What Repairs to Make Before Selling a House

What To Repair Before Selling Your Home

When it’s time to sell your home, you will want to get the best price. But if there are repair issues, you can have problems when selling. When buyers view your home, they may notice some of these issues. This can lead to fewer offers.

The buyer’s home inspection will reveal less obvious repairs, which can lead to a lower selling price or require you to do the fixes before closing.

Dealing with repairs before listing your home should make it easier to sell and help you get the price you want. But which repairs are most important when selling your house?

We take a look at the main areas where you should be making repairs before getting your house ready to sell:

Firm foundations

If you notice problems in your home, like uneven flooring or a gap around the door, the cause could be the foundation. Repairs to the foundation of a home can get expensive, depending on the cause, though some issues may be more superficial.

When there are serious foundation issues, this will very likely prevent the home from selling. Even if a buyer loves your home, serious damage like this can force them to walk away from the purchase.

The roof

Buyers don’t want a home that could potentially let in rainwater, and problems with the roof will appear in the inspection. If your roof hasn’t been repaired or renewed recently, it could easily delay your home sale.

There could be:

• Blocked gutters and downspouts
• Missing shingles
• Weather-damaged shingles
• Broken flashing around chimneys

Any of these issues could prevent the sale of your home or lead to a renegotiation of the price. If you can resolve these problems before a buyer makes an offer, your sale will be smoother.

Electrical hazards

Any buyer will want to have a safe home, so there shouldn’t be any serious issues with the electrics. Faulty wiring or electrical panels could cause a fire if they aren’t up to code. If there are any faults or broken sockets, these should be addressed.

There are a few repairs you can make if you are confident with DIY. But for more serious faults, it will be better to hire a professional.

Plumbing problems

If a home has leaking pipes, it can lead to more serious issues. An unresolved plumbing issue can damage walls, floors, ceilings, and the structure of the property. The buyer does not want to deal with mold, dry rot, or the costs and upheaval of extensive plumbing work.

Poor drainage

If water does not drain away from the house successfully, the foundation can be damaged, and the structure of the home can begin to rot. The grading of the ground around the home can sometimes be the cause, but it can also be something as simple as a blocked gutter or downspout. 

Poor drainage can cause serious problems, so making sure your home deals with water correctly should be a regular maintenance task. If these problems haven’t been addressed in the past, there may be more to do when getting your home ready for sale.

Kitchen concerns

The kitchen is an important part of the home that buyers will be focused on. While completely renovating your kitchen might be going too far, there are plenty of things you can do to improve the room.

Many things can break in a kitchen, so you need to stay on top of these repairs. If an appliance has broken, you will need to repair or replace it. However, there’s less benefit to replacing an appliance just because it’s old; as long as it works, you should keep it.

You might also need to:

• Repair kitchen cabinets
• Fix a dripping faucet
• Replace worn fixtures
• Deep clean

If your kitchen is looking its best without any obvious problems, it can go a long way toward selling your home.

Beautiful bathrooms with New Grout

Similar to the kitchen, there are plenty of things that can go wrong in bathrooms. It’s easy to overlook many of these little problems, to the point where you may not even notice them anymore. So if you’ve been putting off fixing that leaky faucet or repairing a broken tile, now’s the time to deal with it.

Replacing old caulking or grout can also make a huge difference. Don’t forget to deep clean your bathrooms to make them sparkle.

If no amount of cleaning will make faucets and other fixtures look good, replacing them could be worthwhile. A new shower head and hose are another cheap and easy improvement to refresh a bathroom.

Even if your bathrooms are looking old, a complete renovation isn’t necessarily a good option. Though it will improve these spaces, it isn’t likely to make a noticeable difference to the sale price or how quickly you find a buyer.

Repainting

If you have peeling paint inside or outside the home, getting out your paintbrush can help you find a buyer. A fresh coat of paint can brighten up and refresh your home, making it more appealing to potential buyers.

Painting the front door or the outside of the home can improve the curb appeal. Better curb appeal has a positive effect on the buyer’s first impression and can help them overlook problems or negatives they find later on.

If there are scratches on walls, doors, or door frames, you might get away with just a paint touch-up. Avoiding a complete repaint will save you time and money. As long as you match the paint, it will improve the appearance of your home for relatively little effort.

Curb Appeal

While a broken fence or an uneven pathway won’t stop a sale in its tracks, it could give a negative impression to buyers. Curb appeal, especially the front yard in particular, shouldn’t have any unrepaired issues if you want to give the best impression.

A well-maintained yard, with well-trimmed bushes and a mowed lawn, can really help sell a home. Fixing up your yard shouldn’t need to be too costly either, and some things can just be thrown away without replacement if they are damaged. A broken plant pot or garden chair could be removed to improve the overall space without being missed.

