What Adds Value To Your Home In Bethesda, MD?
Not Everything that a Seller Loves is Going to Add Value to Your Colonial in Kenwood or Cape Cod in Hillmead. Some of the “Improvements” just add to your enjoyment.
Here are a few that may end up costing you money:
The Pool!
It is hard to know if a buyer is going to want the pool. They may see a training ground for the future Michael Phelps or they may see expense, time, and possibly even a safety hazard -particularly if they have young children! A seller may be throwing tens of thousands of dollars away because the future buyers just don’t want a pool. One example I remember is a home that backed to the Beltway. It was noisy – very noisy- and you could actually see the Beltway through the trees, so the yard was not particularly private. This house had a pool! Not a single buyer who came through the house saw that pool as an advantage. No one imagined themselves hanging out with friends and family in that pool as the trucks roared by!
On the other hand, there are some neighborhoods in the DC metro area where every other house has a pool. In that case, the seller may need to have pool to measure up against the competition!
Expensive Landscaping
There are two problems with expensive landscaping – Upkeep and taste. You might love that wrought iron fence, but again – the buyer might see it as an added upkeep expense – painting it every few years – and just not to their taste. A buyer might not like fencing at all.
In general, it is easier to go with simple plantings that complement the house and an open lawn – all which are easier to maintain and cost much less.
Wall to Wall Carpeting
Flooring is one of the biggest decisions a homeowner makes. Some love the softness of carpet, the way it muffles footsteps and cushions little tushies when they take a tumble.Hardwood floors are longer-lasting and can be refinished many times to freshen the look. Hand-scraped wood flooring, with deeper grooves, hides the small dents and wear that can come from active families and pets. It’s a higher upfront investment than carpet, but hardwood adds a lasting value to a home that carpet can’t. It also helps alleviate allergies – which is very important to lots of buyers with young children- and even those without.
If you already have hardwood floors, try to save the hardwood floors!
High Grade Improvements!
You are planning to spend your home improvement budget on European tiles at Mosaic Tile in Rockville. Do you go with the classic subway tiles or the handpainted tiles depicting scenes of Mount Vesuvius erupting and burying Pompeii? Please listen to the staff at Mosaic Tile. They have probably seen people making this decision before!
Sellers generally don’t recoup the investment into unusual high end upgrades – particularly when the rest of the house doesn’t reflect the same quality of upgrades. The buyers may not appreciate the top of the line marble kitchen counters or the designer faux paint – and will not want to pay for your designer choices.
Invisible Improvements
The buyers expect things to work. They expect the roof to not leak, the windows to be functional, and the air conditioning to work. They don’t want to pay for the sellers’ wear and tear on the house. They won’t give you full price for a house that needs a roof, a deck that is not falling in, or a driveway that is rutted with grass growing out of it!
If you are planning on putting your home on the market in the next few years, make these improvements and enjoy them while you are living there!
If you have any questions about the cost versus value of repairs and home improvements, you might enjoy looking at the National Association of Realtors report on which improvements will add to the value of your home.