Moving can be a hectic time for everyone. One of the hardest aspects of moving is making sure that you get what you deserve for your home. In order to do this, you’ll want everything in great shape. If you’ve lived there for a while, it may be time to take a look at some home upgrades prior to putting a listing on the market in order to ensure this.
Luckily, we’ve put together a great list of our top 5 home upgrades that will give you the highest return on your investments.
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Remodeling
Remodeling is one of the best things that you can do to increase the value of your home. It is an opportunity to give a room a complete makeover and start from scratch. Remodels are especially important if you have old, outdated appliances or a kitchen that looks like it’s stuck in the 80’s.
As we move through time, interior design and housing models have become more contemporary. People love walking into a home with trendy features and an open floor plan. If you’re stuck on where to start, check out some of our suggestions for remodeling room-by-room.
Interior Design
Let’s start with simple interior design. As we mentioned, trends come and go but a lot of them can be easily achieved through interior design planning.
One of the best solutions to increase your home’s value is simply by painting. It transforms your home and instantly makes each room look up to date. Before painting, check with a few professionals and see what colors are popular right now. However, it’s important to keep in mind that neutral colors tend to appeal to more people than bright, vibrant ones. In addition, replace any old wallpaper in your home.
If you have one of those popcorn ceilings, think about removing it. It is outdated and a lot of people see them as eyesores. Luckily, removing them are easy DIY projects – just make sure to get them tested for asbestos before you begin.
Next, take a long look at your carpets. If they make you cringe, chances are they will have the same effect on any potential buyers. If they’re beyond the point of no return, look into replacing them. Otherwise, hire a professional cleaner.
Kitchen Remodel
Kitchen remodels go a long way. This is partially due to the fact that the kitchen is a very commonly used area of the house and also because efficiency matters in this room. If your appliances are old or extremely unsightly, start there. Stainless steel can do wonders for simple transformations. Other ideas would be knocking down a wall for a more open floor plan that connects the kitchen to the dining room or giving your cabinets a new paint job. You don’t have to break the bank for this transformation.
Bathroom Remodel
Bathroom remodels are a great way to instantly increase the value of your home. It’s one of the areas that buyers can tell whether or not you’ve put effort into it. This is because the bathroom is one of the areas of your home that gets used the most. However, bathroom remodels can be expensive. So, in order to move forward with a remodel that doesn’t break the bank, consider the basics. Some things you can do would be to upgrade the countertops, transform your shower and consider replacing your tile.
Spare Rooms
One great way to instantly add wow-factor to your home is by turning spare rooms into something useful. For example, property value tends to increase along with the number of bedrooms. If you have some areas of your house that are unused, but show potential, consider turning them into bedrooms. Think about the attic space, garage or even a large basement for these transformations.
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Eco-Friendly Upgrades
One sure-fire way to increase the value on your home is by going green. In today’s day and age, everyone is thinking about the environment. Not only will it give you a large ROI when you move, but it will also cut your energy bills back while you’re still there.
Solar Panels
Solar panels are a long-term investment. If you are considering going this route, think about doing it prior to putting your home on the market. This way, you will reap some of the benefits. They are a high initial cost, but come with significant savings on energy bills. Due to this, your home will likely sell for much more than it would have without panels.
Attic Insulation
One of the easiest and most cost effective, eco-friendly upgrades is simply adding the proper insulation to your attic. Surprisingly, most homes in the United States currently don’t have adequate insulation, therefore their energy bills are huge. Find out what is the perfect amount for your home and your energy efficiency will skyrocket.
Programmable Thermostats
These are a great way to reduce your carbon footprint. Just program your thermostat to change in the morning, at nights and when you are usually out of the house for longer periods of time. It saves money and is great for the environment.
Window Replacements
Old windows can be the leading factor of costly energy bills. They may no longer be sealed properly and use glass that doesn’t do much for refracting light. Check out some of the new, high energy efficient windows available and make the switch. It will also add a boost of curb appeal to your home and buyers are sure to notice the difference.
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The Great Outdoors
Another great way to increase your ROI when you move is by sprucing up your home from the outside. This is important no matter where you live, since chances are at some point in the year it’s nice enough to hangout outside. For now, we’ll focus on the back of the house.
Backyard Patio or Deck
One of the best things to make sure that your home has is a patio or deck. This is because both patios and decks provide your family with a place to relax, barbeque and spend quality time together. They also serve as a sort of transition from inside to outside and create a smooth, seamless feeling when walking in or outside. Depending on the material you use, adding either of these (or sprucing up existing ones) can help increase your property value.
Landscaping
Additionally, the landscaping in the back of your home should not be ignored. While potential buyers won’t see it when initially passing by your home, it adds a great amount of value when they step out onto the deck. No body wants to walk onto a beautiful deck just to look at drab landscaping. One great idea is if your yard doesn’t have a fence then consider planting trees along your property line for a more natural and appealing option.
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General Repairs and Upgrades
One of the most generic, but necessary, home upgrades you can do is simply checking your home’s structural stability and existing appliances. This gives you a huge ROI because most of these aren’t too costly to do. However, since most people don’t want to move into a home that needs repair work or upgrades, taking these steps will help increase your property value ten-fold. Check out some great recommendations here.
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General Curb Appeal
Finally, you should pay special attention to what your home looks like from the front. This is because if a home doesn’t appeal to prospective buyers from the outside, the chances of them looking inside is very low. Take these small steps in order to increase your home’s appeal.
Paint
Painting your home gives you one of the highest returns on investment. It makes your property value skyrocket and can be the difference between one offer and ten. Choose a neutral color and give the exterior of your home a makeover.
Siding
Siding is another aspect you should consider. It tends to bring about an 85% ROI and helps make your home much more attractive to buyers. Try going with a cement-mix siding rather than vinyl or other low cost materials, as it will last longer and look cleaner.
Landscape
Landscape has a positive effect on curb appeal. Whatever you can do to add a wow-factor to your home will make people stop and give it a second look. While it won’t take your property value through the roof, it is a great way to reel people in.
Powerwash
Borrow or rent a power-washer and give your sidewalks and driveways a good clean prior to putting your home on the market. It’ll take off years of wear and tear.
As you begin with these upgrades to improve your ROI when you move, don’t forget the importance of renting a storage unit. It’s always much easier to work with a clean, clutter free area and you never want to risk damaging your furniture or existing appliances. Additionally, when staging your home it is better to have less out than more, so having a storage unit handy is ideal. The Lock Up Self Storage has tons of options for all price ranges. Additionally, of the units are climate controlled and ready for move in. Head over to www.thelockup.com to browse the selections.