Get the highest return on your home improvement project

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Wouldn’t it be nice to know where to allocate your money when it comes to home improvements? Whether you’re thinking of selling now or in the next few years, my suggestion is to speak to a trusted real estate professional about your plans to update your home. This will help you assess where you’ll get the most return on your investment.

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What I often see and hear are sellers who take it upon themselves to decide on home improvements and then expect buyers to pay a premium for these upgrades. A better option would be to talk to an agent and see what they think about your home and whether you should do anything at all.

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I recently had a seller who decided to update his home ahead of listing his home. Reasonably enough he wanted to ask for a higher number than the market comps supported due to the work he put into the kitchen and bathrooms. Although I am very much in favor of updates, the caveat here is that the updates must align with what buyers are looking for. In this specific scenario, my seller had the right intentions but the wrong direction and selected countertops and a color scheme for the kitchen cabinets that were still a bit dated and not aligning with the buyers viewing the home. This situation could have been managed better had I been involved from the beginning of the process. The problem here is that most sellers do not think to call their agent when it comes to deciding on home renovations.

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How do you as a homeowner avoid this from happening. Consult with your realtor. We’re at the front lines and know exactly what buyers are gravitating to and what they place a high importance on. We can tell you what is 'trending' in home design or which home improvements make sense. Even when something might make sense to you it does not mean it makes sense to the target buyer for your home. It's unfortunate to see owners invest money into updating their home and not get the return they expect. This is completely avoidable and can be managed by communicating with your agent. The goal here is to make sure you're putting your money where it matters the most.