Porch or deck repairs

If the home has a porch or deck, deal with any damage before potential buyers are shown around. Make sure it is still structurally sound, without signs of termite damage or other issues.

The porch or deck also needs to be safe. Are the guardrails in good condition, and do they meet the current code requirements? If this is an issue, it will likely have to be fixed before closing anyway. Fixing this before the property goes on the market will make selling simpler.

Pool problems

While a swimming pool can be very attractive to buyers, if there are problems, it can put them off. A buyer won’t immediately want to deal with pool issues as soon as they move in, so make sure there aren’t any filtration or circulation faults. 

There can be more serious concerns, like foundation cracks that could lead to problems in the home if they are ignored. If the pool has structural damage, it will need to be addressed before the sale can close.

Dealing with mold

As you might expect, a buyer is not going to want to see mold in the home. Mold can indicate bigger issues, and it’s a problem that will only get worse if not addressed.

Mold can also be a health hazard, so it’s something you need to solve before it puts off potential buyers. If the problem is significant, you may want to hire contractors, and if you do this before the selling process begins, it will be less stressful.

Problem pests

If your home has termites, it will be an issue when you’re looking for a buyer. Rats aren’t exactly welcome guests either, so if you have these issues, you might want to bring in professional exterminators.

If there is evidence of termites or other pests, even if these problems have been dealt with, repairs might be needed. Damage from pests will be noticed during the home inspection and can lead to further, more thorough inspections. Repairing the damage before the buyer’s inspection can prevent these issues from arising.

Drywall repairs

If you’ve put up some pictures, there might be some nail holes to fix. Perhaps a door handle put a dent in one of your walls. Many things can easily damage drywall, requiring a repair. While these issues are to be expected, it still doesn’t give potential buyers the right impression.

If you have some DIY skills, you could complete many of these types of repairs yourself. There are various patch kits available to make repairing damaged drywall easier.

Drafty doors and windows

If your doors or windows don’t close properly, leaving gaps, this is something you’ll want to fix. This might be caused by an underlying problem that you will need to deal with first.

If the cause is known and fixed, the doors and windows will also need to be repaired. These sorts of issues can prevent homebuyers from getting a mortgage. Cracks in window panes or doors that don’t close properly could make the home ineligible for financing.

Refinishing flooring and Replacing Carpet

If your hardwood floor has seen better days, consider having it refinished. A hardwood floor can be sanded to remove damage or imperfections, then refinished to look as good as new.

This is a good idea if there are obvious issues with the floor. The following issues, if bad enough, could be a good reason to refinish:

• Uneven surface
• Deep scratches
• Discoloration

While hardwood floors are popular, if they aren’t in good condition, they won’t assist you in finding a buyer.

Replacing old carpet before putting your house on the market can also significantly enhance its appeal to buyers. Worn or stained carpets can create a negative impression, suggesting neglect and potentially lowering the perceived value of your property.

Failing HVAC systems

HVAC systems in the home will be checked during the inspection, and buyers will want them to be working properly. Perhaps you only need to change filters on the air conditioning unit, but if more is needed, it’s better to get in front of these problems before they prevent your home from selling.

Broken garage doors

If your garage door doesn’t open easily, repairs will mean one less issue in the inspection report. The remotes may not work properly, or the door may not be up to current safety standards. Whatever the issue, resolving the problem can help your home sell more quickly.

What doesn’t need to be fixed before selling a home?

While it might be appealing to make major changes to your home before selling, often this isn’t going to provide a good return on your investment. Generally, making repairs and selecting updates that improve the visual appeal of the home are better to focus on.

You could spend money on renovations to the kitchen or bathrooms, without it making a substantial difference to how much you sell your home for. What you consider to be a great upgrade might not appeal to many of your potential buyers and could even put off some completely.

It can be tempting to replace kitchen appliances with upgrades or fit a hot tub to impress. However, these types of upgrades typically don’t add to the price you will receive and can even deter buyers.

If you aren’t sure of what things you need to fix up, ask your real estate agent for their view. They should have a clear understanding of what people are looking for and expect in the local market. Their advice should help you identify where to best spend your time and money.

Summing Up What Repairs To Make Before Selling a House

Selling your home isn’t always easy. If there are fewer buyers around, you need to do more to make your property sellable. To ensure you get the price you want for your home, making repairs before buyers visit is a must.

The things you focus on to fix could make the difference between selling quickly and your home being stuck on the market for months. As we have shown, many repairs aren’t too difficult or cost that much, but can have a disproportionate effect on your sale.

About the author: This article was written by Luke Skar of MadisonMortgageGuys.com. As the Social Media Strategist, his role is to provide original content for all of their social media profiles as well as generate new leads from his website.

We provide award-winning customer service to clients who need to purchase a home or refinance an existing mortgage.