"We’re now starting to see buyers return to the fold, with mortgage approvals having climbed over the last two consecutive months and this will also help increase the price a seller can achieve"
- Colby Short - GetAgent
With the new year upon us, lots of people are looking to begin 2024 with a fresh start and a new adventure. If this is you, and your plans include selling your current home and buying somewhere bigger and better, or perhaps smaller and smarter, it’s important to prepare your property to achieve as good a price as possible when it hits the market.
Here are eight highly achievable renovation ideas that will do exactly that. They will require some upfront investment, but these ideas have been carefully selected to add so much value to your home as to cover the expenses and then some, giving you the best possible payday when selling.
Home office / Garden office - Added Value: £9,584
Ever since the pandemic lockdowns introduced a new trend for working from home, dedicated home office space has become a priority for buyers. This means converting a spare bedroom into a top-notch office can be a good investment. But, to avoid removing precious bedroom space, it might be an even better idea to create an office space in the garden. It doesn’t need to be an extravagant structure, just a well-furnished shed with electricity and warmth.
This sort of renovation should cost you around £12,000. It’s a hefty investment but will confidently add an expected 7.5% to your home’s market value. At the current average UK house price of £287,782, this is a value add of £21,584, leaving you with a renovation profit of £9,584.
Deep clean - Added Value: £7,058
It may not be glamorous or exciting, but the simple task of deep cleaning your home can increase its attractiveness and boost the price buyers are willing to pay.
All in all, it should cost you about £1,000 to have your home deep cleaned, but it is estimated to add 2.8% to the market value of your home. This leaves you with an amazing profit of £7,058, but if you want to roll up your sleeves and tackle it yourself, you could increase this profit margin even further.
Repaint and redecorate - Added Value: £5,946
To go one step further than cleaning, you should consider repainting and redecorating the home. As well as repainting the walls of key spaces such as the kitchen, bathroom, living room, and bedrooms, you should also pay attention to skirting boards, and door frames, and don’t forget to touch up any gaps in tiling or bathroom sealants.
The whole process, if done properly by a professional, should cost about £2,975, but by adding an estimated 3.1% to the property’s value, you’ll enjoy a profit of £5,946. But just like a deep clean, you could take on the job yourself to further boost the value added to your home.
Garden shed - Added Value: £4,620
Homebuyers are always looking for storage space but it’s so often in short supply. It can be an obsession that they are willing to pay a premium to secure. A new garden shed is a brilliant way to create storage space without eating into the home’s footprint.
A quality shed will cost you around £2,575 to install, but add 2.5% to your property value. This leaves you with a handsome profit of £4,620.
Four more ways of adding great value to your home
With more and more people serious about reducing their carbon footprint, giving your home some eco perks can add to its desirability. Installing an electric vehicle charge point will require an investment of £900, but by adding 1.7% to the home’s value it’ll leave you with a profit of £3,992.
Meanwhile, improving your home’s EPC certificate to at least a C rating will add about 3% to the market value. But due to a large investment of £6,155, your profit will be limited to around £2,478.
Sprucing up the garden and other outdoor spaces will do wonders for first impressions and give an expected profit of about £1,430, while the simple and cheap process of giving the windows and guttering a good clean will give you an estimated profit of £693.
Co-founder and CEO of GetAgent.co.uk, Colby Short, commented: “While the rate of house price growth may have slowed in 2023, the market has stood firm and so sellers should remain confident that their home is likely to achieve a strong price in the current market.
"We’re now starting to see buyers return to the fold, with mortgage approvals having climbed over the last two consecutive months and this will also help increase the price a seller can achieve.
"However, there are several things you can undertake to help further increase the asking price potential of your property. Some of them can be done without professional help, such as a good cleaning or a lick of paint.
"Others will require you to spend money to make money and adding space, both outside and in, is a great way of achieving this.”
