Should I update my home is a common question asked by homeowners. This is a great question and a very relevant question especially if you are in the market to sell your home in the near future. With shows like "Designed to Sell" and "My House is Worth What?" homeowners and Realtors alike are becoming more savvy when they look to sell homes. In order to answer this question two different situations should be examined.
First, if you are looking to stay in your home then updating your home is most likely for your own personal enjoyment. The main rule of thumb in this scenario is to make sure you do not update/upgrade beyond what your immediate subdivision can support. In other words, if your neighborhood's top end home price is $300k and your home is already at the top end, then it would not make much sense to spend a lot of money updating your home as it could take years for you to recuperate this expense. On a side note, remember there is a difference between updating and upgrading your home. An update might be as simple as replacing your old carpet with "like" new carpet, whereas, an upgrade would be replacing your old carpet with hardwood floors. Also remember that maintenance repairs do not necessarily add value to your home, but a well maintained home will help your home sell faster.
The second and more difficult to answer scenario is when you are evaluating what updates to make to your home before you sell. I can not predict the future of what buyers will spend on a home that has been updated, but more often than not it takes longer to sell an outdated home. Generally speaking, buyers are going to charge you 3x of the actual costs to do an update. For example, if you need new carpet and the true replacement cost is a thousand dollars, a buyer is going to factor in a three thousand dollar expense when they make their offer. You might say to yourself, "I would rather just let the buyer pick out the carpet they like." On the surface this might appear to be logical reasoning, but the historical numbers speak differently. A buyer looking to fix up a home typically is also looking for a bargain as well. Do you want to attract buyers who desire to hammer you down in price or would you rather attract buyers who want a move-in ready home? Move-in ready homes sell for higher prices. In a depressed market, money spent on updates, upgrades and deferred maintenance might be the very reason your home sells while others sit on the market.
Once you make the decision that you want to update your home the next decision to make is where to begin? In terms of the strongest return on investment, the kitchen is the place to begin. The kitchen is considered by many to be the heart of the home, so it can really make or break a sale. Even a modest improvement to your kitchen can really help your home sell faster and at a higher value. If updating the appliances is too much of an expense for you then look at the options of resurfacing the counters, paint or stain outdated cabinets and put on new cabinet hardware.
Making updates/upgrades to a home you plan to stay in can be an enjoyable and rewarding experience, but just make sure you do not carried away to the point you have more into your home than the market will support. If you want to set your home apart AND get maximum price for your home then updating or upgrading your home is the first step. I invite you to contact me anytime with questions regarding this topic. I have built a strong team of professionals that can assist you with your updating/upgrading. I would be more than happy to visit with you in your home to help you along this decision process.
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