5 Home Fixes You Must Complete Before Selling

GeneralSellers

Sep 21

Maximize Your Home Sale Without Breaking the Bank

Hello, San Diego homeowners!

I recently had a conversation with a client selling their home, and they asked me a question that many homeowners wrestle with. "Brent, how can we wisely prepare our home for the market to maximize our profits and not kill our bank account with upgrades?" This is an important question to raise and get guidance on if you’re in the home selling process. It can be overwhelming, scary even, to navigate and figure out what to invest in a home you’re going to sell.

Home Renovations vs. Home Fix-ups

If you’re selling a home and making major upgrades or renovations with the goal of getting top dollar on the house when you sell, you want to be sure that those upgrades will be worth it.

The thing is, not all renovations will get you a dollar-for-dollar return. In fact, it's commonly seen that for every dollar spent on big-ticket renovations, the home value increases by only about 70 percent. This means a $100,000 renovation might only add $70,000 to your home’s value. Clearly, indulging in expensive renovations is not the smart way to go.

So, what’s the best approach?

We recommend home sellers focus on intelligent fix-ups — small cost, big impact updates that genuinely enhance your home's appeal and, consequently, its market value. It’s about striking the right balance – aiming to increase your home's value without unnecessarily depleting your pocket.

In my nearly fifteen years of experience as a real estate broker, I have seen these tried and tested tips and strategies work wonders in the residential housing market in San Diego, CA.

5 Intelligent Home Upgrades to Make Before Selling

1. Switches and Outlets

You will be amazed at how impactful it is to simply replace your home’s switches and outlets. Having clean, modern switches and outlets can refresh your home’s look instantly. This is not a detail to skip over, trust me!

2. Paint Touch-ups

Paying attention to the details matters. Give your baseboards a fresh coat of paint. Touch up the interior paint where there are scuffs and marks. Maybe even do a full fresh coat of paint in rooms that could particularly use it – due to marks from the wear and tear of life or a room with a bold color that may not appeal to a large number of potential home buyers. Fresh interior paint updates can work magic.

3. Deep Cleaning

Nothing beats the appeal of a sparkling, clean home. Consider professional cleaning services to give your home a refreshed and vibrant look. No one wants to step into a house on a home tour and feel, see or smell someone else’s grim, dirt, or pet (had to be said). Get it spic and span!

4. Tile Grout Cleaning

This could have been bundled with #3’s deep cleaning, but it truly deserves its own call-out. Whether you’ve only got tile in your bathroom or you have it on floors throughout your home, consider professional cleaning for the tile grout. It will amaze you how good your tile looks after it’s done. It can make the floors and walls look almost new again – adding to the visual appeal and cleanliness factor considerably.

5. Minor Fixes

It's the little things that often catch someone’s eye. In a recent project, we helped a home seller with, we noticed the exterior trim around the windows was weathered and beat up. It was a relatively inexpensive fix that transformed the home from looking somewhat run down to absolutely popping. Sometimes, you need to step back and look at your particular home – both the inside and the outside – and look at it with fresh eyes for what looks worn, tired, or rough. Often, there are easy opportunities for low-cost fixes.

The Outcome: Faster, Better Home Sales

The goal is to facilitate a sale that is not only fast but also gets you the value that your home truly deserves. Intelligent fix-ups are designed to enhance the aspects of your home that draw a buyer’s eye and make your property irresistibly attractive without imposing a financial burden on you.

By avoiding costly overhauls and focusing on high-impact, low-cost improvements, you stand to make the sale smoother, quicker, and more profitable. Remember, when it comes to prepping your home for sale, it's always about being smart with your choices, aiming for renovations that will make you money, not cost you money.

Now it’s time to get after it!

Cheers,

Brent

Brent Edwards (aka Brent the Broker) is a residential real estate agent and Realtor in San Diego, CA who helps clients buy and sell homes in San Diego, California and all surrounding areas. Brent is a highly-recommended Realtor in San Diego by family, friends and past clients. Call Brent today at 619-550-8070 if you have any questions about real estate in San Diego or you'd like to buy or sell a home.