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Curb appeal wins in housing resale wars
BY DAVID BRADLEY
For AP Weekly Features
With worries over housing values falling, more attention now may be focused on an overlooked aspect of selling a home: curb appeal.
Most homeowners lavish attention on the interior, thinking buyers will warm to neutral colors, updated appliances and spic-and-span closets and floors.
But if the outside looks so-so, buyers and their real estate agents may turn up their noses and move on to the next property. At this point, well-appointed and tasteful interiors are a moot point.
“If we lose them at the curb, they’ll (buyers) never come inside,” says Houston Realtor David Montz. “If the buyer already has a negative feeling, it’s going to affect how they feel about the house.”
And in many cities where time-on-market can drag on for more than 90 days, homeowners can gain a competitive edge by paying close attention to the external factors buyers may find pleasing. Depending on the condition of your home, you may spend from a few hundred dollars to several thousand to bring your exterior up to competitive snuff.
Routine improvements you can perform quickly and cheaply include a fresh coat of paint to siding and doors, power washing the entire exterior or filling cracks in the driveway and walks. Refresh the landscape with a shot of fertilizer to green up the lawn, plant fresh flowers or potted plants. Railings should feel snug and secure.
Some homes may need significant investment to overcome visual eyesores that might give buyers cold feet. New windows, siding and tuck pointing to brickwork can be costly, but make the home appear well-maintained. Such improvements also may help you pass muster with finicky home inspectors.
Don’t overlook your roof. The roof accounts for 40 to 60 percent of the exterior view of your home. Buckled, warped or cracked shingles are turn-offs for buyers. Whatley Bush of Monier Life Tile, an Atlanta maker of faux wood shakes, slate and tiles made of concrete, says if the roof must be repaired or replaced to ready a home for sale, homeowners ought to consider materials beyond asphalt shingles to other “three-dimensional products that fundamentally change the character of the house.”
Buyers will perceive there’s something different about the house” because the roof material appears more substantial and upscale, says Bush. You can expect to pay $400 to $500 for his product and upwards of $1,000 for real cedar shakes, slate or tile per 10 feet by 10 feet square. But those costs are recoverable: according to the National Association of Realtors Value of Housing Characteristics study, the look of a slate or cedar shake roof can add up to 27 percent to the selling price of a home.
After years of giving short shrift to exteriors, home sellers in the super-competitive sales market in suburban Chicago have been jolted to the fact the outside of a home is important. Home improvement contractor Robert McDowell of McDowell Exterior Builders in St. Charles, Ill., says sellers “need to freshen up the exterior and make it current with todays styles.”
“My guess is the majority puts more energy into the interior,” says McDowell. “But people have to have both a marketable interior and a marketable exterior in today’s selling environment. You can’t get someone through the front door if they don’t like the outside of your house.”
Other ideas to bring the exterior of your home up to competitive speed:
• Paint. Especially important if your home color is dated or out of style. Don’t forget fresh coats on trim and around windows.
• Clean. Power wash walls, driveways and sidewalks to remove debris and cobwebs. Clean windows.
• Clean up the landscape. Trim bushes below window height. Tidy up flowers and keep the lawn mowed and edged. Store toys and equipment out of sight.
• Repair. Fix lighting, fill cracks in driveways, secure screen doors and railings, replace cracked window panes. Remove and replace loose shingles. Reattach sagging gutters and downspouts.
• Add color. Potted plants and fresh flowers are inviting and add visual appeal.
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