Seven Inexpensive Upgrades that Help Sell your Home!

Quick, simple and inexpensive do-it-yourself upgrades can help sell your home faster. To make these changes, you don’t have to be a master carpenter or electrician either (although, if you need any referrals for either of these in the Bend and Portland Oregon areas, just let me know). So here are 7 of the many ways you can increase your home’s salable opportunities, as well as it’s value…

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  1. Upgrade your light fixtures. Old chandeliers in the dining room, dated bathroom vanity lights or old-fashioned light fixtures on ceiling fans can be swapped quickly and inexpensively for a more modern look.

  2. Spruce up front yard plants. Remove overgrown and dead bushes and plants in the front of your house, and replace them with native plants that give a fresh and colorful look to your home’s curb appeal. You’d be surprised what a few Russian Sage pots will do for the front porch (plus the deer don’t like them in the Central Oregon area, and they look like lavender plants).

  3. Replace the front door. The first thing buyers touch on your property is the front door. Make sure it has a fresh coat of paint or, if need be, replace it with a steel door. A new door can cost up to $2,000 or more, which is not inexpensive…but you’ll get back 75% of that in an adjusted sale price.

  4. Declutter and paint closets. Every homebuyer wants storage. If your closets are crammed full, you are suggesting to the buyer that your home lacks storage space. Prior to a showing, toss or donate items to make your closets look larger. If the walls are dirty, paint them.

  5. Paint walls a neutral color. It might have been fun to paint a rainbow on your child’s bedroom wall or paste glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling, but they won’t sell your house. Buyers want neutral wall colors (beiges and grays) and clean, white ceilings (not popcorn), with little variation from room to room. Repainting is one of the least expensive repairs you can do.

  6. Put new handles on kitchen cabinets. Nothing seems to get buyer comments more than the hardware in a kitchen. Old knobs and drawer pulls suggest dated or worn cabinets. Replacement is easy and gives a fresh look to the kitchen.

  7. Besides these easy fix-ups, remember the obvious, too: Clean up sources of odors, fix HVAC systems that aren’t working, clean up any water damage, replace burned-out light bulbs, and repair broken shingles, damaged siding and the like.

Wondering where to start?

Simply contact me and I can guide you through prioritizing what needs to be done, so you can then get the most return on your investment and repairs.

PS - I show houses every day, and I keep an ear out for buyer comments on what strikes them when viewing a home. I will help you focus on the least expensive upgrades that will get your home sold the quickest:

Teresa Catania, Broker
Fred Real Estate Group
Bend Oregon | Central Oregon | Portland Oregon
503-740-3293
tree.catania@gmail.com

I’m a nine-year Five Star Real Estate Agent!