Selling A House In Poor Condition? Key Things You Must Fix!

Not All Repair Is Major

When you’re selling an “as is” property, there are probably a few things wrong with it. That doesn’t mean you’re off the hook for staging a few rooms and fixing the house up.

Even if your property is a little more than an “as is” home, you may want to fix up some things. At a minimum, for a house in poor condition, you want to consider repairing the following items.

Whatever Works Well, Be Sure It’s Visible

Even with the most questionable properties, there’s always something that “works”. It may not be an appliance; maybe it’s a layout that perfectly emphasizes a rare view. Find out whatever that special something is in your property. Once you’ve identified it, imagine a way of emphasizing it. You want that feature visible to potential buyers.

Be Sure To Do All The “Easy” Fixes

There are a lot of little things you can do that are pretty easy. All the floors need to be swept, surfaces need to be wiped down. If you have a few hundred dollars and the time, you might want to paint a few rooms. You may even redo the whole interior or exterior—or both.

How is the basement? Is it unfinished? That happens a lot, and finishing it may not be as involved as you thought. A little drywall, insulation, and paint, or some tongue-and-groove boards; whatever works.

You might do a roof repair, be sure you change all the lightbulbs, patch any leaks you can—find the honey-do’s that aren’t exceptionally intensive. Sometimes a little landscaping is in order, sometimes you may want to apply wallpaper in a room. Find what the low-value home needs, and what you can apply affordably.

If you can spend a weekend getting these little jobs done, excellent. If you can afford to commit a few weeks or weekends, that’s even better. There are additionally mild things you can do as regards staging which may sell the property. Chocolate chip cookie spray has much to recommend it—almost any realtor can help you find the best options.

Electricity And Water Should Work

A low-value property is a lot easier to sell if all the basics work. Think of it as an automobile. Sure, the A/C, heater, and power windows may be malfunctioning. But if the engine, transmission, and work, you can still sell that car. If spending $2k on repairs can allow you to sell a vehicle for $5k, where before you could only scrap it, the $2k repair may be worth it.

Well, you want to bring that same thinking to your property. Do all the lights work? Does the disposal work? Does the faucet have hot and cold water? How about spigots on the outside, toilets, and showers—do they all work? If they don’t, you may want to have some contractors do a basic job fixing things up.

Granted, sometimes a given property would require $10k in work, and you’re only selling it for $50k; so the little fixes aren’t working. However, the more your property can command, the more it’s in your interests to make such fixes.

If you can spend $10k to $30k and add $15k to $60k in property value, then whatever you spend on repairs is offset by the increased property value. That said, each kind of property will have its unique thresholds in this area. Getting appraisal through professionals may be worthwhile to help you avoid wasted effort.

Moving “Rough” Property

Selling a house in poor condition isn’t always the easiest thing to do, but if you emphasize what works, fix the little things that don’t, and assure basic utilities are functional, there’s a much higher likelihood you’ll move your property.

Whenever you can get something done through DIY, that’s advisable. Sometimes it’s surprising what you can do with a free weekend and a few home maintenance supplies; like a sander, polyurethane, and wood stain.

Figure out where you can tweak the property a bit through such repair to best effect, then “polish it up” before potential buyers view it. You may be able to sell the property quicker and at a higher value.