What should I fix first before selling my house?

Question

What would be the most beneficial things to fix to add value to our house? It needs many things but what would be best?
Paint(in/out)
Sod (dirt and stickers now)
Carpet(replace or tear out and let the new owners put flooring in)
A/C (needs new handler)
Kitchen cabinets (particle board that is falling apart)
Windows (old and not all working right)
We just want to fix some things but can only afford to do a little at a time while adding value to house. Right now I see "AS IS" in our future sale ad....I would at least like it to read "needs a little TLC" So what would be the first things you would fix?

Answer 1

do what oyu can to enhance curb appeallike fixing up the yard alittle and maybe a quickie paint job make sure everything is as clean as possible

Answer 2

As far as appraised value...the two main things that will make a difference are square footage and other sales in your area. Unless you put an addition on, you're not going to affect the appraised value.

What you can do is make things nicer so that it will be more likely to sell period, and be more likely to sell at the higher end of the price range for similar houses in your area.

Redo the kitchen cabinets. You can do this really inexpensively, particularly if you buy the kind that you paint yourself. Put in a new faucet while you are at it. Kitchens are very important! Nobody wants to move into a house with a dirty or old looking kitchen. If you can afford to put in new flooring, do it!

Indoor paint is nice, but many people want to decorate themselves. As long as the walls are clean and in good repair, you should be ok.

Make sure the exterior of the house is clean and do a little landscaping. People who drive by may pass up a terrific house if the lawn is a mess.

Repaint the bathroom. Put on a new toilet seat. Replace the shower head. Hang a new towel rod. People want to feel as though they are going to "get clean" in the bathroom - that's hard to do if the bathroom is yucky-looking.

Have the carpets professionally cleaned. If you can afford it, offer an allowance to the buyers for new carpet.

Good luck!

Answer 3

I'd paint - that's not very expensive, and would look real nice. Kitchen cabinets falling apart will make it hard to sell, but that could be pretty expensive to fix. But if they're REALLY falling apart, then you might have to unless you sell as handyman's special and cut the price WAY down. Can you just plant grass seed rather than sod? Seems like that would cost less, and even though wouldn't be quite as nice looking, should be OK. Unless the carpet is really bad, probably better to let buyers put in what they want to - their taste might not match yours.

All of the things you mention would be good to do, but if money is limited, I'd start on the ones above.

Answer 4

Curb appearance as above is a big one. Think about how you would redecorate if you were buying it. Paint everything with light colors as they are easiest to visualize in different schemes and make it look brighter/larger, make windows airtight but they will probably get replaced, being clean to allow the most light is more important than opening. You can "dress up" the face of kitchen cabinets, or add plywood to the interior, they woudl probably replace them so I wouldn't advise new cabinetry, you may want to look for used/removed units. Everyone likes a nice green lawn, but that's the easiest thing to fix on a property, it's how the mortgage people are going to look at teh resale potential, ultimately they decide if someone can buy it unless they have cash on hand. So a good foundation, water supply, septic system, good roof, no termite/rot damages, good electric and plumbing system, those are the main things. Then it will be about number of rooms, bathrooms and closet space. Then you can get picky aboiut windows, cabinets and paint.

Answer 5

can you do all except replacing the windows? can you have them repaired? often you just need putty, rope, or chain and in some cases, balances. make sure they are very clean.

everything that is of a mechanical nature should at least work. so yes, do replace that AC handler and make sure the toilets don't need that little jiggling of the handle just to refill the tank. do things like stopping any leaks from faucets.

it is better to take up the carpet. if you have nice hardwood floors under them, all the better. if linoleum covers the nice hardwood floors, get mad at someone that done you wrong and then go at it, tearing it up with rage. then strip the floors, refinish them, and varnish/polyurethane them.

put new doors on the cabinets.

of course you want to do the lawn, bushes, tree trimming, etc., and plant some bulbs for the spring. this gives your house immediate "curb appeal."

if your roof leaks, do not think that the buyers' home inspector will not figure it out: they use binoculars. maybe you should do that too, looking for holes and patch/retar/reshingle them.

ensure that all glass, mirrors, floors, inside of appliances, insides of cabinets, closets are clean and neatly arranged. throw out all the accumulated junk that's in the basement or attic. go as minimalistic as possible, giving the potential buyers the ability to picture putting their own furniture into your house. hang nice pictures on the walls. get cheap but nice curtains.

*** just make it look as though the buyers can simply come in from a hard day's work, take off their hats, and cuddle down into the sofa to watch tv, the great american habit. ***

but do this: do, for sure, disclose any defects upfront to your Realtor. there is probably a law in your state to do so. if you do not, you will really be sorry if you and your Realtor end up getting sued! never lie!

Answer 6

scratch the negative tlc or as is comment, I would start with painting(not white), it is relatively inexpensive and will do wonders inside and out... dont sell your house without a floor,, just keep the carpet as it is.. also, paint your cabinets (not white!)
and maybe put new hardware on cabinets...And your Yard is the First thing Buyers See, you want to make a good impression,, plant some grass seed and maybe some potted flowers near the front door.

When you show your house make sure it smells good, maybe bake some cookies right before and leave them out for your guests... or burn inscence,, you also want to open all your curtains so the buyers will look outside rather than at your windows.

Answer 7

i'd say the lawn and the kitchen and the A/C...the windows are something a appraiser might not notice and the carpet the appraiser won't even mention. the lawn will keep it from being an eyesore to anyone driving buy and looking at the for sale sign and new cabinets are a big seller.....you'll probably have to fix the a/c for the appraisal and nobody wants a house with non-working a/c....good luck!

Answer 8

Paint the house. Skip the sod and use seed if you will be there for a few months still. SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper. A/C may be required to be in working order before sale. How bad is the carpet, honestly? Have you gone over it with a steam cleaner? Try that first.

Answer 9

Paint, a/c, carpet, and the cabinets would be the number 1 in this situation to make the house look as good as can be.

Answer 10

I would do some paint. and then offer some settlement help towards some of the tlc that needs to be done. A first time home buyer can really use the settlement help and do the fix up later. Talk to your realtor and see what they think.

Answer 11

It's hard to see through dirt. Clean it up and give it some "curb appeal". Also buy some cheap paint for the inside and the rest you can deduct from the asking price.