Over the past couple of years, homes across the United States have been selling at all-time high prices, and the housing market is expected to stay strong in the coming months. If you’re thinking of putting your home on the market but aren’t sure where to start, look no further than the tips in this article.
Know what your home is worth
Before you start investing time and money into boosting your home’s value, you first need to know what your home is worth by getting a free home appraisal. Free home appraisal tools use automated valuation models (AVMs) to provide an estimated home’s value by evaluating information such as sale information on comparable homes, tax and property assessor records, and data provided by the user (e.g. types of upgrades added since the last sale).
After getting your initial appraisal done, you’ll have a baseline that can be used to determine if a project is worth taking on. As you progress with your home sale journey, a real estate agent can prepare a comparative market analysis (CMA) for a more comprehensive overview of your home’s worth.
Prioritize kitchen upgrades
Since the kitchen is an area of the home that guests and residents alike enjoy, it’s important to ensure you provide a quality space. Replacing existing cabinet hardware such as knobs, hinges, and handles is one of the most cost-effective projects you can tackle, only requiring a couple of hundred dollars, but delivering an 85% to 100% ROI.
If your budget permits, upgrading older kitchen appliances with modern, energy efficient ones often is a worthwhile upgrade because many buyers don’t want to deal with the hassle of purchasing larger appliances after purchasing a home. If you’re not sure of the types of appliances that are most attractive in your market, you can speak with a Tampa real estate agent for guidance.
Improve your home’s air quality
The coronavirus pandemic has significantly changed the ways buyers prioritize features in their homes, explicitly placing an increased emphasis on personal health. To make your home stand out from others on the market, consider investing in upgrades to improve the air quality of your home.
Mold mitigation is one of the most effective ways to boost air quality in your home. If the humidity in your home’s basement is higher than 60%, then you should invest in a dehumidifier. If you already have mold in your home, you can try cleaning it yourself by using a bleach mixture, or dedicated chemical cleaner along with hand tools. If you have larger mold problems then you should call in a mold remediation professional.
Other ways to improve the air quality of your home include vacuuming your home once per week. Use wood cleaner on hardwood floors each month, and choose low-pile over high-pile carpets when possible. These precautions will help you mitigate the number of allergens throughout your home.
If your home was built before 1978, your home may have lead paint. If so, depending on where you live, you may need to paint over your walls with a fresh coat of paint. If the paint is chipping you may need to have a professional strip and repaint your walls.
