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Simple things to do to get your house ready to sell

One of the biggest heartbreaks in the Flower Mound real estate business involves appraisals that give a lower value for a sale. In many cases, this can be prevented if you follow some simple guidelines before you contact a prospective lender.

Obviously, you want your home to appraise for as high as possible. A high value means more money in your pocket.

I am refinancing my home: Should I paint the exterior? 

No, in most cases. Most appraisers are more concerned with the condition of the house, rather than the aesthetic look. Sometimes, however, it pays to spruce up a bit.

If your house has an 8-year-old paint job and is not the same brilliant shade of orange it once was, it doesn’t have to be repainted. But, if your house is peeling and has several cracks in the walls, this would be a good indication that it is time to paint. 

I have a crack in the paint in my living room: Do I need to remodel? 

An upgraded bath or kitchen will always raise the value of a home. However, what an appraiser is looking for are things that will need fixing as soon as a new buyer takes procession. He will be looking for mold and mildew, settlement cracks, and foundation issues, so remodeling to address these issues will always be a good thing.

Should I replace walls that have mildew? 

Once again, the appraiser is looking for a leaky roof that is causing the mildew. A possible leaky roof will be a loan killer, or you may need to put on a new roof before refinancing. If it is just a bit of mildew coming from the inside of the house, paint it. It’s no point losing the deal due to harmless mold.

I have lots of stuff in my yard 

This one is a pretty common issue in rural America. So you like to tinker with cars; should you be penalized in value because of that? Most appraisers will look at your car collection as an eye sore and lower the home’s value. That’s the best scenario. If they see a large garage and some cars being worked on, it may get labeled an income property and your lender will make you jump through hoops to do the loan.