HOW TO INCREASE THE VALUE OF YOUR HOME

WITHOUT SPENDING A LOT OF MONEY









  Home buyers are attracted to clean, spacious and attractive houses.  
  Brighten-up the house and remove all of the clutter from counter tops, tables and rooms.  
  Scrub-down your house from top to bottom.  
     
  * Spend money on what can be seen vs. what can't be seen.  
  * Fix up the exterior first, then the interior.  
  * Focus first on “The appeal” -- clutter, trash and bad smells that drive down a home's value.  
     
  Because an unkempt yard and ugly exterior can cause prospective buyers to drive away without going inside the house, you should work on those first. Clear up clutter. You should do the same inside the house -- reduce clutter and clean everything.  
     
  People don't want to fool around with painting and replacing and fixing the house up. In the world of fast food and instant gratification, people just want to buy a house and move in.  
     
  Tips  
     
  Improve the things people can see. Getting rid of highly visible eyesores will add the most value per dollar to your home.  
     
  Outside  
     
  Yard: If you don’t have much to work with, plant some flowers or install some landscaping appropriate for your home and climate.  
     
  A) Wash and Clean: Walls and windows must be clean. It’s a lot cheaper to wash walls or siding than to repaint or replace siding, and many times a good cleaning will make your home’s finishes look good as new. Pressure-wash your home’s exterior, and wash interior walls. Clean your windows so that you can’t tell they’re there.  
     
  Inside  
     
  Remember the senses.

B)Put out fresh flowers: they make the house look inviting.		  
     
  C) Smell: Bake some oatmeal or chocolate chip cookies--they invoke good thoughts for most people. Then leave them out for visitors. If you don't have time to bake, burn a candle or use potpourri. Use smell sparingly; some people are more sensitive than others.  
     
  D) Sounds: Play some very soft classical music in the background.  
     
  E) Light: Turn on all the lights when the real estate agent arrives with potential buyers. This will help to brighten up your house.  
     
  Use floor and table lamps in every room and sheer curtains to make your house more inviting. Lamps give a softer light, and the curtains let in sunlight, which makes the room more home-like and less clinical. You can pick up decent stuff from garage sales if you don't have any.  
     
  F) Paint: Floor and walls are very important. Restore the hardwood floor. Paint the walls. Don't be afraid to spend a couple of extra dollars on good paint rollers. Those 5- for- $10 rollers will make your walls look blotchy.  
     
  Paint with a neutral color such as beige. It will make the house seem larger. First, patch up any holes, no matter how small. To get a silky smooth finish, apply a coat of primer. After the primer dries, lightly sand it with a fine grit sandpaper (220 grit). Apply the first coat of latex paint, and then lightly sand that layer also. Wipe the walls down with a damp cloth after each sanding session. Then apply the final coat of latex paint. Semi-gloss paint will make your walls seem brighter. If your walls have imperfections, such as dents in the drywall or cracks in the plaster, consider using flat paint to hide those imperfections. Keep in mind that flat paint shows dirt easily and is difficult to clean, so leave it until just before your open house.  
     
  G) Install ceiling fans: If you live in an area where warm weather is common, replacing built in ceiling lights with ceiling fans will improve the form and function of your home.
  
     
  H) Fix up: Check the main circuit breaker panel to see if the bathroom and garage circuits are protected by GFI breakers. If not, install GFI outlets in those locations.  
     
  Install modern light switches and outlets. Some of the new style switches can be easily installed using the wires already running to the old switches. Just be sure to turn off the power to the room or entire house before doing any work. The new outlets look nice, and give the impression that the electrical wiring in the house is newer than it really is. Dimmer switches are especially desirable.  
     
  I) Clean, clean, clean: Nothing improves the value more for so little of an investment than a good cleaning. Houses that look and smell clean have great market appeal. Even an older house with older appliances will fare well if everything is sparkling clean.  
     
  J) Replace: Put up fresh curtains and blinds. Blinds don't cost much, and curtains can be cheap also. Over time, the sun fades the colors from your blinds and curtains, so new ones will make a better impression than old ones.  
     
  K) Clutter: Put up fresh curtains and blinds. Blinds don't cost much, and curtains can be cheap also. Over time, the sun fades the colors from your blinds and curtains, so new ones will make a better impression than old ones.
  
     
  This is very repetitive but one of the ways you can increase the value of your home without spending any money. Eliminate clutter inside the home. If you’re going to be showing the house to potential buyers, get the house organized and get rid of clutter or put it in storage. A nice, tidy house will seem larger and more elegant. Get half of the closets empty, it creates the illusion of having more space. Leave only the essentials in your bathroom and kitchen. Keep the bathroom as bare as possible, never leave your personals in view when showing your home. Keep also only the bare essentials in the bedroom and living room. Pack everything as if you are moving and put it away in storage, it will make easier the move. Leave in the house as if it were a fancy hotel, clean everything and leave with only the absolutely necessary. You get the idea by thinking on a hotel you stayed and you would like to go back. Create the luxury feeling in the bathroom with a pair of new towels, new curtain liner and new curtain. (You will use soon it in your new house)  
     
  L) Marketing: Know who you are marketing to: Take an honest assessment of your home and determine who is MOST LIKELY to be your buyer...is it an investor, first-time homeowner, executive or empty-nester? Once you have pinned down the buyer, market to them heavily.  
     
  M) Staging: You are putting your home on display, so present it well. If you don't think you have an eye for presentation, ask one of your friends or family to prepare your house for you or get a home Staging service to stage your home.