Top tips to boost the value of your home

Making sure you get the best price for your home is always an important priority for any seller, especially when you may be relying on that equity to help you purchase your next property. Here are some quick house valuation tips that could help boost your property’s value.

When it comes to house selling there are no guarantees, after all a house is only worth the amount a buyer is willing to pay for it. We always recommend that you talk to your local agent to get a feel of the local buyer’s appetites. By doing this you can get a great idea into whether it’s better to put your house straight onto the market or make some changes to help appeal to a larger net of buyers.

Next, if you do want to make a couple of quick improvements, these house valuation tips should help give the price of you property a boost:

Outdoor makeover

Many buyers are attracted to having a garden and/or outdoor living area, but can be fearful of the upkeep that it may bring.

Even if you are not naturally a green-fingered person, it is important that a potential buyer sees the benefits of a garden instead of the work that may go into it – most people will not want a jungle growing at the back of their new home.

Create an area for outdoor dining and give your garden a face lift by mowing the lawn or cutting back the hedges. If you do have any spare budget to spend then why not call the local landscape gardeners to come round and give it a once over.

Those ‘I’ll do it next weekend’ jobs

As a house becomes a home you start to forget about those small DIY jobs you always promised to get around to – you may even feel like that wonky shelf or that peeling wallpaper gives the house a quirky charm, but unfortunately most buyers won’t feel the same.

Leaky taps, rusty radiators, scuffed floor tiles, chipped skirting boards or exposed light fittings are all minor issues which you may have stopped noticing but can be fixed very easily. As small as these jobs may seem, they can have a big impact on a buyer’s mentality on buying your home.

Don’t forget your home may not be the only property the buyer is viewing so make sure they do not have any excuse to overlook how great your house truly is.

Show off your space

Buyers want the most for their money, so giving them the feeling of spacious living is important. You can always get the hard hat out and start knocking down walls to create open plan living, or, you could just simply declutter your rooms.

Add mirrors to smaller rooms to give the illusion that they are larger than they seem or get inventive with storage to help open up the rooms potential.

Take a look at some of the new homes currently on the market, they nearly all offer open plan living spaces, because this is what modern family living is all about.

First impressions count

Before a buyer even has the chance to enter your property they will be making their first impression of your home from its outside appearance.

Make sure that your house is as attractive from the kerb as it is from the inside, if you’re lucky enough to have a front garden, then make sure it looks welcoming. You often only have one chance to give potential buyers the right impression; whether they’re driving past your home or scrolling through properties online.

Try placing hanging baskets along the front of your house with seasonal flowers to help add a bit of colour to the brickwork and make it stand out.

Think neutral

Painting your son’s room black during a grunge phase may not have been your idea but now is a great time to neutralise your rooms.

Certain buyers might be able to look through your quirky sense of wall art or ignore any drab wallpaper but for many this can be a big turn off. The key to getting the right price for your home is making it appealing to as many buyers as possible – that’s why thinking neutral can be key.

You don’t have to drain all life from your home until it looks like an unlived in show home, but getting out a paintbrush on the weekend and touching up chipped paint or giving key rooms a neutral colour scheme can make a big difference. Also light, neutral colours can help to make your rooms feel more spacious helping to do two jobs in one.

Remember, changes are not always a necessity as many buyers may be interested in a property like yours just as it is. That’s why we always advise you to talk to your local expert as they can provide an up to date property valuation and recommend the best way to present your home in order to appeal to as many buyers as possible.