Selling: Adding Value not Personal Touches

By: Adeal Benhayoun

There is a genuine thought by many home sellers that adding personal touches before listing their home will add value to the home. Unfortunately adding your personality at this point will only damage the selling ability and value of the home unless, by some stroke of luck you find a buyer with your exact taste. As nice as that would be, it's highly improbable. In fact, removing any overly personalized items is a better idea. This takes you out of the equation while the buyer is viewing the home, thereby making it easier for them to visualize themselves and their belongings in the home.

Overly personal spaces can make buyers uncomfortable. There are however, a number of things that you can do to add value and improve the home's selling power. If you home has carpets then having them professionally cleaned is a good start. Or, if you have the notion, replacing them with laminate or hardwood will definitely raise the asking price of the property.ther great upgrades include redoing certain areas such as bathrooms and kitchens. Be careful in doing this not to spend too much money. Sometimes there is a tendency to purchase the best appliances and fixtures on the market. Ask yourself: does your home really need top of the line appliances? How will top of the line stuff make the rest of the home look? Will it make the other rooms look drab?

The last thing you want to do is to make the home a "one room wonder." A home is so much more than a single room, so don't spend you entire upgrade budget on a just one area. Spread your improvement dollars around and make upgrades to the whole home. The last thing you want to hear from prospective buyers is "well the kitchen is nice, but the rest of the home needs work."

Another thing that you may want to check before listing the home is the roof. This is one thing that will carefully explored during any inspection. If you need to, replace the roof. This is a great way to add value as new roofs with warranties are popular selling points. Try to ensure that the basic things are taken care of. Personal touches are not important, what is important are safety features, structural integrity,and cleanliness. The less a buyer has to do to a home the better.

Real Estate
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 
 • 

» More on Real Estate