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As a home owner contemplating putting your home on the market, you should first ensure that you have pulled out all the stops to improve the value of your home. Taking all the necessary measures to put your home in its best possible shape will improve the perception of value to your buyers. This may take some money from your budget and a bit of effort on your part but will surely come back to you with the sale of your property.

Before you list your home, find a Realtor® you trust in your area to give your home a walk-through. Brokerages like MoveRight may offer a free home evaluation as an added bonus. A Realtor® can offer you small suggestions, such as a quick paint job or a decluttering task to help improve the look and overall feel of your home. You want to ensure that your home appeals to prospective buyers; visual appeal is crucial.

One of the simplest, most cost-effective ways to improve the appeal of your home is to add a fresh coat of paint. This adds a clean, updated feel to your home, making it immediately more desirable to prospective buyers.

Another task to take on if need be is to ditch those popcorn ceilings. This is going to take some effort and a visit to your local home improvement store. Make sure you get the how-to and step-by-step instructions to remove the stucco without giving yourself a headache. Taking the time to do this not only adds value to your home but visually it becomes more appealing to the eye.

Next, take on the task of your yard – both front and back. Curb appeal is very important to buyers. Does it look beautiful enough to catch someone’s eye when they’re driving by? You can make this possible by cleaning up your lawn, either by hiring a professional or getting down and dirty yourself. Take the time to trim those bushes or patch up the lawn, or put some colourful flowers in your garden, or plant some trees for some shade on those hot days.

The entryway to your home should be just as appealing. Pick a bright and beautiful colour for your door and make sure that the handle is sturdy, big and solid to make the newcomer feel assured that your home is “solid” right off the bat.

Make sure that when they enter your home, it is sparkly and full of shine (smell matters too! – think of what smells might appeal to buyers, and remove those unnecessary harsh scents). To ensure cleanliness, you can again hire a professional to handle all the nooks and crannies you don’t notice, or you can put in the cleaning time yourself. Make your home more appealing to the eye by eliminating all the clutter – bring some much needed storage to your kitchen or bathroom and make sure that your closets are in working order with lots of shelving space.

Not only is the square footage important to a home’s value but so is the visual space. Replace those heavy drapes with blinds or shutters that let the light in – bringing in light means more of an open feel. Even adding a large mirror to a room can double the space visually. Make sure you pull out all the stops to make the rooms of your home feel open instead of cramped. For example, if you have a tiny bathroom, adding a colour such as yellow or white stripes to one of your walls immediately adds size to the room. Also consider purchasing a bright new light fixture; this updates the room without putting too much of a dent in your wallet.

A valuable step that many people are taking now is to have the home professionally inspected before you list. (Talk to MoveRight about how you can get this cost covered!) It is important to find out what areas of your property are going to need improvements. You don’t want to discover hidden problems that lead to big expenses and influence the value of your home. The longer you put off repairs, the more likely it will negatively impact you – and you don’t want to start off your home sale with unwanted surprises.

You can also improve the value of your home by ensuring that it is energy efficient. Have your local utility company come out and do an audit of your home. They will walk you through how to maximize the energy efficiency of your home. Some ways of doing this may be to change your light fixtures/bulbs, or to add insulation to your doors/windows. This is an overall valuable and marketable asset in the long run.

A very possible and awesome perk to add to your home, is a water filtration system. Taking the steps to have this installed will save you money on all those water bottles and will appeal to those potential buyers. It is a worthy investment.

Another step to take is to check that your home’s air quality is up to par. Depending on the results, you may have to remove those old grungy carpets. When remodelling, try to stick to environmentally-friendly flooring such as tiles or laminate. Hard surfaces are easier to clean and don’t hold harsh odours or germs, and they add to your home’s overall visual appeal.

MoveRight.com Real Estate Brokerage wishes you luck in your endeavours to maximize the value of your home. Remember, we have Realtors® happy to take a walk-through of your home and help you through the process of selling your home, just give our office a call to set that up: 289-434-4241.

Happy Home Selling!

Jason Krtek,

Broker of Record