3 Ways to Get Top Dollar When Selling Your Home

by Expert Contributor Sarah Forti of Forti Homes with Keller Williams Realty

If you’re like most homeowners, your largest financial asset is your home. And when it’s time to sell your home, you hope a Buyer will offer your highest asking price. Here’s 3 ways to ensure you get top dollar for your home when it's time to sell.

1: Prioritize Regular Property Maintenance Seasonal maintenance helps ensure that your home stays in great shape. Regular seasonal maintenance includes cleaning rain gutters and siding, and inspecting and maintaining the condition of your roof, windows and HVAC systems.

If you’ve been lagging behind on such maintenance, your Realtor can likely recommend individuals or businesses that can take care of these things for you. Consider having your home pre-inspected and/or providing a one-year home warranty, to give buyers peace of mind. Then they will be confident in purchasing a maintained, protected home that they will enjoy for many years to come. This will make for a more attractive property and a smoother home inspection process.

2: Update the Kitchen and Bath Kitchens and baths are the true “money makers” when it comes to resale value. Many buyers decide on a property based on those spaces alone, so it’s important to look at it through a buyer’s eyes. Will buyers walk in and be able to imagine cooking their favorite meals for their family and friends? Or are they more likely to wonder how much it might cost to get the kitchen looking up-to-date? When a full kitchen remodel is not in your budget, painting the cabinets, installing new countertops and a brand-new appliance package can go a long way to help buyers see the potential.

As for the bathrooms, if there’s no time or budget to retile the shower or floors, consider re-glazing them for a fraction of the cost. This is one tip that will make an immediate impact! It’s budget friendly, and it will take only a few days versus weeks.

3: Have a Professional Stage Your Home A professional home stager knows how to highlight the positive features of your home while minimizing the not-so-positive aspects. Their suggestions on where and how to spend your money will not just save you money, it will make you money in the end! A consultation with a stager can cost as little as a few hundred dollars but it could easily increase your return by thousands. For instance, are you considering repainting that moss green bedroom? Why spend the money when a home stager can use a few home accessories to make the space pop, saving you hundreds of dollars repainting the space.

Sarah Forti