What to do now, and what to leave for the next person

If you’re thinking of selling but you want to undertake some renovations or refurbishments to ensure you maximise sale price, it’s important that you tackle the things which will highlight the best aspects of your property, and leave the bigger decisions to the next owner.

I always talk to my Sellers about ensuring that they aren’t renovating and spending money on a gift they don’t even know the Buyer will want. I’ve seen many renovations which were completed specifically to sell the home ripped out or changed when the purchaser moves in and wants to make it their own.

What do we almost always leave for the next person?

Floor coverings

Often homeowners will have had a plan to change the floor coverings while they lived in the property but had never got around to getting them changed. Often my Sellers say “I don’t like these tiles, what should I replace them with before sale?”. My answer is always – don’t replace them because you don’t want to guess what the next person wants and it’s a huge expense. With the exception of *extremely* worn carpets or badly scratched floorboards which we would replace or polish, there is very little need to change floor coverings. Better to get them as clean as possible, paint the skirting boards if necessary and leave the decision making up to the new owners.

Bathrooms and Kitchens

Similar to floor coverings, both bathrooms and kitchens are a matter of personal choice and it would be a waste of money to install something new, only to find out that it was immediately changed by the next buyer. I often think back to my own home where the previous owners replaced the 60’s kitchen with a basic Bunnings kitchen for the sale of the property. We ripped it out when we did a large extension off the back only 2 years later. We would have happily lived with an older kitchen for those few years and it certainly had no bearing on how much we paid for the house initially.

Window Treatments

I’m always inclined to take down all window coverings in properties I prepare for sale. Unless they are modern or expensive, they can detract from the natural light that people are searching for when looking for a new home. Also, some people just don’t like to have window coverings at all – doesn’t matter if they are curtains, blinds or other treatments, some people just like to let the light stream in and out. It’s always best not to spend money on curtains if you are taking down old faded ones and leave roller blinds in place if they are clean and in good working order.

For a copy of my Home Seller Guide and all the advice you could want in regards to getting your property ready for sale, including what renovations you *should* undertake, give me a call and I will come to your home for a free appraisal of your property. Call Kath on 0458 912 906