To sell a home in Minnesota, particularly Minneapolis, your property must be: up-to-date, organized, staged, and uncluttered. Homes that are shown in perfect condition sell faster in any PERIOD of the market. Selling and buying houses is like chess: you have to look two or three steps ahead in the game. When updating your Twin Cities home, you should always have potential buyers; unless you plan to stay in your home for more than a couple of years. Whether you’re looking to update your single-family home to current trends or looking to sell, you can do simple renovations on a limited budget.
Depending on the current condition of your home, minor updates generally have a higher return on your money than tackling major renovations; the latter usually takes more time and is easily over budget. However, not all upgrades improve the value of your property. Limit your home improvements to the location, the value of the neighboring houses, the demands of the consumers of that area. If you don’t have exceptional home renovation skills, or don’t view the job as a hobby, stick to minor repairs and interior updates. While doing larger renovations yourself can save money up front, a final result that screams “rookie craftsmanship” will ultimately cost you more money than if the job was done by a general contractor.
A successful interior design project is not determined by the cost of its components. Keep an open mind and combine less expensive components with a few girly pieces by visiting thrift stores, antique boutiques, and warehouse retailers that cater to Minneapolis, MN real estate owners. There are different ways to do this and you don’t have to spend a lot. Find some easy ideas to replicate below.
Add some Pizzazz Outside; It’s what draws buyers inside – the best place to start your upgrades is outside. Increasing your home’s curb appeal provides a great return on your money.
o Clear up clutter, dig up overgrown trees and shrubs and replace them with newer, less expensive shrubs.
o If you have the numerical portion of your address at home, make sure it is visible and secure.
o Make sure your deck looks nice and fresh. Nothing spoils a home’s appearance more than a mediocre outdoor entertaining area.
o Update your doors by applying a new coat of paint, new hardware or changing them completely. You can find clearance doors at housing centers, salvage yards, antique stores, flea markets, etc. Find a door that matches the style of your home and ditch old, worn doors that date your exterior
Make your interior shine on a budget: Once you have the buyer in, they’ll expect an interior with the same level of quality they experienced outside. There are many ways to update the interior of your home on a budget.
o Properly clean and order the bedrooms, living room, bathroom and kitchen. Check the internet or your real estate agent for staging tips.
o Organize otherwise cluttered spaces, like under counters in the bathroom and kitchen, inexpensively with lined wicker baskets. Store everything from hairspray, makeup, and medical items to household cleaning products and bedding that would detract from the beauty of your home.
o Give your home a fresh coat of paint and keep up with today’s design trends, without being too trendy. Before you start painting, study what most buyers are looking for. Spruce up monotone interiors with an accent wall – A pop of color in a beige room can be very appealing.
Custom Artwork on a Penny: Reuse disposable pieces from your favorite products to make custom wall art.
o Save wine bottle corks and glue them to a shadow box for instant wine wall art. For a center of conversation, place corks from your favorite wines in a large decorative bowl on the dining room table.
o If you have a lot of space between your kitchen cabinets and the ceiling, wash and put away the empty wine bottles and decorate that unused space.
o Create simple abstract artwork. Pick up some canvases and paint at your local craft store and let your imagination run wild.
o Give your bathroom the face lift it needs. Replace the standard plate mirror with a well-framed one.
o Take black and white photos and enlarge them for a unique work of art.
o Plain or dated light switch plates? Purchase sandpaper and spray paint for an updated look.
Mix and match drab and glam and create attractive furniture on a budget – every room in your home should have a lifestyle with a well-defined function. Create unique room-appropriate furnishings in a jiffy.
o Take an inexpensive Parsons-style table and add a custom granite or marble top.
o Are you lacking in furniture and visual interest in your spare bedroom? Easily update the room with: a fresh coat of paint, new bedding, and a custom headboard. Buy a complete set of bedding and fit the sheets to the canvas.
or Does your kitchen need a face lift? Try refinishing your current cabinets, applying a fresh coat of stain, and adding new hardware.
o Do you have an open floor plan? Use furniture to define space in distinctive living areas. Take an open-sided bookcase and use it to divide a family and dining room.
or No room for overnight guests? Turn your office into a nocturnal oasis for visitors. Adding an office-appropriate sleeper sofa and quality wardrobe creates a multi-purpose room without taking up additional space.
While routine repairs and updates are necessary, updating your home doesn’t require a higher sales price. Current true market value is a reduction in the number of days your home is on the market; which leads to a higher sales price. A home that is well designed, organized, and properly staged will sell faster than its less attractive competition (excluding factors such as pricing strategy, location, etc.).