Home Improvement Projects - Getting a Return on Your Investment
By Grace on Jul 29, 2008 in Seller Tips
Preparing your Coppell home for a quick sale often means making minor, and sometimes major, home improvements. Before giving the green light for another home remodeling project, however, make sure that you’ll seen a return on your investment.
The general rule of thumb in the industry is to expect about an 80 to 90 percent return on your investment within the first year or two. Sometimes this percentage is much more, sometimes much less. Your investment may not see a 100 percent return, but a quick sale because of it can be just as advantageous.
What Home Buyers Want to See
Updated light fixtures, bathroom and kitchen fixtures and flooring are all fairly inexpensive upgrades that can make a huge impact. Stay neutral and streamlined to attract a wide variety of buyers. Consider hardwood flooring or wood laminate flooring throughout a home’s main living areas. Ceramic tile is often a popular choice for kitchen and bathrooms. Plush, neutral carpeting is always a selling point for a home’s bedrooms.
A larger remodel, such as a kitchen or a bathroom, may seem excessive, but these two rooms are often the most important to potential buyers. In fact, most homeowners see a near 100% return on their kitchen remodels. If a complete kitchen remodel is not possible, consider installing new countertops, painting the walls, and switching out the kitchen cabinet’s old hardware for something more modern.
Replacing your kitchen appliances with upgraded versions may also serve as an excellent selling point.
Update your bathroom with a new sink, faucet and lighting, and add upgraded towel bars, soap dishes and accessories.
Keep in mind that many home improvement projects can be done without breaking the bank. For example, a high quality laminate counter top may be a smarter choice than its costly granite counterpart.
Research other homes on the market in your neighborhood and compare amenities and features before you begin the remodeling process. Most importantly, complete your home improvements from a buyer’s standpoint and keep it neutral and attractive to a wide variety of buyers.
1 Comment(s)
By Nataniel Raz on Jul 30, 2008 | Reply
How much is your home worth? Well, it all depends where you live.
The real estate market is still shaking. New data suggests that home prices have hit a new record low. In every new study that comes out, homeowners from Miami, to Las Vegas, Phoenix and Los Angeles, have seen their home value go lower every time.
Is that disappointing? Of course it is.
Should we sell? Is not a good time.
Should we stick to it? Yes, if you can.
Have we hit bottom? Nobody knows.
Banks are facing their worst foreclosure crisis.
Don’t take me wrong, it’s good if you are in the market to buy a home for yourself or if you are an investor, but if you are not, and you own a home, most likely the value of your property is down at least 15 %.
Why do banks care if you are loosing your home? By having to sell repossessed homes, banks have to literally slash their prices down. It gets very costly for them, after all, they have to pay property taxes, maintenance costs, and whatever utilities that need to be paid, all of this expenses for a house that it’s just sitting there, vacant, and the bank is getting nothing in return.
The latest study by the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index of 20 cities, revealed the news that for 22 consecutive months home prices dropped. Only from April to May, 2009 the decline was of 0.9 %