5 Quick Wintertime Projects to Make Your Home Sale-Ready
If you’re thinking about selling your home in the spring or summer, now is a great time to start working on getting your home ready for a sale. Although winter weather can feel limiting (you’re not going to be planting any shrubberies right now), it’s actually the perfect time to work on small-but-effective interior projects. Here are our top five quick wintertime projects to make your home ready for a spring sale.
1. Freshen up your interior paint.
One of the top suggestions to improve the resale of your home is to repaint the interior. Neutral colors like gray and beige are very popular. Try to avoid bright, dramatic colors because the odds that your future home buyer will love your bold color choices is minimal.
Remember that a room has paint on more than just the walls. Inspect your ceilings and any painted trim. Make sure to include them in your freshening process.
2. Install or refinish hardwood floors.
In the past, carpet has been the go-to flooring item when you’re wanting to sell your home. It’s inexpensive and easy to install. However, hardwood floors actually end up getting more bang for your buck.
When you install new hardwood floors, you want to research the flooring that’s available on the market. Then, you need to talk to professionals about the installation. It’s possible that you might want to hire a pro to install your floors for you.
Similarly, if you already have hardwood floors, you can refinish and seal them yourself or hire a professional. On average, hardwood floors should be refinished and sealed every ten years or so. This helps prolong their life.
Current hardwood floors are sold with a 25 year guarantee, but it’s not uncommon to find homes over a hundred years old with the original floors. All you need to do is properly care for them, and they’ll last.
Whether you hire a professional to do your floors or do them yourself, you’ll still come out money ahead in your home sale.
3. Update important rooms like the kitchen and the bathrooms.
When people tour a home, one of the first rooms they visit is the kitchen. Then, after that, they’ll normally take note of the bathrooms. This might be because kitchens and bathrooms are the most expensive rooms in a home.
To make a good impression, pay special attentions when you update these important rooms. You don’t have to pour a ton of money into your updates, but cleanliness and freshly painted cabinets go a long way.
Do easy jobs like replacing the caulk around your shower and sinks. Update cabinet pulls. Make sure these rooms are not too bright or too dark. You might also want to update the lighting fixtures.
If you have any outdated tile, research your options like painting or replacing it. For broken tiles, remove them and replace them with new tile.
Your whole goal is to make these rooms as new and fresh-looking as possible.
4. Replace (or add) attic insulation.
Attic insulation helps keep your house more energy-efficient. Without it, the warm air that your furnace creates gradually leaks out the top of your home. When you have insulation in the attic, it helps keep your heat in your home.
There should be 11 inches of fiberglass insulation or eight inches of cellulose insulation in your attic. It should look clean. If your insulation looks dirty, that’s a good sign that it’s near the end of its effective period.
Make sure that your insulation is in good condition and at the right level, and you can cut energy costs. Lower energy bills will be a good incentive for potential buyers.
5. Replace old or broken windows.
Wintertime does not seem like the best time to replace windows. After all, your old window will need to be removed, providing a gaping hole in your home’s wall for a portion of the day. However, new windows can greatly improve the energy-efficiency of your home.
As is the case with insulation, newer windows often do a better job keeping the warm air where it’s supposed to be--inside your home. Remember, a more energy-efficient home is more appealing to potential buyers.
Are You Thinking About Listing?
If you’re in the St. Joseph, Missouri area and you’re thinking about listing your home, contact Ramseier Realty Group. We’re happy to help you identify winter projects you can be doing now to get your house ready for the spring market. Give us a call today at 816.262.8077 or visit our website to schedule a time when we can meet.
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