A strong first impression is critical to selling your home quickly. The good news is that it’s possible to make your home a draw by preparing well before placing it on the market. If you’re currently living in it, you may have to move out so you can prep it for sale, and the good thing is that you can easily get a local mover to help you out (literally).
One of the areas you need to look into is interior upgrades. You want potential buyers to envision themselves living in your home and enjoying the experience. You must also invest in residential exterior solutions to make your home’s exterior attractive to a potential buyer. This is critical since they first encounter your home’s exterior before venturing into its interior.
Upgrading the exterior will make your home pop and get potential buyers to want to come inside and “have a look,” which could be all you need to do to close the sale. So, here are seven residential exterior solutions you should consider before putting your home up for sale.
1. Landscaping
From the moment visitors arrive at your home to the time they enter inside, your beautifully-manicured lawns are the first to meet them. The flowers and the beautiful trees on your compound, bounded by neatly compacted asphalt, add to the allure of your home, making landscaping among the most critical residential exterior solutions to implement before selling your home.
Besides being highly affordable, landscaping enhances your home’s curb appeal. It gives your home an inviting, polished look that makes it irresistible to buyers. You can also include flowers, plants, and trees in your landscaping strategy to make your grounds stand out. This task is best left to a professional landscaping company since it involves many moving parts, and only a professional can guarantee the best results.
Service providers you will need to consider for your landscaping project include paving contractors, and pest control, among others. The goal is to keep your exteriors pristine, and landscaping is the best place to start. According to HGTV, your home’s curb appeal is the first thing potential homeowners interact with. Despite this, most homeowners neglect their home’s outdoor landscaping when prepping it for sale. HGTV contends that you can boost the value of your home by as much as 10%.
The ideal time to start clearing and sprucing up your yard is at least one month before you list your home for sale. This gives you adequate time to make your exteriors look great rather than wait until the last minute to patch them up.
2. Exterior Paint
If you’re looking for an affordable home upgrade that greatly impacts your home’s value and saleability, a fresh coat of paint on your exterior is all you need. It will transform the aesthetics of your home’s exterior and help you sell it faster. It can also enhance the appeal of your curb, making your home more appealing to potential buyers.
But which color should you go for? Well, this should depend on the overall style of your home, the trending colors, and the neighborhood where it’s located. As much as your style is important when selecting outdoor colors, you’re prepping up the home for sale, so make sure it appeals to the taste and style of potential buyers.
Use neutral colors such as gray, beige, or white to be safe. The beauty of these colors is that they stand out without being too “in your face.” Besides, if you get a client who prefers bolder colors, it’s easy to move from neutral colors to bolder ones than the converse. Painting is one of the residential exterior solutions that will help you sell your home quickly. So, when looking for the best house painters, listen keenly to their advice as they know which colors will compliment your home and result in a quicker sale.
3. Roof Repair
To keep the elements out, you need a roof that can withstand the vagaries of nature. When it rains, you had better be sure your roof can keep the water out, and the storms won’t rip it off.
The roof of your home is more than just a layer of covering. Besides the fact that it should look neat and trendy, it should also protect the house’s occupants from leaks. If it’s leaky or damaged, it’s a huge turnoff for potential buyers.
Among the benefits of a sturdy roof is that it keeps your family safe and dry. It also provides structural protection since it’s built to hold your house together. The roof protects and supports your interior design, plumbing, and lighting. A roof also provides insulation for your house. A properly designed roofing system has at least one layer of protection that serves as a barrier and helps regulate indoor temperatures. Lastly, an effective roof boosts the value of your home.
Since the roof is critical to your house, roof repair and maintenance are critical. Instead of waiting until it starts to fall apart, conduct roof repair whenever you notice a problem, such as a warped or missing shingle. No matter how attractive your home is, buyers will give it a wide berth if the roof shows signs of falling apart. Ensure the roof is in perfect condition before putting your home on the market. It’s one of the residential exterior solutions you can’t afford to ignore. You will, however, need to hire a professional roofing contractor to check your roof for signs of wear and tear besides other damage.
4. Window Replacement
While they might appear insignificant, windows contribute greatly to the aesthetics of your home. They also allow heat to enter and exit your home, making it more livable and functional. Besides, windows allow copious amounts of natural light into your home, making your living spaces pleasant and a joy to live in.
Before selling your home, check your windows for signs of wear and degradation. Old, worn-out windows make a home appear outdated and jaded. Potential buyers will use this to drive down your sale price mercilessly. Besides, old or worn-out windows are less energy efficient, and replacing them with new energy-efficient ones helps reduce your utility bills. New windows also boost the value of your home.
