As a homeowner, you’re likely to be proud of your home and keen to keep it in good shape. Sometimes, though, it’s easy to get complacent and be with what you have and it’s only until someone else points out issues, that you are become aware of them. A fresh pair of eyes, giving you some constructive feedback on your home is sometimes what you need to motivate you to make changes. This could be simple things such as decorating or re-laying a carpet, to more extensive things such as structural improvements.
When home improvement activities are executed to a good standard, you will normally find this will have a positive effect on the house price. Why wouldn’t it? Clearly most buyers of homes do not want to move in and have to do their own work as the stress of the move is probably extremely high anyway. As a result of this, if you are looking to actually sell your home, then you should reflect on some of the simple things that may need to be completed to your home in order to make this more sellable and get a better return for your money. Here are some of our suggestions.
Garden Improvement
When people are purchasing houses, one of the “go to” features that they look at is the condition of the garden. If the garden is not in a good condition, then this can be something that really puts off the buyer. There are more and more people working from home and likely to be even after Covid-19 restrictions are lifted. As a result, it’s likely they’ll look to utilise their garden a lot more. This would mean that by improving the garden, not only are you improving wellbeing and mental health by having a nicer place to spend time, but you are also positively impacting the house value.
You could opt in to make some major garden changes, for example like creating a new patio or decking or you could go for something simple like tidy up the flower beds and add garden sleepers. If you are looking to complete a bigger project, then maybe you will need the support of a specific tradesperson to support this. This could be a garden landscaper, gardener, electrician or joiner. Depending on what it is you are looking to complete will determine the skillset required to support.
If you are not confident though, be sure to contact a tradesman as attempting to do this yourself and not doing a particularly good job of it could severely impact the house value, in the wrong way. As such, it is not only about execution of the project but how it is actually executed. Material for most garden projects can be found at stores such as armstrongsupplies.co.uk.
Carpets and Flooring
Whether you have carpets or flooring within your home is a matter of taste. There is no right or wrong answer on what best fits. There has, however, been a shift in the last decade where people are moving more towards having wooden floors rather than carpets. There are probably many different reasons for this which will include the upkeep of flooring is far easier than carpets but also, they last a lot longer. Both of these activities cost about the same amount of money in terms of material and installing therefore this on its own does not affect the house value. What will affect the house value is that if you have carpets in the home that are tired and worn.
Depending on the quality of carpet that you have and the way it is treated will impact the look of this. If you have pets like a cat or dog, it is likely that the carpets lifespan could be reduced slightly. Have a look at this within your home and see if your carpets could do with a refresh or better still, consider replacing them with flooring.
Structural Changes
More significant projects in the home could involve some structural changes. This could include knocking down a wall or even building one. These types of projects will generally add thousands to the home value as these will be value added. Before embarking on one of these projects, make sure that you consult the authorities as if planning permission is needed, you will need to get this in advance of picking up that hammer. The authorities could give objections and they could even canvass your neighbours or community for their opinion.
Even if people in the community object to your project (this could be something like a garage conversion), that does not mean automatically that the authorities will reject your overall application. Ultimately, they will take it into consideration and make an overall balanced decision.
Painting and Decorating
It is important that if you are looking to sell your home that you ensure the walls and ceilings are in tip top shape. If there is staining or they look tired, this will not leave a good impression on any potential buyers and something you should look to remedy immediately. Some people prefer walls that are painted, and others prefer decorative wallpaper. This is something that you cannot predict from others, but it is something you can ensure is in place in a good quality condition. If the wallpaper is hanging off the wall – replace it. If there are marks on the surface of the walls – paint it. This is more about ensuring what you have is in a good quality condition and shows that you take care of it.
Gas Central Heating
Something that could cost an arm and a leg to get installed is gas central heating. As such, if you have this within your house, this is a definite plus for buyers and impact the selling price. This usually comes as standard nowadays for new build homes as it is seen almost as a necessity. If this is in place within your home, be sure to have this serviced frequently to fix any issues with the boiler or radiator. By not doing this, you risk longer term damage which may be far mor expensive to fix downstream. You can even purchase snazzy radiators for the home which include towel rails for the bathroom. These sorts of little extras are a lot more attractive.
Overall Summary
It is important that you treat your home with respect and complete any maintenance quickly otherwise this could lead to further problems down the line. Even some of the simplest improvements will have that positive impact on your home value. Local estate agents may be useful to speak to in terms of what you could personally do to make your home value move in the right direction.
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