Apartment Remodeling and Painting by Caucasian Construction Worker.

Before listing and selling your home, you have to make a few last-minute improvements to ensure that it gets the attention it deserves. The real estate market is flooded with diverse property offerings at any given time. So if your home’s location is not that attractive to most, you may need to compensate for this shortcoming by making it look aesthetically appealing, clean, and well kept. Your home should undergo regular maintenance to achieve this. 

As a homeowner with limited funds and a busy schedule, there are things you may have missed in that department. But don’t fret. Here are a few steps on how to quickly spruce up your home so you can sell it faster and for the best value.

1. Landscaping

Landscape economist John Harris estimates that a well-manicured lawn can earn you as much as 28% higher in overall home value.

Your front yard is a major attention grabber for your home, with most buyers judging your property simply by looking at the frontage’s curb appeal. It’s what creates a first impression. Before they set foot in your home, prospective buyers should be able to set their sights on your home and be awed by what it looks like from the outside. If you look at the houses for sale in Los Angeles, you will come across well-built and structured homes with beautiful and attractive lawns.

If you have money to spend, hire professional landscapers to get the best value out of your home sale. You can also opt to do the yard detailing yourself to save on cash.

Giving your porch a fresh lift can help, too. Make your own outdoor pieces like seats, a coffee table, or a swing from wooden pallets to furnish the area. If you don’t have the time or skills for woodworking, adding plants around the area can make your exterior spaces look livelier.

2. Fix Your Windows and Doors

While some property investors like Burlington House Buyers will purchase your property in any condition, it still pays to address issues like creaking doors and loose windows. As the entry and exit points to your property, these parts of your house play an important role in security.

Having well-functioning doors and windows with tight seals also helps increase the energy efficiency of your home. If you think no one will notice these problematic areas, you’re mistaken. When a potential buyer shows up at a viewing, they’re free to open and close any item or fixture on your property, like cabinets, doors, and even that window on the second floor next to a tree.

3. Repaint Your Exterior And Interior Walls

Since you’re letting go of your property, consider the fact that prospective buyers may be discouraged by the black walls your teenage son had requested for his room. Dark colors for walls like plum and red may not appeal to everyone. That’s why the majority of real estate professionals recommend to get a fresh coat of paint in neutral colors.

Light hues such as ecru, beige, light brown, mocha, and olive are the most favored paint colors for a home. Apart from giving your property a brighter look, repainting can help your house look bigger, tidier, and more visually appealing to most people.

On a tight budget? Consider touching up only a few spots, especially those with peeled and cracked paint. You can also repaint your front door with a powder blue or forest green color to make it pop.

4.Repair And Clean Out All The Cabinets And Drawers

Like your windows and doors, your cabinets should also be fixed, as unkempt fixtures may leave a bad impression on potential buyers. Make sure to refurbish and empty out the shelves, cabinets, and drawers to give the property a more inviting character. 

A tidy cabinet or drawer can also provide buyers with an idea of how much storage space is available to them. Besides, you don’t want buyers to go through your personal items, do you?

While you’re at it, go ahead and change the cabinet door knobs and handles to upgrade them at a fraction of the cost. Choose brushed nickel or bronze to replace outdated handles and achieve a more elegant and classic look. Even minor problems like loose cabinet parts can find their way onto the list of repair costs that buyers typically use in negotiating for a lower price for your home, so it’s best to address them right away.

5. Upgrade Your lighting fixtures

You’d be surprised at how strategically placed lights in and outside your home can add elegance, playfulness, and brightness to your living spaces. Have you ever wondered what concerts and other events would look like without the lights on? Lighting can make a room look larger and more pleasant. It can also complement your landscaping efforts and make your outdoor space look better.

Think of home lighting as your hairstyle: if done right, it can accentuate your home’s best features and give it an updated look.

6. Get Rid of Water Stains

These hideous stains on your walls or ceiling can be an indication of a serious plumbing issue. And as every homeowner would know, water damage, if left unaddressed, could trigger a more worrying problem involving your home’s structure and your family’s health. This is a major issue that could become a deal-breaker for most home buyers, so you need to address water problems before listing and selling your home.

After having your water lines and pipes fixed, it’s time to tackle the dirty stains that they’ve left behind. If the problem is worse than initially suspected, have professionals replace your ceiling.

7. Repair Worn-Out Window Screens

Torn window screens are highly obvious and can make your home appear outdated. But don’t worry since repairing them is one of the easiest and least expensive last-minute repair activities you can do for your home. Just purchase a window screen repair kit from any hardware store for around USD$15 or call a screen repair company and you’re good to go. Best of all, you don’t need to have expert-level skills to start replacing and repairing your torn window screens.

8. Retouch The Grout

Even if it’s not, dark tile corners in the kitchen and bathroom walls will make your home look filthy. Cracked and discolored grout has the same effect. Reapplying grout in these areas can have your home looking new again.

A complete re-grout is one of the cheapest home improvements you can do that ensures a 100% return on investment. The cost for this activity varies from state to state and from one contractor to another, but the average price hovers at only USD$2 per square foot. You’re better off doing simple re-grouting work yourself.

9. Power Wash Your Exterior

Nothing beats having a tidy home. In some cases, you may skip hiring professional cleaners when you’ve got your own high-pressure washer. This cleaning device can get rid of deep-seated dirt and grime that’s been stuck in your home since you moved in.

Power washing doesn’t only clean your home but also primes your walls for resurfacing and repainting. Unsurprisingly, when done with repainting and other exterior uplifting activities, power washing can help increase your property value by 5%, according to Consumer Reports.

Final Thoughts

Successfully selling your home requires a few inexpensive repairs and enhancements, as discussed in this article. For best results, choose repairs that require minimum effort but provide maximum impact.