Fast Fix Ups To Speed Your Home Sale by Liz Pulliam Weston, MSN Money expert (NAPSA)—You don’t have to spend a fortune renovating your house to get a quick sale at the best price. Some of the most effective fix-ups may also be among the least expensive. Just a few hundred dollars of landscaping, for example, can boost your home’s value by $1,800, according to a surveyof real estate agents. Cleaning and de-cluttering your home, the survey found, could add thousands moreto theprice. Tour your property as if you were a prospective buyer. Drive or Small expenditures of money and time can greatly improve your chancesof selling your home. walk up to your house. Ask a friend to help you spot problems you’ve stopped noticing. Write everything down. For the exterior: Whack back overgrown bushes and trees so your houseis visible from the street. Plant colorful flowers. Keep the lawn green and tures so buyers can picture themselves living in the house. Con- Paint exterior doors and window trim to freshen your home’s look without the expense of re- tile or linoleum. trimmed. painting. Replace or remove torn screens or damaged storm windows. Make sure exterior lights are working. * Get rid of anything blocking pathwaysor cluttering up yards and patios. Clean your windows so your home looks as light and bright as possible. Inside, inspect floors, walls, kitchen, bathrooms andclosets. A deep cleaning is essential for a good first impression. Bathrooms and the kitchen should be spotless. Banish bad smells. Air out your homedaily. Don’t cook smelly foods. Clean the litter box. Bake cookies before buyers visit to give your place a “homey”smell. * Remove inside clutter. Stow away knickknacks and family pic- sider renting temporary storage space. Tidy closets look bigger and more appealing. Fix your floors. Real estate agents say buyers really notice the condition of floors. Hardwood should be polished, carpets shampooed or replaced. Repair broken If you’ve painted or wallpapered in recent years, you may be able to get away with just washing your walls. Otherwise, consider repainting in neutralcolors. Remember, remodeling is for buyers, not sellers. Major renovations usually don’t pay but buyers expect your hometo be in decent shape. Talk with a real estate agent about which projects to tackle before listing your home. Consider hiring your own inspector to alert you to problems you may not realize, so you can fix them before they cost you a sale. If you're thinking about using a loan for these home improvements, check out Microsoft Money’s costof-purchase calculator to quickly determine how muchthe loan will actually cost based on interest percentage. For moretips, visit MSN Money www.money.msn.com.
