Article Excerpt
There are many reasons why one might want to make their house more valuable. With homes in Texas being listed on average at $280,000, there's plenty of money to be made from the sale of a valuable home
This means homeowners and real estate professionals alike will benefit from home improvements that will increase a property’s value. Anyone who wants to start a real estate business needs to have a good understanding of property values, especially in this saturated market. The Association of Real Estate License Law Officials (ARELLO) explains that there are over 2 million licensed real estate professionals in the US, and the market is rapidly growing despite today’s economic climate. To stand out among the rest, real estate professionals must be able to offer solid advice to their clients on how to get the most money from the sale of their homes.
But even if you're not looking to sell your home, improving its value can have great benefits as well. You'll see improvements in your quality of life, and receiving the odd compliment or two from your neighbors and guests will boost self-esteem and happiness.
Here's how you can improve the value of your home, whether you're looking to sell or not.
New kitchen appliances
It may sound counterintuitive, but upgrading your kitchen appliances if you plan to sell in the near future could increase the property’s value by 3%-7%. Buyers want their house to feel new even though it’s not. New appliances in an upscale kitchen make a house more appealing to potential buyers, and can justify a higher price.
Smart and/or energy-efficient appliances
Turning a regular home into a smart home costs about $15,000, and this increases your home’s value by 5%. This transformation takes quite a bit of work, but it will pay off as convenience and efficiency are big sellers, often leading to smart homes selling faster than regular homes. A few features of smart homes include security and detection of carbon monoxide levels and fire. Meanwhile, energy-efficient appliances work at only half of the usual power requirements. If you have an efficient washing machine, for example, you can do heavy laundry and still save money. Energy efficiency features are especially appealing to buyers in extremely cold or hot places, and having these gives your home about 9% added value.
Garage
The garage can hold much more than just a car. To use it as an optimal storage space, get creative on the storage options. Bikes and other gear can be hung, while open shelves can store anything that might only awkwardly fit in a cabinet. A garage can also be used as an additional living space. If you don’t have a garage, building one will cost $27,000 on average. This can result in the resale value of your home going up by $21,000. A good option if you plan on selling further in the future.
Central air conditioning
In states like Texas, the summers get really hot, which is why this feature can increase your home’s value by up to 10%. The price for installing central air conditioning depends on factors such as the size of the house and whether there is already a pre-existing air conditioning system. An eco-friendly unit might also appeal to buyers as there are incentives, such as being given a tax break.
Major renovations will cost a lot of money, but there are also cheap ways to boost a house’s value. However you decide to present your house, it would be helpful to also ask an expert to appraise it so you don’t spend on unnecessary upgrades.
