Asking Price

Is it time to sell? If you’re preparing to part ways with your long-loved home, there are a number of easy and affordable things you can do to help drive that asking price up. Your home doesn’t have to be 100% upgraded: you can get by taking on a few quick upgrades and remodels that will give the overall appearance of an updated home without costing you. Here are 3 easy ways to raise the asking price of your home.

Remember the importance of curb appeal

Outdoor updates do not have to be expensive. You can clean up your landscaping, re-paint fences, and update outdoor lighting for only a few hundred bucks. But believe it or not, these small clean-up tasks can go a very long way in getting your house sold (for the price that you want). Buyers tend to get a strong, lasting impression of a home based on how it looks on the outside (whether that clean feeling holds for the house overall or not). So if your front doesn’t look clean and polished, the upgrades on the inside of the home won’t matter: some buyers may not even bother walking through the door. Whereas, if you invest a little money and elbow grease into touching-up the outside so that it looks fresh, clean, beautiful and inviting, buyers will tend to think that the quality of the outside is a reflection of the quality on the inside. They’ll be less likely to nit-pick over small outdated items inside if their first impression of the home was positive (and again, that impression is made when they step out of the car and onto the drive).

What’s more: outdoor living has become increasingly important. If you can create an inviting outdoor living space, you’ve – in essence – extended the square footage of the home for potential buyers. You can price your 1,100 square foot home higher than your neighbors’ if yours has a killer deck or screened patio that’s well-staged and packs punch. And this is not an expensive upgrade: a deck can be installed for less than a few thousand dollars, and nice-looking patio furniture does not have to set you back far. But the re-sale value of that small upgrade can be great, and buyers will love seeing that appealing-looking porch or inviting back deck as they tour your home.

Little clean-ups go a long way

Major upgrades like a new roof, new AC unit, or updated windows and doors should, in theory, seriously raise the value of your home. Yet these aren’t things buyers can see with the naked eye, and so they tend not to pack as great a punch when it comes to increasing resale value. Little updates that buyers are able to notice tend to have a greater impact. Painting, for example, is a low-cost, low-effort upgrade that can convey an overall sense of luxury and welcome to your space, and attract those higher asking prices that your home might not otherwise have gotten. Paint your interior a single, cohesive color palette that’s neutral (beige or “greige” is always a good option). The paint color of your home should allow any buyer to picture themselves in the space.

If your home does not have crown moldings, install them! They’re cheap and easy to do yourself and offer a space a real sense of luxury. Invest in your lighting, as well: when you’re ready to sell, choose high-wattage bulbs and make sure to clean every fixture so that your home really shines. Brighter, well-lit homes feel larger and more inviting. Updating lighting can cost you less than $500 throughout the home, and can help you tack on a few extra thousand dollars to that listing price. Finally, if you’ve still got carpet, consider ripping it out and replacing it with hardwood floors. While this isn’t necessarily the world’s cheapest upgrade, it’s something that buyers notice right away. A dingy carpet will turn off dozens of potential buyers, but gleaming, brand-new hardwood floors will appeal to everyone and should get you that asking price that you want.

Focus your efforts on the kitchen

When it comes to re-selling your home, the feel of the kitchen is a very big deal. Most families spend a lot of time in theirs (whether they’re true chefs or not). It’s the “heart” of the home and can make or break a showing for a lot of interested buyers. Yet you don’t have to go crazy with a full remodel to get your kitchen to pack the punch that it needs to. If your countertops are outdated, consider replacing them, but leave the cabinetry alone. The pop of beautiful, shining granite countertops will distract buyers from slightly outdated cabinetry. And granite countertops, while the cost may be somewhat expensive, are highly popular and have incredible durability; these can drive up re-sale value in a way that other natural stone countertops simply can’t for the money spent. It’s a worthy investment and a cheaper alternative to an entire kitchen overhaul.

Your kitchen can also come leaps and bounds if you simply clean it up. Remove all countertop appliances from view; keep open shelves clean and free of knick-knacks, and remove any clutter from cabinets with glass-front doors. By cleaning out the space, you A) allow your buyers to picture themselves there, and B) create the illusion of more room. It’s not hard to clean (in fact, it won’t cost you more than an afternoon of work), so absolutely make it a priority when you’re ready to sell your home.

And good luck! As long as you focus your efforts on keeping the outdoor clean, the kitchen looking tidy, and put some thought into the little, affordable details of the space, you should expect to increase asking price by a solid 3% (and will likely spend less than half that in the process). These little, budget-friendly upgrades will help you get the asking price you want without breaking the bank (or your back).