Whether you should renovate before you sell your home is one of the biggest questions you might have when you start thinking about moving. Especially if the interior of your home is a little dated, you could be concerned that it will negatively affect your home’s value.
At the other end of the spectrum, you don’t want to spend a lot of money, only to find out it didn’t add enough value to cover your costs.
So what’s the answer? Should you renovate before selling or not?
How to Decide if to Renovate Before Selling Your Home
Making the decision to renovate, what to renovate and how much to renovate all start with the current condition of your home. Still, it’s not a straight forward answer. If your home happens to be in ‘fixer upper’ condition, it might be best to avoid renovations altogether. The cost of the renos would not likely be recouped in the increased selling price.
Similarly, if your home is in architectural magazine condition, you also are also less likely to benefit from renovations. However, if yours is like most homes, which fall somewhere between fixer upper and show home, then the right renovation can increase the value of your home by enough to cover costs, and help your home sell faster too.
What Should You Renovate?
Once you establish that it will help the value of your, the question becomes “which renovations offers the best ROI?” Of course, every home is different and in different need of renovating. Your real estate agent should be able to recommend what’s best to improve the value of your particular home. But, in general, consider renovating the following:
1. Fix What’s Broken & Paint the Entire Home
Just a fresh coat of paint is considered the highest ROI of any home renovation. This includes the exterior of your home too. But, also make it a point to fix leaky faucets, faulty electricals, holes and cracks in walls, and any other quick fixes. It’s even worth hiring a handyperson to make sure your home is in good working order. Think about it this way: you may be in a well-built home, in a great location and suitable for your purposes, but buyers can still be turned off by just a few cracks, creaky doors and lights not working.
2. Remodel Your Kitchen
You may have heard that the kitchen and bathroom are the two most important rooms for buyers. It’s true. When you think about it, it makes perfect sense. Every other room is really just an empty space. But the kitchen is full of appliances, cupboards, and more. However, doing a complete renovation, with all-new everything, may not get the return you need.
Instead, a minor kitchen remodeling can pay off. You can decide what to do based on need. Painting or refacing dirty, worn cabinets, and replacing their handles, can look almost like a full reno. If you appliances are on their last legs, replacement with new, mid-priced models can help. Finally, quartz and granite countertops are in high demand.
3. Remodel the Bathroom
Similar to the kitchen, a remodeling may be the best option for your bathroom. Of course, make sure your fixtures aren’t leaking and are relatively up-to-date. Again, counter tops are important. If you feel it needs something more, removing older bathtubs in place of walk-in showers can make a big difference in the look and feel of the bathroom.
4. Other Renos to Consider
There are other things you can update and renovate around the house that will get a better return than others. Your garage door can account for 30% or more of the overall look of your home. If yours is not so presentable, a new one might be worth the investment. New homeowners are also looking for staycation options and even a small backyard deck can be quite appealing. Of course, what they look at while imagining themselves enjoying the deck is impportant too. So make sure your lawncare and landscaping are the best they can be.
If you enjoyed this post, check out our recent article “5 Top Interior Design Trends for 2022“.