Routine Maintenance That Boosts Home Value

Fredericksburg Home Buyers: Instead of tearing out the counter tops and cabinets in your investment property’s kitchen, there might be some other things you should take care of first. They might not be dramatic changes to the buyer but they will be appreciated when it comes to sign that sales contract. Basic maintenance on the house should be done before cosmetic improvements. Keep up the utilities and other routine functional processes that exist in any house as it brings a very good return on your time and money.

Once a buyer has become interested in buying your investment property, the real negotiating points come into play. Curb appeal draws them in and helps to give them a psychological connection to the house. Practicality quickly becomes important as they start to add up the cost of appliance replacements and plumbing fixes and will want to start deducting these costs from the price they’ll pay for the house.

Have the house as fully insulated as possible. Good insulation is a great selling point for both winter and summer energy savings and look over the furnace to be sure it operates correctly, also change the filter if it has one. Go all around the house and feel the windows and doors for any air leaks that may be causing loss of heating or cooling. Install weather stripping or caulk as appropriate.

Check the plumbing. Look over all of the fixtures and look under the sinks for leaks. If something is leaking, fix it. You can use Teflon tape on the fittings to help seal them and keep them from leaking, but if you have to unscrew the fittings the tape allows you to easily do so.

Install storm windows and storm doors if the house has them. If the house doesn’t have them, it’s a good idea to get some. When a house is sold with the storm windows, storm doors, and screens it is a definite plus.

Check the gutters and clean them out. If they need replacement or repair, invest the time and money to do so. Rusty and poorly maintained guttering is an eyesore and the buyers will notice. Leave them up if they are in good shape and paint them if you have to so they look respectable.

The septic system, if the house has one, should be pumped out and inspected if it’s old. Make sure there is no odor or backup. Slow draining sinks should also be taken care of. Any time a buyer can find functional flaws in the house, they feel that they can start discounting their offer accordingly. It will cost you much less to make these repairs than it will if the buyer wants money off for the flaw.

We are looking for all types of single and multi-family homes. Your home does not have to be in perfect condition. With your property, we structure several options, and let you choose the one that best suits your needs. We take the financial burden of having to pay monthly mortgage payments off your back and we’ll take care of any rehab or maintenance, regardless of how minor or serious. If you have a home to sell in Northern Virgina, we can help, we buy houses!

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Filed under: House Selling

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