What Would a Realtor Do? Keeping your Home Ready to For Sale

Change is inevitable, especially when it comes to your home -- and keeping a modern, trending look. Many of us consider rearranging the interior of our houses and redecorating only when it comes time to put it on the market. If that’s the case, a total home makeover can be a daunting task -- even more so for longtime owners who last furnished it over a decade ago! Whether you plan to sell next week, next year, or a decade from now, refreshing your home every now and then is a must. You never know when you might want or need to sell, or an offer is made that you simply can’t refuse. Whenever that day comes, you’ll want your home to be in tip-top shape -- especially if you want to maximize your investment.

Where do you start? By consulting the experts. Many upscale realtors have unique backgrounds in areas like interior design, new construction, and renovations, and they advise you to overhaul your home every five to seven years, and give it an up-to-date, refreshed appearance. Surprisingly, they say it doesn’t require you to break the bank.

Unless your home needs some serious work, an upgrade doesn’t mean complete demolition or rebuilding. Simple fixes every few years will ensure your home is modern, marketable, and aesthetically pleasing for future buyers – not to mention you!

Color

Repaint the walls! Whether you focus on one room, or make repainting every room your goal, switching up
the color can change the entire look of the house. Before grabbing the paintbrush, check out the hottest hues. In 2016, the most unsuspecting wall colors turned out to be most popular, including subtle pinks, yellow, deep greens, blue and...believe it or not, lavender lipstick! Don’t be afraid to try some color palettes outside the norm. You’ll want something with universal appeal, that most homebuyers would likely pick, but if it’s fresh and new, an offbeat color might just do the trick. A new coat of paint will spruce up any
room.

Lighting

Lighting upgrades are often overlooked. If you have a lamp in the corner of the living room that
was purchased when you first furnished your home, it’s probably time to move on. Walk through every room of your home and notice the fixtures – are they looking out-of-date? If the lighting isn't bright enough, or you wish you could dim the lights, take note. You might want to replace some light bulbs with a higher wattage, install dimmers in other spaces, and replace chandeliers and other lighting fixtures in bathrooms and bedrooms. While such small details seem trivial, new lighting, or slight modifications to what you already have -- can really brighten up a home or highlight an interesting space. Pay attention to new lighting trends, as well. Some new predictions for 2017 include chandeliers with geometric shapes, lighting inspired by nature to promote an organic look, and fixtures that can change shape/direction to highlight different parts of a room.

Furniture

When considering your budget, you might think brand new furniture is out of range – but you can make some basic changes that don’t require a large expenditure. You might be able to replace one piece per room – instead of switching out every piece at the same time. If the furniture is fairly current, you might consider changing the arrangement of the pieces in the room, or swapping rooms full of furniture altogether. Moving the layout around can make a room feel bigger and free up new space. And, if you’re having trouble making that work – you might think about getting rid of unnecessary pieces. If you’re looking to do something new – new styles to consider are upholstered headboards for your bedroom, Lucite furniture, repurposed pieces, and metallic adornments.

Exterior

First impressions are everything! Before a guest or potential buyer steps foot in your home, make sure the exterior reflects your commitment to ownership and preservation. Far too often, people wait to enhance the outside of their home until the paint is chipped and fading, and the trim begins to rot. Don’t wait until your house begs for an update to repair or replace the trim and window casings, and repaint the exterior. And once again, don’t avoid color changes! If not for the main house, maybe for the front door and shutters for focal points. Exterior accents such as flower pots and door decorations should also be updated and appropriate for the season. If you use the same items year after year, though -- invest in something bold, new and exciting!

Overhauling the interior and exterior of your home may sound like a tall order, and that’s likely why you’ve put it off or haven’t made any serious strides towards it – but you should get to work! Invigorating your home with new wall colors, lighting fixtures, furniture staples, and attractive exterior elements will make all the difference in the long run. Work on these fix-ups frequently, at least every five to seven years, and your to-do list will be much shorter when it comes time to sell your home. Besides, you’ll love living in the updated version of your dream home – and will probably ask yourself what took you so long!