Should I Remodel My Home Before Selling It?

One of the biggest questions home sellers ask themselves when selling their home is: should I remodel my Philadelphia area home before I sell?

You may have heard a number of stories about people who were able to command top dollar and sell within days their properties because they remodeled them. Although remodeling can, in fact, yield a higher asking price for your home, you must be careful when spending money on remodeling projects, as you may not always see a return on your investment.

Although generally a remodel will pay off, don’t assume that you will recoup all of your expenses, or even if you will see any of your investment returned to you. However, there are a number of things to consider when remodeling.

• Remodeling to suit most potential buyers – The first rule of remodeling to sell your Philadelphia house is to put you in the shoes of potential buyers. In other words, you are remodeling to suit them, not yourself. Sure you might be a huge Flyers fan and have a room painted orange and black but this would not appeal to most buyers. Don’t remodel with taste-specific components; instead, keep it simple and neutral, thereby attracting the largest audience of buyers.
• Overpricing yourself out of the neighborhood – If you live in a neighborhood where home prices have a ceiling, you must pay very close attention to this price, as you will not likely get any more money for your house, regardless of what improvements you have made. Before remodeling, look closely at recently sold homes and the updates they had. This will provide you with a good gauge when deciding which remodeling projects to undertake.
• Underestimating the value of a kitchen or bathroom remodel – The two most important rooms of a home in today’s market are the bathroom and the kitchen. These two rooms have been shown to have the biggest influence on the price of a home; so, if you are on a budget, consider spending your remodeling dollars to update the kitchen and the bathroom. In addition, these rooms will also yield higher returns on investment, provided you don’t go overboard in your remodeling effort.  For example, if houses in your area don’t have granite countertops in the kitchen do not spend the extra money for granite.

If you do not have the time, money, or desire to take on remodeling before you sell your house, give us a call at 215-900-3447.  We buy Philadelphia and Bucks County houses in as-is condition. This means no cleaning or repairs need to be made by you!