Appealing Updates from a Buyer's Point of View

I saw a great segment in the Today Show on November 10 titled Today's Real Estate: Fast Fixes to get your House Sold and they offered some very reasonable guidelines to help your home stand above the crowd especially in this buyer's market. And while you can't cater to everyone's taste, you can make your home as visually palatable to anyone walking through that front door for surprisingly less than you'd think.

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Clip courtesy of the Today Show, November 10, 2009

Such small measures go a long way in creating a positive overall impression in this competitive environment. The cost of making these simple improvements is a negligible expense in comparison to the potential loss in profit if a homebuyer counters your asking price with a significantly lower number than what you are anticipating or even willing to accept.

So why not invest a little bit more for a potentially larger gain? Your buyers will scrutinize those little details that may not have bothered you before. They will likely expect a well-maintained property for consideration and the three major items on their list are the kitchen, the bathroom and the closet/storage spaces.

With that in mind, consider these numbers. If your home is selling at $200k in this changing market, chances are that you will receive an offer at approximately 10% of your asking price. That's a $20,000 difference. Would it be reasonable to spend 10% of that–or $2000–to make improvements to your home that increase the odds in your favor? If so, do you know what areas you should focus on? What changes would you make?

While some needed changes are obvious, others may not. A professional consultation with a designer can help you put in focus those areas that require your attention. It's an affordable way to get started on those updates and make your home a more sellable property in your real estate market.

~ P ~