Real-estate professional Sander Scott explains which home improvements to skip before selling. Skip minor cosmetic flaws and outdated features; buyers expect to remodel anyway. Fix only major structural problems like a leaky roof or broken HVAC. For landscaping, plant annuals instead of overhauling. Focus on a few high-impact upgrades that create a strong first impression.
If you're thinking about the limited amount of time that you have to prepare your home for sale, there are some things that you just don't need to address. One, cosmetic issues. Minor cosmetic imperfections such as chipped paint, scuffed floors can be overlooked by buyers. They are more concerned with structural or functional problems. Number two, outdated features. While updating your kitchen or bathroom can add value, it's not always necessary and you rarely get all your money back. Keep in mind that buyers are going to want to remodel to their own tastes. Number 3, small repairs. If you have a leaky roof or a damaged HVAC, those are big repairs. You're going to want to get those fixed. Minor things buyers can overlook. Landscaping. Landscaping is a major undertaking. You're going to want to maybe plant some annual flowers, do some things like that that's a low impact. Don't spend a lot of time and energy and money on landscaping. The biggest advice that I have is to have a real estate agent, and if you choose me, I bring my wife in, Shannon. She's an artist, a professional photographer, and she has a background in interior design and architecture. So she's really able to come in with that aesthetic eye and has helped a number of my sellers really pick and choose the few things that are going to have the greatest impact to get you the highest return on your investment of time, get you the best price without spending all this time and energy preparing your home for sale. Because you likely are putting it up for sale for a reason. You've got other plans, you want to move on to those plans. So let's not get stuck. Let's just do those few things that are going to really set the home apart and get that buyer in the right mindset for that first date with your home. And that first showing, we want them to fall in love with your home.
