Are you a Pennsylvania homeowner looking to sell your real estate property? Before you do so, you will need to make some minor and possibly major home improvement projects. The repairs before selling a house can include mending up a roof, upgrading the HVAC systems, and fixing leaky faucets.
Read on to find out the different necessary repairs before selling a house that you’ll need to make. Ready to learn more? Then check out the info on making upgrades below!
Different Types of House Repairs
Any real estate agent will tell you the necessity of handling the basics of home repairs. That includes unglamorous but necessary maintenance like:
- Redoing scratched-up floors
- Upgrading your HVAC system
- Repairing house walls and retaining walls
- Fixing gutters and leaky roofs
- Ensuring the basement is free of mold and water damage
- Modernizing the furnace
Home sellers can attract potential buyers by improving the landscaping and boosting curb appeal by fixing the hinges and doorknobs on the front door. You will need to mow the lawn, add a fresh coat of paint to your exterior, and restore the outdoor fixtures like the address numbers. Many of these tasks are simple DIY projects.
You can also choose to make several home improvement projects to increase the value of your home in the local real estate market. Our tips to increase a home’s value include refinishing your wooden flooring and completing a bathroom or kitchen remodel. Basement or attic conversions can also lead to a higher home sale price.
There are numerous other DIY projects to complete, such as repairing light fixtures, restoring a patchy lawn, caulking your tub, and fixing cracked grout in your floor tiles. You can also repair or replace a loose showerhead and unclog any clogged drains.
Even leaky faucets are easy to repair on your own. You can also use a mini-blind slat straightener to straighten up blent blinds. With touch-up markers, fix any scratches on hardwood floors and other areas.
Making Minor Repairs to Your House
Selling a home in this market can be an expensive process. Home buyers typically have high expectations, but you don’t need to give your house a massive makeover to attract them. There are plenty of minor or cosmetic repairs you can pursue, such as upgrading:
- Bath fixtures
- Shower curtains
- Kitchen cabinets
- Countertops
- Kitchen Appliances
You will also want to improve the lighting by replacing lightbulbs and restoring lighting fixtures. You can make the house appear more modern with a few minor lighting repairs.
You can also paint the exterior home walls and doors in neutral colors to improve your home’s curb appeal. Other small touch-ups, such as fixing the wobbly steps in front of the door and planting a few bushes in the front yard, can do a lot to give prospective buyers a good impression.
Make sure to paint your interior, as it will make the house look brighter and more attractive at a low cost. These minor repairs are straightforward to complete.
When it comes to your kitchen, you don’t need to upgrade the entire room. You can try merely replacing a few kitchen cabinet doors and tightening any loose screws or hinges.
You should also declutter the house and organize all the furniture and appliances to make the inside look larger. Repair any leaky faucets or bathtubs before putting your home on the market. Lastly, make sure to fix up any scratched and damaged floors. If you have stained carpeting, you can get a steam cleaner or replace the carpets entirely.
Making Major Repairs to Your House
A few major repairs and renovations you can complete before selling your home include a bathroom or kitchen remodel. You may need to hire a plumber to fix a running toilet, a leaky faucet, and more. You can clean up the grout, repaint the restroom, and install new tubs, sinks, or toilets.
When remodeling the kitchen, you may need to install new cabinets and countertops and upgrade the kitchen sink, dishwasher, and refrigerator. You can also upgrade the lighting in the kitchen to make it easier to cook breakfast, lunch, or dinner on the stove.
When it comes to major renovations for your house, there are a few popular passion projects you can pursue. Water features such as a hot tub, swimming pool, or even a small pond, are aesthetically pleasing additions. Sporty features, like a basketball or tennis court, are also well received. However, you’ll likely want to get these passion projects completed well before you’re looking to sell the home so that you can enjoy the amenities yourself.
Some other ideas might include setting up a wine cellar or a game room with a pool table. However, when making major repairs and renovations like these, you may not make the return on investment that you prefer. For instance, an in-ground swimming pool might not add enough value to your property to cover the cost of installation.
Pools are also hazardous for people with small children. Many buyers are unlikely to pay more for a high-maintenance swimming pool or tennis court. Also, removing walls to increase the size of a living room or family room is unlikely to increase your home’s value.
Some of the most important repairs that will help you increase your home’s value include repairing HVAC systems, damaged roofs, electrical problems, and plumbing issues. A modernized kitchen and bathroom also make an impact on your home’s final price.
So, before you decide on making any major repairs and renovations, you will need to consider how much it will increase your home’s value and whether you will recoup your costs.
Should You Bother With Cosmetic Home Repairs?
You can choose to take part in several basic cosmetic home repairs as long as they tend to improve your home’s overall value. Some of the best cosmetic home repairs that increase a property’s value include renovating bath fixtures, kitchen cabinets and countertops, lighting upgrades, and shower/bathtub improvements.
You should also consider updating old kitchen appliances. If you don’t want to wait for the buyers to request updates after a home inspection, other minor repairs you should complete include fixing broken hinges, loose steps or doorknobs, sticking windows, and leaky faucets.
Before hiring a contractor to get cosmetic home repairs done, you will want to do some research and interview multiple contractors. Make sure to look at customer testimonials and reviews to see whether a handyman is truly reliable.
A few other typical cosmetic fixes include cleaning up the house and getting rid of carpet stains as well as painting to cover up any splotches or chipped paint. Use a heavy-duty carpet cleaner to get rid of stains or replace the entire carpet if you prefer.
You may need to get a kit from Home Depot to cover up nail holes with spackle. Blinds that are a few decades old likely have broken portions, so you may need to replace blinds and curtains. Also, any yellowing wallpaper should get stripped and replaced with paint in neutral colors.
These basic cosmetic repairs should help you improve your home’s value and get more house buyers interested. Soon, you’ll have tons of bids on the place.
5 Repairs You Should Definitely Make Before Selling a House
The five most important repairs that you should make before selling your house include:
- Painting the interior and exterior of your residence
- Landscaping the front and back yard
- Replace carpets and repair scratched-up wood floors
- Upgrading your bathroom(s)
- Installing new lighting fixtures
Painting a home is one of the cheapest ways to improve the look of your home. You can get professional painters if you need to paint the outside, but doing it yourself is an easy way to save on costs while improving the home’s appeal to buyers.
Landscaping is also simple, as you will merely need to get rid of weeds and dead flowers as well as plant some bushes and fix up a patchy lawn. Wood flooring is usually preferred among buyers, which means you should likely remove the carpeting to attract more bids.
When updating a bathroom, you might need to get new countertops, better tiling, and new cabinets and fixtures around the tub or sink. Better lighting can also improve the look of the entire house. Make sure to complete these five repairs to improve the value of your home before the sale.
Conclusion
Now you know what type of fixes to complete before a home sale. However, are there any repairs before selling a house that you can avoid? You may not need an expensive kitchen renovation to find a buyer as long as your kitchen appliances still work fine.
Also, you should avoid installing a swimming pool, as they add no real value to a home sale and buyers don’t like their maintenance requirements. You may even find buyers who like a fixer-upper at a lower price.
You can sell a house fast in Pennsylvania without completing any repairs if you seek out cash home buyers in Philadelphia. Luckily, we buy houses Aston residents love. Contact us today!
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