Sell Your House For a Bigger House

STAGE YOUR PROPERTY

Seventy-seven percent of estate agents agree that it’s easier for a buyer to visualize a staged property as a future home. The average cost to stage a home is between £1,000 and £2,500. If you’re unsure how to stage a home, consider using a real estate agent.

Staging the living room for buyers, followed by the master bedroom and the kitchen were found to be most important, according to our research.

RESEARCH YOUR IDEAL HOME BUYER

Different property types attract different types of buyers, each of whom has different homebuying wants and needs. Knowing your target buyer can make a substantial difference when selling your home.

For a single-family home in good condition, for example, the target buyer is likely looking for a move-in ready home. This type of buyer “does not want to do any repairs, and so spending time and money to make repairs makes sense,” said Lewis Murphy, owner of Glasgow based estate agency, The Estate Agency Company.

“If the property is in poor condition … it likely won’t qualify for a traditional bank mortgage,” Machado added. “This means the buyer is likely to be an investor or cash-flush homeowner that intends to repair the property.”

These types of buyers prefer to do repairs and upgrades themselves. “The investor can likely do that work with more skill and less cost than the regular homeowner,” said Murphy.

RECENTLY SOLD PROPERTIES

UPGRADE YOUR KITCHEN

A minor kitchen remodel offers a high likelihood of recouping the investment, found the 2018 Cost vs. Value report by Remodeling Magazine. The most important kitchen features for homebuyers include new kitchen appliances and an eat-in arrangement, according to the 2013 Home Feature Preference NAR report. Granite countertops and stainless steel kitchen appliances also ranked high.

A coat of glossy, white paint can also liven up a dark kitchen or dated wood cabinets — so can inexpensive new flooring options, like tile or bamboo.

UPGRADE YOUR BATHROOM

“A bathroom renovation is costly and time-consuming but, when done right, can make our lives so much better,” said Sharn Kandola, co-founder of feeDuck, a site that connects you with estate agents. “What could be more attractive to a potential buyer?”

Still, mid-range bathroom remodels have increased in price, up 3.8%, according to the Cost vs. Value Report. To mitigate costs while enhancing impact, Kandola suggests smaller, less expensive updates like cabinet refacing, hardware replacement and new light fixture installation.

CREATE A DIGITAL HOME HISTORY

Buyers today seek homes that are move-in ready and well-maintained. Online services, like HomeInventory, allow a seller to create an online digital footprint that details a home’s maintenance records, floor plans, warranty documents and more. If you have properly maintained your home, an online digital footprint can enable you to showcase your efforts while allowing potential buyers to fully appreciate the home’s maintenance history.