Not all home remodeling projects will do your house good. Here are some home improvement myths you probably believed until today.
1. Customized Features
Many believe that adding personal touches to their house will help in raising their home’s market value. Unfortunately, this is not the case for any home. Not everyone likes a cowboy-hat shaped pool, but most homeowners would like a pool (if they can afford its maintenance and creation). Before you venture adding personal touches to your home, make sure that there’s a demand for it, as is with selling anything in today’s market.
2. All I Need for a Project is Myself, Some Tools and the Internet
It’s always costly to hire a contractor, you might say. It’s easier and I could add some personal touches to my house if I do it on my own. That’s what most homeowners with DIY projects that ended up in tragedy said the first day. Contractors are paid top dollar because of their experience and knowledge in the field. What do you have against a contractor who had built an entire village in his or her lifetime? None at all.
3. Design Trends Will Sell My Home
Not quite. Chances are your house will receive great attention in the market for at least a year. Once the trend changes, your house will be left to little markets yet again. It is far more important to focus on making timeless home designs that appeal to a broad range of home buyers. Adding a garden or using neutral colors in your home helps it become pleasing to the eye as a canvas for home buyers. However, be aware that some home buyers may not be capable of instantly visualizing their home, so add something that can give them ideas too.
4. Renewable Energy
Renewable energy technologies, such as solar panels, windmills and geothermal plants help your home earn great tax deductibles per state because it reduces pollution. However, not every homeowner is willing to shell out a few more thousand dollars to ensure they have a tax-deductible home that saves them monthly bills. If you really want to sell your house, give them the option to opt out of your renewable energy technologies.
5. Higher Quality Materials Will Guarantee Home buyers
Again, not quite. Home buyers are looking for something worth their money and practical. Focus on practical. Using high quality material will ensure the house is sturdy, but you cannot justify that paying $100 for every board in the house must increase the value of your home. Demand will be the only metric you have to measure home demand, never the material used for home buying.
6. Paint Doesn’t Solve Everything
Some homeowners who couldn’t afford to do repairs will use paint in every bad area the house has. Paint actually violates some disclosure laws for house selling in many states. You would also incur an additional bill on top of home buyer demands that you make repairs on the house you just sold. No cheating!
7. Garages Into Living Rooms Can Add Interest
It actually doesn’t. Garages turned into living rooms could turn off many home buyers, especially those who own vehicles, which are a majority in this country. If you intend to do this project, make sure that you could return the garage to its true functioning form at any time.
8. An Additional Square Foot
Adding on top of another floor will never be an attractive offer for home buyers. Sure, it adds value to your home. However, if it’s a rush job, it’s sub-par to your house’s structural integrity and living quality. Also, it may be useless for many home buyers.