Home improvement is essential if you decide to eventually sell your property. There’s no doubt about it. But it’s easy to fall into the trap of going overboard with a lot of things. When you’re trying to sell a house, you’re not looking to turn it into a five-star hotel. Your home improvement strategy should focus on making the property look presentable enough to be sold.
We’re going to show you the four deadly sins of property enhancement. If you want to avoid suffering a huge fiscal loss, then you should pay attention to the mistakes that we’ll mention below.
Mistake #1: Installing fancy floors only to rip it up later.
Floor installations can be tricky, especially if you choose to do an expensive hard surface installation involving tiles or hardwood. Suddenly, a buyer can just walk in and decide that he/she doesn’t like the flooring. Consequently, you’ll be spending thousands taking out a floor you just installed for thousands. Sounds like a setup for a thousand headaches, doesn’t it?
If you want a cost-effective way to enhance the presentability of the house, you may want to consider using vinyl or laminate flooring. Some of them have a click-lock mechanism and you may be able to install it yourself without ripping the older floor below. It is usually cheaper than traditional hardwood or tile and gives almost the same appearance. Should the buyer decide that he/she doesn’t like it, it can be easily disassembled.
When considering wall-to-wall carpet, you may also face the same issue. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of carpets that last longer and they’re hard to maintain. If you have kids or pets, the carpet is bound to wear out. All we can suggest is be careful choosing the carpet you want to install.
Mistake #2: Doing a luxury bathroom renovation.
Don’t spend thousands of dollars to create a luxury bathroom look when you need one. Real estate experts generally agree that extensive renovation projects don’t add much value to the property overall. Instead, what you could do is focus on fixing up some of the fundamental things in the bathroom. Replace any broken tiles that you might find. When you find stains or molds on the grout, then have your tiles regrouted. Remember to stay committed to keeping the bathroom presentable. Don’t go over the top!
Mistake #3: Doing way too much with your landscape.
There’s no doubt that your landscape should be impressive. It is after all the first thing that prospective buyers would see when approaching your property. However, there is no need to add rare types of plants, advanced water features, or fancy lighting arrangements. A high-end landscape could actually intimidate a prospective buyer because of maintenance costs. He/she may also need to consult a landscape architect as well. If you are looking to eventually sell your house, just focus on keeping the grass freshly cut with some nice flower arrangements here or there. You can even hire a gardener, but don’t do anything fancy. It’s not worth it.
Mistake #4: Thinking that installing your pool will get you thousands in return.
Unless you are living in a scorching hot part of the country, don’t expect that installing a pool on your property is going to get you a good sale. It isn’t happening! As a matter of fact, your property value might increase by only 7% or it could even possibly decrease.
Surprisingly, pools are not as popular in some property markets as some claim they are. You’ll end up spending thousands to install the pool and you’ll spend even more maintaining it. Keeping it clean is a big challenge. Pools also pose a serious risk, especially with kids. Most importantly, you should know that if it is not appealing to you, it won’t be appealing to a prospective buyer.
