgraded, leave it. Any change should make sense in the long run, so if it isn’t going to help sell the house, don’t do it!