Thinking about selling your home?
It’s still a seller’s market when it comes to real estate in Raleigh and Charlotte. If you are in the process of, or thinking about, selling your home then chances are you will have no trouble in finding many prospective buyers in relative short order. Selling your home is an emotionally draining experience, as well as a time consuming one. It’s also a rare opportunity to make some extra money, so make sure you plan accordingly and make the absolute most of the process.
One of the best things you can do to ensure you get the most out of selling your home is to make sure that the exterior of your home looks great. In fact, according to the experts at Consumer Reports, having great curb appeal can increase the value of your home by 3-5%. If your home is priced at $350,000 that could mean as much as $17,500!
The basics of curb appeal include a well maintained property, including a lack of weeds, a mowed lawn, crisp edges where your lawn meets the driveway and landscape beds, and trees and shrubs that are properly pruned. Once you have met those basic requirements you may want to consider stepping up to freshening the ground cover (typically mulch or pine straw) in your landscape beds. This can have a dramatic impact on the look and feel of your property, particularly when professionally applied.
If all of those boxes are checked then consider some bright seasonal color in the form of flowers in your beds and around the mailbox. Finally, landscape lighting is another impactful way to set your home apart and emphasize all of the work you have done to beautify the exterior.
Even if you aren’t planning on selling right away, investing in your landscaping will enhance your enjoyment in the short term as well as help your trees and shrubs get established so when the time does come for you to move you will have a great looking landscape that will add significant value to your home. Experts recommend budgeting 10% of your home’s value for your landscaping initiative, and agree that you can expect to receive about 150% in return on that investment.
Finally, did you know that the fall is the best time to plant trees and shrubs in North Carolina? Fall is when trees and shrubs are focused on root establishment and growth, which is exactly what you want for newly installed plants. The fall weather is also mild enough to not stress the plants. So if you are thinking about making improvements to your landscape, your best bet is to coordinate and design your plan in the summer, then put your plan into action in the fall.
If you are thinking of selling your home in Raleigh or Charlotte then give us a call. We can meet with you to discuss how we can help you stage your property and enhance your landscape to make the most of the sale of your home! Your consultation is complimentary and your experienced landscape professional will make recommendations based on your unique property.
Be careful though, by ensuring that your curb appeal is beyond reproach, you may just incite a bidding war on your property. Your biggest problem might just be deciding how to spend that extra money!
