Under the scrutiny of a potential buyer, a house needs to show its fairest face. That means no peeling paint or grubby carpet, no dings to the woodwork, and no little handprints on the walls.
Ted Wight, a realtor with Dielmann Sotheby’s International Realty, says a buyer should consider spending at least 1 percent of the sale price on sprucing up. “Ten thousand dollars sounds like a lot,” he says. “But you’ll go through it fast.” He recommends sellers focus on cosmetics. Don’t worry about the roof; think about mulch or a freshly painted front door and certainly consider brightening the rooms. “Strong colors need to be neutralized to lighter, more uniform shades,” he says. “And wrinkled carpets need to be trimmed and stretched back to the tack boards.”
Alison Schneider at Laura McCarthy Real Estate says buyers always overestimate the cost of a needed improvement, so it’s important to de-emphasize little faults where possible. Floors, she says, usually need attention. Have the carpets cleaned, or—if the wood beneath is in good condition—pull them up. She says wallpaper often looks like it was put up in the 1970s, and buyers tend to worry about the state of the walls behind it. “Unless it’s in a powder room and is expensive and relatively modern, have it taken down.” And definitely don’t paint over it, she adds. “You can almost always see the seams.”
Cleanliness is next to godliness: It doesn’t cost much, say both Wight and Schneider, to have a house deep-cleaned. And don’t forget the windows. Depending on the size of the home, a good scrub-down inside and out might amount to $1,000. “It’s so worth it,” Wight notes.
Schneider cautions against using the money for large-scale improvements. “If the kitchen dates to the 1930s and has original cabinetry, leave it,” she says. “It probably has charm, and the new owner will redo it to their own taste anyway.” However, Sabrina Robb (Robb Partners with Keller Williams Realty St. Louis) suggests investing in new appliances. “You don’t want anything to look beaten up,” she says. Robb also stresses the importance of landscaping. Place pots at the front door or, if it’s spring, plant a blossoming tree. “Keep it minimalist and don’t have too many shrubs,” she advises. “The beds need to look like they are easy to maintain.”
Stafford Manion, president and owner of Gladys Manion Real Estate, says hiring a stager or an interior designer is a good idea. “A designer can set up the house to make it appealing to a broad range of people,” he says. “By simplifying and getting rid of clutter, you make the focus of the room the structure rather than the contents.”
Robb reminds sellers to make improvements cited in their specific municipality’s occupancy inspection. These could include things like a cracked pavement, tuckpointing or chipped window trim. “It makes sense to meet the requirements ahead of time or else the sale won’t go through,” she says. “And you don’t want any last-minute surprises.”
