Every homeowner desires their house to be appraised at a high price when they put it up for sale, even though this is one of the most challenging tasks ever. If you are planning to sell your property quickly or have already received offers from potential buyers setting your home’s value can be done by hiring a professional evaluator who will do the appraisal based on several criteria, including location, pictures, and history of transactions in that area, among others. A home appraisal can also determine whether you are qualified for loans or not.
Below are five ways to get a house ready for appraisal and help ensure that it is sold at a fair price.
1. Fix Bad Elements of Your Home
Your home is one of your most valuable assets. But did you know that the condition it is in plays an important role in its value? Your real estate professional can provide a home inspection to assess the condition of your dwelling. Still, some things about your home will be revealed only by getting a professional appraisal. These are called fixing bad elements. And they are critical to understanding before you put your home on the market.
Fixing bad elements are your house or property components that have gone so far downhill that they need more than routine repair work. They go beyond typical wear and tear for a structure of age and component type, even if no damage has been done. Fixing bad elements plays an important role in your home’s value, one you cannot afford to miss whether you plan to sell, refinance or keep your dwelling for decades to come. That is because the more damage your home has, the less it is worth.
The severity of fixing bad elements can impact your home value in multiple ways. For example, if repairs to one element such as the hardwood floor repair will cost more than half of what the property is worth, you are better off just letting that part go and spending your money elsewhere. This is where professional guidance becomes invaluable. Your real estate professional knows how much buyers are willing to pay for homes with different levels of fixed bad elements and what that means for the price they will offer you on yours.
Do you think a little salt-and-pepper shaker does not mean much in a house this age? Think again! Excessive amounts of salts and minerals from the water, acid rain, and even greasy residues from exhaust fumes can leave a permanent mark on your home’s exterior. Your real estate professional will be able to assess the severity of those marks during the appraisal process.
In addition, fixing bad elements has a bearing on your home’s wear and tear value, i.e., what you could expect if you plan to sell soon (within six months or so) and how much buyers might pay for that distinction in your area. For example: If you are selling now because you are relocating for work, buyers will be much more willing to assume wear and tear elements like faded paint, cracks in floor tiles, and garage floor damage than they would if those elements were in advanced stages and needed to be repaired.
If you plan to get a mortgage for your new home, fixing bad elements could affect the amount of financing you qualify for or whether or not you will receive any financing at all. For example: If part of your roof needs replacement and the estimated cost is approximately half of what your property is worth, no matter how good the interest rate, there is simply no way a lender would grant you a loan that requires more than 50 percent of your income to cover the monthly payments. It is entirely possible they will not grant a loan on a home with such extensive damage.
Fixing bad elements affects both your home’s value and your property’s overall value. The more damage there is, the less these properties are worth. Fortunately, you do not have to be an expert at fixing bad elements to get a handle on what they are costing you. Your real estate professional knows everything there is to know about the subject, and they will share that information with you as part of their services.
2. Maintain the Landscaping
You are one step closer to moving into your new home. Now it is time to ensure that your landscaping is maintained before getting a home appraisal ready for review by the appraiser.
Your landscaping is important because it provides value for your property, which will be factored into the value of your house when determining whether or not you have enough equity to get a loan on the property. The higher the quality of your landscaping, the more likely you will have resale value on your property when it comes time to sell.
This is why maintaining your landscaping before the appraisal is so important. Bringing your landscaping up to par will provide value to the property and help you get the most out of your investment.
First and foremost, you should put some time into weeding and trimming. If your garden beds look like an overgrown jungle, the chances are high that the appraiser will mark them as such (and possibly even value them as such). Ensure that all of your plants are well pruned and any debris on the ground has been removed.
If there happens to be some dead grass in your backyard, try getting rid of it as soon as possible. A patchy lawn will give the appraiser the impression that you do not maintain your outdoor space and might even incur a penalty.
Next comes mowing. This is an easy one, but if you have enough money to spend on landscaping, then there are other options out there for you. If you are worried about spending too much maintenance before getting a home appraisal on landscaping, go with mowing for now. It is quick, cheap, and, most importantly, looks good when assessing an appraiser or buyer.
Of course, if you have some money to spare after purchasing your new home, feel free to invest in something more permanent and spectacular than a lawnmower.
The shape and structure of your garden beds are the next things to consider. Ensure that they are not too close or too far from the house, that their shape is well-defined, and that there are no objects in them that could prevent easy access.
If you have enough room (and an abundance of money), add some water elements like ponds, fountains, or rock formations in your outdoor space. It is good to keep in mind, though, that these sorts of landscaping features will work best when integrated into other landscaping features such as trees or flower beds; it would be counterproductive to place these items all by themselves in a large empty yard.
