Top 3 Home Improvements for ROI

Main Blog Suzanne Marina Jasso February 1, 2022

These Three Easy Steps are Proven to Help You Increase Your Home Selling Price

When it comes down to your or your clients’ homes, value is King. What’s the point of building or purchasing a home if you don’t get an increase in your ROI? Yes, a loving home is ideal for raising a family, but when you consider most families move out of their home on average after 9.75 years, it is essential to purchasing a home that will rise in value.

While we can provide you the obvious, expensive options for increasing home improvement ROI––brandishing a new kitchen, going solar, tasteful exterior paint jobs––we’re going to skip the mumbo jumbo, and just get down to brass tax.

1) Don’t Lay Off the Grass

In the figurative sense, when you “lay off the grass”, you’re quickly depreciating the value of your home. Investing as little as $1,000 a year in maintaining your lawn can lead to an almost 13% increase in your home’s value. Yes, manicuring the lawn on a semi-consistent basis takes time, effort, and money. But the automatic payout from this long-term expenditure can ultimately profit you thousands of dollars when it comes time to sell your house.

Quick Tips for Landscaping

Think green, but don’t be scared to embrace colorful plant arrangements
Try and keep your landscaping efforts to at least 1-3 months, depending on seasonal weather
Investing in larger perennials and shrubs that you take care of is key
Mature gardens add automatic value, as it indicates constant upkeep
Have a general plan before you plant, trim, and cut
Purchasing plants at your local Home Depot or Lowes will decrease costs, especially when landscaping yourself

2) Hold an Indoor Paint Party!

...Or just hire someone who knows their way around with painter’s tape. Either way, implementing a brand-new paint job, including high costs from hiring a painter, can lead to a 55 percent ROI. NAR’s research states around two-thirds of real estate agent recommend paint touch-ups, at the very least. When you consider a gallon of quality paint only costs around $25, with other supplies rounding out around $60-$75, it’s pretty obvious that painting is one of the easiest ways to get the most for your house. Here are some tips for reaping the rewards of your capital investment.

Quick Tips for Painting the Home

Purchase premium paint; it’s not much more expensive and will be durable against the seasons
Select warm neutral colors to allow potential buyers to imagine themselves living there
Avoid white at all costs; this color quickly shows off accumulating dirt and can be blinding in naturally lit rooms
Be strategic in which rooms to paint; avoid kitchens, bathrooms, and entryways as these can lead to higher capital expenditures and require a professional to paint
Purchase high-quality brushes
Use semi-gloss on trim and doors
Satins and semi-gloss coats are more durable and resistant to stains
Try eggshell sheens on walls to hide any unevenness
Don’t sniff the paint; that’ll just lead to bad ideas and health issues

3) Enjoy the Heat by Going Tankless

There are many energy-saving instruments you can install in your home to save money while increasing its value (solar power is expensive but worthwhile). What most people forget to include is installing a tankless water heater.

With an investment of $1,800 (including installation), you’ll be able to save over $80 a year on your electric bill while selling your home for around 4 percent more than other similar homes. Follow these suggestions for going tankless.

Quick Tips for Tankless Water Heaters

Unless you’re a plumber, absolutely get a professional
A quality water heater will save you more money, but might not increase your home’s value by much
You can get up to 30 percent tax credit
Electric will be cheaper, simpler, and produce higher energy ratings
EcoSmart has a Tankless for as little as $150, but the more reliable tanks go for around $500-$1000

By following these three simple suggestions, you’ll be able to increase your or your clients’ home value while shortening the time the house stays on the market. It’s not easy, but the dividends and time sacrificed will pay off in the long term.

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