When your home has been on the market for more than a few months, it’s apt to become ever more difficult to sell it at a decent price. You lose negotiating power and buyers turn cool as newer residences enter the market.
At this point, it’s best to seek out the potential problem and rectify it. In most cases, you’ve simply listed it for too much. Updates need to be made but haven’t.
It’s essential to evaluate big-ticket items like the roof and HVAC systems, which can significantly raise your home’s appraised value. But if you want to catch the eye of buyers and get an offer on the table, focus on your kitchen.
When he talks about how a beautiful kitchen occupies a huge place on a buyer’s wish list, Sal Alfono, editorial director for Remodeling Magazine, says: “[Kitchens are] always right up there at the top of the list. They’re the big, sexy rooms that new home builders splurge on, so when buyers are shopping around that’s what they want in an existing home, too.”
A glorious kitchen can bring offers left and right, and though it won’t automatically hide the larger structural issues, homebuyers will be more likely to overlook wallpaper similar minor flaws. It’s a great way to sell your home faster.
And that’s not even the best part. According to Remodeling Magazine, your return on investment for a new kitchen is 92.9 percent: one of the highest investment returns you can get for a home remodel. That number is only the average. Some kitchens recoup far more.
Remodeling uses the example of a $9,400 kitchen remodel in Baltimore that recouped 182 percent of its value at resale. You might not only sell your home faster after a kitchen remodel, but also get as much or even more out of your kitchen renovation when you sell your house.
Although a kitchen remodel might be exactly what you need to sell your house, don’t get carried away. Remember that you won’t be living in this house anymore, so a striking kitchen doesn’t have to include top-of-the-line features.
There’s also a smart way to go about your remodel to save money and recoup more value on your project. Here are four of the best kitchen remodel ideas.
An outdated kitchen sounds like a lot of work, and it’s tempting to gut the entire room and start afresh. But if your budget would suffer mightily from this, find opportunities to reface instead of replace.
Your cabinets, for example, might be in excellent structural condition, even though the cupboard doors and handles need an update. “The truth is,” says Gerald Baldner, president of a furniture refacing company in Wisconsin, “some of the cabinets built 20 and 30 years ago are more solidly constructed than most modular, prebuilt cabinets today. So, when it’s time to redo the kitchen, it often doesn’t make sense to start from scratch.”
By purchasing new cupboard doors, knobs and handles, and paint, you can create a brand-new look at a fraction of the cost. The same goes for light fixtures, sink faucets, and other small details. Such updates can render huge savings and high resale value for a faster home sale.
The appliances you select can make or break your entire kitchen. It won’t matter that you spent $10,000 on custom cabinetry if you install cheap, mismatched appliances that make the general space look tacky.
“Here in Manhattan, if you do not list a certain brand of refrigerator at certain addresses, it can devalue your apartment,” says Roberta Bauer-Kravette, director of Nieuw Amsterdam Kitchens. “The wrong appliances for the area can bring down the perceived value of your kitchen and property.”
Top-of-the-line appliances are not essential in every neighborhood, but a decent set of appliances can make it easier to sell your house. If you update your kitchen with appliances that match the caliber of the space, buyers are more likely to regard the entire house with more favorable eyes.
“Buyers want space,” says William Harris of Homespotter.com. This applies to every part of the home, but especially your kitchen, which can be cramped and lack sufficient storage.
If you can turn your kitchen, living, and dining areas into an open-concept space, your resale value will likely rise substantially. Consider knocking out a wall and rearranging your existing cabinets to create a more open kitchen.
Opening the space can become expensive, especially if you have to knock down walls and move plumbing. Sometimes it’s better simply to create the illusion of more space, especially when you’re trying to sell your home and move on.
“Create the illusion of space and open up the room by exposing shelves and cupboards,” Harris recommends. “Rather than keeping serving ware, plates, and bowls hidden behind suffocating doors, consider encouraging your clients to replace their traditional cupboards with open-concept ones. At first thought, you might think that this small change would make a kitchen look messy or cluttered—but it can actually lend to the warmth and character of a kitchen.”
Often, tearing down walls means removing upper cabinets and making the entire room bigger. Big, open kitchens are incredibly attractive to buyers, but don’t perform this update at the risk of functionality.
If you remove the upper cabinets, have a plan to reintroduce that extra storage space somewhere else. No one wants to run out of room for pots and pans or be limited on space for their non-perishables.
If you restructure your galley kitchen, an island keeps counter space close together, even if the concept is more open. It’s also smart to place your appliances in functional spaces to limit the amount of walking one must do for prep, cooking, and cleanup. Cooking is tiring enough without having to run around the kitchen because of poor space planning!
A beautiful, functional kitchen might be exactly what your tired home needs to move in the current market. If you can thrill homebuyers with the very best features of the home, you can close a deal and move on more quickly with your life.
Sometimes, what you need to make your home sell faster is a good real estate agent who understands the market and will fight in your corner to sell your home for what it’s worth. At Green Residential, our real estate staff is ready and able to provide that support for you.
We know the Houston area better than anyone, and we offer a flat-rate realty fee that can help you save money on your home sale. For more information about our services and how to sell your home faster, contact us today!
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