Finally comes, landscaping lighting. If your outdoor space is big enough, you should consider investing in some lighting for added safety and ambiance. Just make sure that the type of lighting you choose will fit with the surrounding landscaping.
Keeping all of these things in mind is important because it can be difficult to update landscaping elements once they have been set up. For this reason, you should try to get your landscaping ready with the help of an arborist as much as possible before an appraisal even takes place.
3. Perform Regular Maintenance Tasks
Performing regular maintenance tasks such as changing air filters, keeping the oven clean, garage door repair and keeping the plumbing in working order can be done without much effort. Still, they can help increase your home’s value by ensuring that it is well-kept. If you need help finding out how often certain maintenance needs should be done, check with local professionals who may provide insight into what to do.
When your home appraisal is required, it can be an emotionally charged event for homeowners who may feel like losing out on their hard-earned equity or selling for less than what could be achieved on the open market. Preparing your home properly to get the most from your sale makes you more likely to stay within budget and receive approval from appraisers, which can help save money on repairs later. If you need help preparing your home for appraisal, contact local professionals who can provide insight into maintaining your property.
Scheduling your home appraisal before you initiate the sale of your home is typically not a problem. However, having it done after you make changes to your home could be detrimental to the process.
When performing any maintenance on your property, it is best to have all work completed at least two weeks before an appraisal occurs for two reasons: there is no need for an appraiser to see changes that may or may not impact value. Since most real estate investors are considering their return on investment when looking to purchase a property, there is no reason to have an appraiser see incomplete projects. By doing so, the appraiser will complete his report based on what he sees at the time of inspection, not what the property will ultimately look like.
The appraiser needs to get an idea of what items you have replaced, updated, or modernized because it often plays a significant factor in the value of your home. If you remodel before selling, then that is something that should be factored into the sale price, which means your return on investment may not be as strong as expected after undertaking a kitchen remodeling project.
While regular maintenance can be performed anytime during ownership, doing so just before selling the home could hurt the overall value of your home, which would impact any potential return on investment.
4. Add Neat Decorations
When you decide to sell your home, the appraisal is one of the most important factors in expecting to get market value. Home appraisals are an essential part of real estate sales, and many people do not fully understand their importance or how they work. A major factor that determines an appraisal is the physical condition of the home. The outside appearance is just as important as what goes on inside.
For example, a home with a new roof or one that is well kept, homes with neat landscaping, flowers, and manicured lawns typically sell better than homes that need constant attention or require lots of maintenance. Ensure that your yard is mowed weekly before putting it on the market; do not put off pruning trees, bushes, and hedges until after photo day. If possible, have the exterior of your home painted before you put it on the market. Even if you sell to someone who plans to live in the home and not flip it, they will want a fresh coat of paint to choose their colors. Seek an asphalt driveway paving service if you have to be in readiness for a home appraisal to ensure you get the best out of the appraisal.
On the inside, neatening up includes minimalizing what is there. Many people have too many personal items for sale. Keep only those possessions worth displaying: less is more really does work when you are trying to sell or buy a house quickly. Remember that most buyers do not want to look at everything; they would rather see some specific items on display instead of having piles of papers on every table and several overstuffed drawers on every piece of furniture. Sell your extra microwaves, dinnerware, and other household goods at a yard sale instead of taking up space in the home.
5. Clear Clutter
Contact your local certified appraiser to make an appointment, and before you do anything else, declutter your home. Your belongings are the most important part of this process, so make sure everything is put in order because it will affect how much money lenders will give you during the appraisal.
Before removing any items from the house, contact a qualified quality service contractor for advice on whether the job can be done without moving furniture or appliances. If removal is necessary, have someone there to help you move things out. If you do not have anyone around to help with small jobs like this, plan by hiring movers who can bring items out to their vehicles while they wait outside. This way, if it takes longer than expected, you can call them to come back.
Make sure to park the moving truck outside the house because it may make things look crowded inside if it is standing too close to your door. Once all the items are out of your home, put the furniture in storage or take it to a consignment shop for sale. This will raise funds you can use on down payment and closing costs when the time comes. You will also want to sell appliances that do not work if you no longer have room for them in your new home.
Getting your home ready for an appraisal is a process that can be done in several ways. Homeowners should take care to prevent making costly mistakes when attempting to prepare their homes for an appraisal service. If you need to get the most from your home when it comes time for the appraisal, make sure to follow the right tips and hire only reputed service provider: go to the roofing contractor with a track record of providing top notch roofing service. Over the years, homes have been appraised for a variety of reasons. A house is usually appraised when a homeowner is making a loan application or planning to sell their house.
