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5 Ways to Improve the Value of Your Home Instantly

If you’re thinking about putting your house on the Atlanta real estate market or anywhere else in the country, you obviously want to get the highest bids you possibly can. The good news is that there are certain things you can do to improve its value instantly, allowing you to pocket more cash out of the deal.

Get Rid of the Clutter

The first way to instantly improve the value of your home is to eliminate the clutter, which won’t cost you anything other the time. If your home looks cluttered, potential buyers won’t be able to visualize their own belongings inside. You want them to be able to envision themselves living there and getting rid of clutter also creates the illusion of more space. You might be able to make some money in the process by selling items at a yard sale, on eBay, Craigslist and the like too.

Make it Low Maintenance

Few buyers want to purchase a home that’s going to require continuous maintenance. If you can replace a major component just before you put it on the market, such as a water heater, furnace or roof, it can help calm fears over emergency repairs in the near future and potentially increase the price buyers are willing to pay. You may also want to consider making things easier to clean and maintain like replacing carpet that stains easily with hardwood floors.

Replace the Garage Door

For the biggest ROI, replace your garage door. According to Bankrate.com, it’s the No. 1 fix for getting the most bang for the buck with the average cost at $3,470 and the average resale value at $3,411, resulting in 98.3% being recouped.

Bring in More Light

Taking advantage of natural lighting and updating light fixtures helps to bring out some of the best features of your house. It doesn’t cost a lot – even spending as little as $100 can help give it a more modern feel while keeping buyers focused on its most appealing attributes. Be sure to exchange old light bulbs for bulbs with a higher wattage so that buyers can see all the selling points of your home as well.

Give Your Kitchen a Makeover

The kitchen is one of the most important rooms in the house, and if it looks good, you’re going to get a lot more buyers interested in your home, and most likely higher bids too. Installing new cabinetry and/or appliances in an outdated kitchen may cost quite a bit initially but it can make a significant difference in the selling price. If that’s not possible, you can easily give it a new look by making a few inexpensive changes. Swap out hardware on drawers and cabinets, and even paint them a neutral color to cover up scratches and nicks. You can even do the same on old appliances, but you’ll want to be sure and use a durable epoxy that’s specifically designed for use on appliances or risk making it look worse than it did in the first place.