Most home sellers have a common goal. They want to sell their home quickly and for a high price. Of course, as most homeowners will tell you, achieving that goal isn’t always easy.
Buyers are understandably picky about which homes they choose. You have to show them that your home is worth your asking price. A simple way to do that is to hire a residential painter to paint your home before you put it on the market.
You may feel like you’re too busy preparing to sell your house and move to spend time on home painting projects. Your home doesn’t look that bad. Anyway, don’t buyers want to put their own touch on the place once they move in? It seems like it would be easier to leave a new paint job for the house’s new owners to do.
It’s understandable that you might be tempted to think this way, but the end result may be that you leave money on the table when you sell your home.
Painting Adds Value
While buyers do want to make their new home their own, they don’t want to invest much time fixing problems when they first move in. Most buyers will pay a little extra for a house they don’t have to work on before they can even move their furniture in.
In fact, houses with fresh paint jobs can sell for as much as $6000 more than similar homes that haven’t been freshened up. An experienced residential painter can complete the job with little stress for the home seller. Home painting is one of those relatively minor improvements that can have a major impact on your home’s selling price.
Better Online Listings
Online real estate sites are popular in the Fernandina Beach FL and Amelia Island FL areas. Most potential homebuyers spend part of their search time online looking at home listings. Online, pictures are everything. All it takes is a dreary, dirty look to the house to turn off potential buyers.
Once a buyer decides your house’s pictures aren’t appealing, they’re unlikely to try to schedule a walk-through. The sale disappears before anyone even crossed your doorstep.
Fresh paint photographs better than paint that has collected a layer of dust and grime over the years. The dirt might not be visible to the naked eye, but it dulls the look of photographs all the same. Avoid turning buyers away by freshening up your house with new paint before its photo shoot.
Curb Appeal Made Easy
Another area potential buyers judge is curb appeal. A home that looks dirty, unkempt, or even dated from the street already has points against it before the potential buyer walks through the door. A fresh coat of paint can spruce up the outside of your house just as easily as the inside.
Your home’s curb appeal can also affect your selling price. Homes with a dated appearance don’t bring top dollar when they’re up against a house that fits modern aesthetics.
You can bring an older house up to date by choosing your paint colors carefully. You want colors that fit modern trends – typically colors in the neutral beige-to-gray range.
You also want to find a color that complements the neighborhood houses while still standing out as different. If you’re not sure what colors to pick, consult an exterior painting contractor for ideas.
Price Comparison Benefits
When you’re selling your home, you know that you’re in competition with other home sellers. Buyers and their realtors will be comparing what your house has to offer with other houses. They’ll also be comparing prices. If houses are similar in features, most buyers will gravitate to the option with the lowest price.
Since home painting is a low-cost method of improving your home, you have some flexibility that some other home sellers won’t. While they may be trying to recoup the cost of expensive roof or foundation repairs, additions, or other major renovations, you used your money wisely. As a result, you’ll have some flexibility in offering a somewhat lower price if your main goal is to sell in a short time.
Natural Light Brings the Buyers
Unless you’re a member of Morticia and Gomez Addams’ family, you’ve probably never walked into a room and said, “Oh, look how nice and gloomy it is!”
Neither have the people who might buy your house. Natural light is naturally appealing.
You may not be able to control the exact amount of natural light in every room of your home. You can, however, bring the existing natural light into focus with wise paint choices.
Light, neutral colors will maximize the natural light in a room and make it appear bigger. Neutrals with a soft yellow tone will reflect sunlight to make a room look warmer and brighter. Gray-toned blues in light shades give rooms a cheery, modern feel.
If you’re not sure which shades to use to maximize your use of natural light, talk to your interior painting contractor for suggestions.
Well-Maintained Appearances Appeal to Buyers
When you’re deciding if you want to buy a house, you have to make decisions based on the evidence you have at hand. If you see minor problems that haven’t been fixed – chipped paint, dirt smudges on the walls, or other cosmetic issues – you’re going to suspect that major problems haven’t been addressed either.
It doesn’t matter if you, as the seller, know your house is in good repair aside from those minor issues. What matters is the buyer’s impression. If they feel like they’ll have to put a lot of work into the house, they’re either going to walk away or want to bring the price down in anticipation of big repairs.
A simple paint job can solve this problem for you. If the interior and exterior of your home look like they’ve been well-maintained, buyers will assume the entire house has been cared for in the same manner.
The Selling Power of a Clean, Move-In Ready Home
If you want to sell your home quickly and profitably, you have to think like a buyer. You know how much work you’re having to put into selling your home and moving to a new place.
Your potential buyer is going through the same process. Once they get a new home, they want to be able to settle in and enjoy it. They don’t want to have to do extensive work on the house.
Presenting your home with a clean, move-in ready appearance to potential buyers can be the final weight that tips the scales in your favor. A fresh coat of paint can remove cosmetic damage and eliminate odors and dirt that once clung to your walls. Painting gives your home that “cared for” look that reassures buyers they’re getting a good deal.
If your goal is to sell your home quickly and for a good price, you owe it to yourself to contact Halls Quality Painting. We can help you choose the best colors, work with your busy schedule, and make sure your home presents its best face when you’re ready to put it on the market. We’ve worked with homeowners throughout Fernandina Beach FL and Amelia Island FL to get their houses ready to sell. Contact us today to see how we can help.