Without question, if you are planning to sell your home and the curb view leaves something to be desired, it is well worth the investment to improve the home’s exterior appearance.  Your home’s curb appeal is what generates the first impression to the prospective home buyer. Poor curb appeal could literally cause a prospective home buyer to walk away from your home even before stepping foot into it.

 

When a prospective home buyer drives up to a home for sale that has an unkempt exterior, the usual immediate thought is “If this is what the outside looks like, what’s the point of seeing the rest of the house”. In many cases the prospective buyer literally drives away. Improving your home’s curb appeal doesn’t necessarily mean wiping out your savings account. Listed below are some basic steps you can take to improve your home’s curb appeal.

•   Make sure the yard is free from clutter, e.g. lawn toys, patio equipment, unregistered cars and trailers.

• Dispose of any old / broken lawn furniture or toys.

• Make sure the yard is mowed, trimmed and raked.

• If there are patches of dead grass, remove them and get some grass seed.

• Make sure the gutters are in good working order and not hanging off the home

• Clean the gutters if they are not working properly.

• If there are overgrown shrubs, prune them so the home can be seen from the road.

• Add mulch around the shrubs to dress up the shrub area.

• If the home is lacking shrubs plant some small inexpensive ones around the home’s foundation, and again apply mulch around the base of them.

• Add a fresh coat of paint to the home if the home has either faded or cracking paint.

• If the paint looks in good shape, then at least give it a power washing to get off the dirt and grime, and to brighten up the home.

• Fix anything that is broken on the outside of the home, lights, gutters, shutters, door bells, etc.

• Add some flowers to the front walkways and entrances.

• Finally, make sure the yard is kept clean and neat.

With these basic steps your can dramatically improve your home’s curb appeal without breaking the bank. Most of these suggestions take only a little time and effort.