Putting your home on the market can be a stressful experience. Many sellers lose sleep at night wondering what they can do with their home to boost interest, increase showings, and maximize the offers they get from potential buyers. One possible answer is to enhance the look and overall presentation of the property — the curb appeal of the home. Focusing on enhancing curb appeal can make a good house look great and make a great house look irresistible.
What is curb appeal?
In a nutshell, curb appeal is what your house looks like on the outside — as if someone were seeing it from the curb — and how it’s perceived by potential buyers. You can think about it as being your home’s first impression. Is it welcoming to people, and would they be interested in learning more about it? Or are there potential red flags that might cause potential buyers to decide your home isn’t worth the time to investigate?
If you decide you need to increase your home’s curb appeal when you are trying to sell it, don’t think of it as making up for being an irresponsible homeowner. Your home is subject to wear and tear over the years, and you might choose to defer maintenance of something on your property if it isn’t a priority. However, you’ll want to put your best foot forward to make a good impression in the highly competitive and unpredictable real estate market.
Why is curb appeal important when selling a house?
Just as you may want to consider staging a home to sell to make it appealing on the inside, enhancing curb appeal on the outside can also be beneficial. According to a 2020 study at The University of Texas at Arlington, a house with enhanced curb appeal can sell for more money – tens of thousands of dollars more, in fact. You can make many improvements yourself through your own efforts, and spending a bit on bigger challenges can pay off down the road.
How to increase curb appeal
It takes some planning and hard work to increase your home’s curb appeal. Ultimately, if you have a house with curb appeal, you can put your best foot forward for prospective buyers. While some of these suggestions might seem straightforward, you can potentially give yourself an edge against other properties of a similar size, price range, and location by doing everything you can to make the outside of your home as attractive as possible.
Curb appeal tips
Improve landscaping
Do what you can to make the vegetation look its best. Remove dead tree branches, trim unruly hedges, keep the lawn mowed and tidy, and plant some flowers for a pop of color.
Consider giving your driveway, walkways, and windows a power wash to remove stains, dirt, and grime. Make sure your roof is clear of fallen branches and that your gutters have been cleaned out — you don’t want your hard work undone due to a heavy rain.
Paint your mailbox or front door
Does your mailbox look shabby or tilt to the side? Is your front door warped or in need of a fresh coat of paint? Do your house numbers look outdated or mismatched? These things may not matter much to you, but they might send a message — fair or not — to a potential buyer that your house may not be in pristine condition. Learn more about home repairs you can make before selling.
Set up patio furniture
If you have a patio or deck, put some outdoor furniture on it to show people how they could use the space. Consider looking for gently used matching items if you don’t want to break the bank on a patio set you aren’t really planning to use for yourself.
Learn more about how to prepare your home to sell.
