Sellers who anticipate losing money if they sell their home may wonder why they should spend a dime fixing the place up for sale. Isn’t this throwing good money after bad? Even sellers with plenty of equity in their homes often figure the way to get the most out of the sale is to cut sale costs to a minimum.attitude is directly contrary to the notion that the way to make the most money on the sale of a home is by pricing the property appropriately for the market, and by making cost-effective improvements that will result in a higher sale price in a shorter time.

Today, many housing markets have plenty of homes for sale and far too few buyers. For years, buyers competed with one another in order to buy a house. Now, sellers are being forced to compete with other sellers in order to get their home sold.

Consider the competitive nature of the market when deciding if you’re going to improve your home before selling it, and how much you’ll invest. Keep in mind that the point of fixing up a home to sell is to MAXIMIZE your return from the sale. Don’t waste money on improvements that have little or no value to buyers.

Ask your real estate agent or a staging decorator to walk through your home with you for the purpose of determining what fix-up projects you should ideally complete before marketing the property. 

Imagine there are five homes listed for sale in an area, all similarly priced, but not all in the same condition. Three houses have old, worn carpet covering most of the floors; one has linoleum over the floor; and the fifth has pristine, recently refinished hardwood floors. Most buyers will gravitate to the home with the beautiful hardwood floors.

The best houses in the best condition and offered for the best price usually sell quickly. A fast sale is important to some sellers in this market. The sooner your home is sold, the sooner you stop paying mortgage payments, property taxes and various maintenance costs.

DON’T FORGET TO CONSULT YOUR REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONAL!

This article can be found at:  Inmannews

An article from RealEstateJournal.com reports that in order to sell a home in 2008, it’s time to start thinking about how to make it stand out from the rest.  According to Cheri Kuhn, owner of Waters Realty in Minnetonka, Minnesota, in selling a home “it’s more important that it’s neat, it’s clean and it looks spacious, rather than making sure it’s the top of the line.”  A recent study by a Remodeling magazine said homeowners aren’t able to recoup as many improvement costs as they did in recent years. 

Here are a few tips to keep costs down and remodel wisely.  The First tip is to get a home inspection BEFORE listing the property.  Problems that could hold up a sale can be addressed in advance.  Another tip is to pay attention to exterior details such as the condition of siding and windows.  The Remodeling survey showed that a wood window replacement recovers an average 81% of cost at resale.  Finally, freshening up the bathroom can be an important and inexpensive way to help sell the home.  Consider replacing cracked tiles, as well as the sink and the toilet, if needed. 

Pack away personal items in boxes and, if possible, rent a storage unit.  If you are unable to rent a storage unit, stack the boxes neatly in the garage or in some other out of the way place.  This will make your home look bigger and uncluttered.

Walk through your home with a critical eye.  Put yourself in the shoes of a homebuyer.  Make sure your baseboards are clean and look fresh.  Spot clean your doors where little fingerprints seem to build up daily.  Buyers are looking for their next home.  There are lots of homes to choose from.  Make your home the one that they remember!

To see the rest of this article, please click on the following link:  Real Estate Journal