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Selling Your Most Valuable Asset: Maximizing a Home's Resale Value

Because many factors influence a home's resale value, start improving your home and its resale value weeks before placing your house on the market. While you cannot control some aspects of selling your home, you can avoid the pitfalls that may affect one of your greatest assets with a few improvements and critical assessments.

Determining a Home's Resale Value
Property conditions have a direct impact on the resale value of your home. Appearance is everything. No matter how pristine your landscape may be, if your neighbors fail to maintain curb appeal, it can affect the value of your home.

One of the most important aspects that contributes to the final selling price of your home is the selling price of nearby residences that set the range for negotiation. This is also a feature that is outside of your control. A comparative market analysis (CMA) will guide selling price parameters.

CMAs assess the value of homes in your neighborhood by taking an average of the selling price of home similar to yours (i.e. same square footage, same number of rooms, located in the same amount of traffic zones, etc).

Key Areas that Maximize Resale Value
Turning a critical eye to needed improvements helps homeowners assess existing flaws and needed fix-ups. Knowing which aspects are more important than others, both inside and outside of your home, will help you be more efficient as you improve your home's resale value:

• Outdoors: Starting at the curb, an immaculate and trimmed lawn with colorful plants and trees will enhance your home's curb appeal. Your entryway is also important. Keep it clear of debris. The doors and surrounding windows, if any, should look bright and inviting. Groom flowerbeds, inspect and replace fencing if necessary, and be sure the drive and walkways are free of stains and cracks.
  
  
• Inside: Many potential buyers rate the kitchen highest in importance. While all rooms should be clutter-free, be sure that the kitchen area is immaculate and inviting. Because closets and bathrooms also rank at the top, make sure that they are in order, as well, and free from clutter.

Major Improvements That Will Raise Home Values
Because potential homebuyers are most interested in your home's kitchen and bathrooms, making major improvements to your home should start in these areas. Some ideas for significant improvements include:

• adding square footage by knocking down walls
• repainting or wall papering the walls
• replacing the appliances and fixtures
• retiling the floors.

A new deck or outdoor patio is another hotspot that is especially attractive to an interested buyer. At the very least, replace old boards and add fresh stain or a new coat of paint.

Increasing Home Value on a Budget
Many minor and inexpensive tricks will increase home values. If you can't afford a new front door, think about replacing the hardware. Shiny and durable locks and handles will be a small, but dramatic, change that gives your doors a facelift. This goes for cabinet pulls and door handles throughout the interior, as well.

Paint is the all-encompassing freshener. It covers years of accumulated dust, grease and grit. Additionally, the smell of a freshly painted room is an automatic room brightener. Take the time to do a terrific job or consider hiring a professional.

Eliminate unnecessary items from closets. Remove off-season clothing and shoes to visually increase the size of a cramped space. If necessary, lease a storage unit for a month or two and give your home its "model" appearance.

Mistakes That Reduce Resale Value
Clutter is perhaps the biggest factor that affects the resale value of a home. A seller must be able to envision the home (s)he looks at as though it's his or her space. Pack up photos, remove magnets and artwork from the fridge, and be sure the garage is a junk-free zone. Similarly, be sure to clean your yard before every showing of your house. Piles of leaves and toys lying about make your home look more disheveled than it may be.

You should also give your home a thorough cleaning about once a week, or as often as is necessary. Areas to clean carefully include:

• cracked firebox and warped fireplace grates 
• dirty fixtures and dusty light bulbs
• nicked and dusty baseboards
• old caulking in tub and mildew around sink areas
• personal items and trinkets on tables or the mantel.

By law, you will have to disclose foundation repairs and termite damage. A homeowner can offset major issues by presenting up-to-date inspection reports. These items won't typically increase the asking price, but they will remove some buyer bargaining power.

As you are preparing to put your home on the market, keep in mind that maximizing its resale value takes time. Sellers who make the effort with a few added improvements – especially those that are visual - will certainly reap the benefits.