When it comes to making your property buyer ready, some rooms are more important than others. While no rooms are UNimportant, there are simply a few that most buyers care about above the rest. Can you guess what they are?
It’s kind of a trick question. One of the areas isn’t technically inside the house. When buyers are shopping for a new house, they care most about the kitchen, master bathroom, and outdoor living area.
These top three rooms need to be “show ready” before the sign goes up in the front yard.
#1 Kitchen
A clean kitchen is good, but you want your kitchen to have a sense of inviting style, just not specifically “your” style. Remove all refrigerator magnets and photos. Clear off all countertops. (You can leave a few essentials in view… espresso maker, fancy mixer, etc.) Add a few stylish décor items, keep a simple and nice theme. Maybe even add a small herb plant or two, something colorful and functional.
Try to look at your kitchen through a buyer’s eyes. There are 4 big items to look at; countertops, cabinetry, appliances, and flooring. In this video you’ll see two kitchens from the same floorplan; one that sold first day for 10% more than the other. Now take another look at your kitchen. Are the cabinets whitewashed, are the countertops standard builder grade, are the appliances white, is the flooring original? Remember, this is THE MOST important room in the house. Money spent wisely to improve this room will come back to you in the form of a quicker sale and higher offer price. The money saving trick is that not all 4 need to be updated, just enough to put the buyer at ease.
#2 Master Bathroom
There is something about upgraded master bathrooms; it’s like candy for home buyers. If you do a couple of the big ticket items, then it helps buyers get over other downfalls they think you home has.
Clear, frameless shower doors look good in bathrooms – even though they are a pain to live with. They photograph really well and when coupled with upgraded hardware give a bathroom an updated look and feel. Watch the video again; look at the flooring and countertops in the master bathroom. Which home is yours?
#3 Outdoor Living Area
People move to North Scottsdale to enjoy being outdoors 9 months of the year. They typically want a pool, covered patio, and a grassy area. Putting in a pool where one doesn’t exist will not get a good return, but adding pavers, freshing up the landscaping, or adding some “talk about items” is a good idea. The goal here is functional comfort, recreate that feeling of inviting luxury and privacy. Consider a built-in BBQ, putting green, or sport court.
We’re not saying that you can just let the other rooms go, this is about making sure the most important spaces get the most TLC before you put your home on the market.
Want us to help you plan some improvements that get the most resale value? Start here.
