Thinking of making improvements before selling? Here’s what you need to know

If you’re planning to sell your home in the near future, you may be thinking about making some upgrades to the property to ensure it is as attractive as possible to would-be buyers. While many of the changes you might want to make could be relatively small and cost-controlled, there are other projects that can really improve your home, but come with price tags stretching into the tens of thousands of dollars.

So before you decide on doing a big renovation of the master bathroom or replace all the appliances in your kitchen — at great personal expense — you need to know a few things about what’s a good idea, what isn’t and why.

Fixing up a fixer-upper

If your home hasn’t been updated in decades, it might be a good idea to undertake those renovations, according to The Balance. The reason why is simple: You probably won’t get a full return on your investment, but you’ll help the home sell more quickly and at a potentially much higher price than you would have otherwise fetched.

There may be a reasonable number of budget-conscious buyers who are willing to put in the time, effort and money required to upgrade a fixer-upper, but they’re probably not going to pay anything resembling market value for a home that needs a lot of work. That’s true even in a highly competitive housing market.

What to examine

There are a few things to think about when considering renovations for a home that is otherwise in good shape and doesn’t fit the standard fixer-upper definition. For instance, Homelight noted that you must consider how quickly you want to sell, as well as the amount of money you put in and the specific rooms you plan to renovate. After all, a kitchen reno will often cost a great deal more than one you would do in other rooms of the home. It can also add a brilliant “wow” factor to your house and help motivate prospective buyers, which is why kitchen updates are so common.

In an ideal situation, buyers want to be able to purchase a property that is ready for them to move in as quickly as possible. As such, you might also need to think about how far out in advance you will have to begin renovation work before you even put the property on the market.

Crunching the numbers

Finally, if you’re trying to determine just how “worth it” a renovation project on a home you won’t get to enjoy yourself really is, you’ll have to break out the calculator. The Spruce pointed out that many of the remodels buyers tend to find most impressive don’t actually come with a huge return on the investment because of how costly that work is. For instance, even the most economical kitchen renovation may only give you an ROI of around 80%. For bathroom remodels, the return is likely to be even lower. That may be a small price to pay if it helps you sell your home on a significantly shortened timeline, but it’s certainly something to consider.

Whenever you are thinking of selling your home, it’s important to have some guidance and advice from a seasoned professional. At Ray White Surfers Paradise, we know what buyers want and what sellers need to do to make their properties as presentable as possible. Get in touch with us today to learn more about what we can do for you at every step of the home selling process.