Besides energy-efficiency considerations when selecting new windows, other factors include style, material, and color. Popular window choices include fiberglass and vinyl. Choose windows with a high U-factor, which is a system that measures the window’s ability to keep heat from escaping. The windows you choose should also meet Energy Star guidelines, which
help businesses, consumers, and the industry save money while at the same time protecting the environment by adopting energy-efficient practices and products. Homes with the ENERGY STAR label are considered superior and more cost-effective than those without it. Replacing your home’s windows is a critical component of residential exterior solutions.
5. Siding Upgrade
An outdated, neglected, worn-out siding is unappealing to potential buyers. Upgrading it does several things. First, it enhances the curb appeal of your home. This is a critical upgrade that also boosts the value of your home, especially if you’re considering selling it. It gives it a fresh, brand-new look, making it stand out in the marketplace.
When upgrading the siding of your home, choose durable modern materials that require low or no maintenance, such as vinyl, wood, and fiber cement. Each of these materials has advantages and disadvantages, so carefully research and select the one you can afford.
Second, upgrading your home’s siding includes huge savings on your energy bills. You will spend less on cooling or heating your house since a new siding keeps the air inside your home warm during winter and the heat out during summer. Siding also increases the value of your home, which is a great reason to upgrade it before putting a home on sale. It’s one of those must-do residential exterior solutions.
Siding is one of the most affordable ways of sprucing up your house before selling it, but choose a professional siding contractor for perfect results. Another benefit of siding is that it’s environment-friendly, especially if you contract a company that uses eco-friendly materials.
But perhaps the most significant benefit of upgrading your home’s siding is that it keeps your maintenance costs at a minimum. While old siding requires constant maintenance, new siding doesn’t, and it will be a long time before you feel the need to replace it. If you use the right materials, even the harshest weather conditions, such as rainstorms and excess heat, won’t dent your siding.
6. Front Door Replacement
The front door introduces the interiors of your house. It’s the bridge between the exteriors and the interiors of your home. Once open, it lets visitors into your private space, allowing them to enjoy the comforts of your home. An old, decaying front door in dire need of repair is an instant turnoff for a potential buyer. It’s the first thing potential buyers will likely notice about your home. A new front door makes an indelible first impression that raises the prospects of closing the sale. It also elevates your home’s curb appeal, but the door must be made of high-quality materials such as steel or fiberglass to complement your home’s aesthetics.
Other benefits of a new front door include enhanced front-access security, energy efficiency since front doors are common causes of drafts and leaks, low maintenance since it comes with weather resistance and durability, and light and privacy for front doors with glass, providing for an illuminated entryway. Besides enhanced curb appeal, a front door is a statement about your taste and style. Once you combine all these benefits, you end up with a high-value home that attracts potential buyers like a magnet.
7. Outdoor Living Spaces
When people were forced to work from home in 2020 during the COVID-19 lockdowns, outdoor living spaces became top-rated residential exterior solutions. Instead of huddling indoors, people found innovative ways of revitalizing their outdoor spaces to make them more habitable. Over two years later, in 2023, this trend has persisted as more people discover the joys of working and entertaining outdoors.
You can use outdoor living spaces to relax, entertain guests, or bask in the beauty of outdoor elegance and tranquility. A home, for instance, with an outdoor kitchen, a deck, or a patio is more attractive to a potential buyer than one without. It’s the perfect way to make your outdoor spaces inviting and functional. To entice potential buyers further, add outdoor fire pits, water features, or lighting to improve your home’s ambiance and make it stand out. Also, consider getting a tree removal service to clear your compound of dangerous tree stumps and inappropriate trees. You may also need a residential electrical contractor to electrify your outdoors.
Outdoor living spaces increase the functional area of your home, but these spaces must be easily accessible from the indoors. Homes that feature beautiful outdoor lounge areas, fireplaces, and kitchens are more attractive to potential buyers than those without them. Besides, these homes make it easy to entertain guests outside, since indoor spaces are often limited and cannot accommodate large crowds. Besides, cooking and eating outside keeps the potential mess out of your house, and it helps that it’s easier to clean up the mess outside than inside your house.
As much as possible, try not to sell your home hurriedly. Doing so could mean selling it much lower than you should. Use the above seven residential exterior solutions to prep it for sale. For this, you will need several professional services to help you prime your home for sale. These include an asphalt service, a stump removal service, or a concrete company to deck those pavements and curbs that add up to the value of your home.
As more people transition to the functional outdoors, there’s increased interest in residential exterior solutions that improve the value of a home. Potential buyers are looking for homes that extend indoor living to the outdoors. It’s no longer just about the aesthetics and function of your interiors, but the exteriors as well, and the above seven residential exterior solutions should provoke your mind in the right direction.