Home & GardenMoving/Buying/Selling A Home

12 Best Home Improvement Projects That Benefit Home Sellers Most

best-home-improvement-is-cleaning-by-Melissa-Ann-Barrett.jpg HomeGain surveyed 1,000 Realtors nationwide and asked for the top 12 DIY home improvements that cost under $5,000 and benefit home sellers.

Guess what?…

The #1 home improvement that Realtors recommend to home sellers — based on cost and return on investment) is:  Cleaning and de-cluttering!

That’s right. It costs $200 on average to do the proper amount of cleaning and decluttering prior to a move, yet it can increase your home’s value by as much as $1,700.

That’s an 872% return on investment! Extensive cleaning and decluttering was recommended by 98% of Realtors surveyed.

See the other top 11 DIY home improvements that made the list…

 

The remaining 11 low-cost, do-it-yourself home improvements that Realtors believe home sellers should concentrate on are: (in this order)

  • Home staging
  • Lightening and brightening
  • Landscaping
  • Repairing plumbing
  • Updating electrical
  • Replacing or shampooing carpets
  • Painting interior walls
  • Repairing damaged floors
  • Updating kitchen
  • Painting outside of home
  • Updating bathrooms 


5 DIY Projects Which Cost The Least, Impact The Most

  • Cleaning and decluttering – cost: $200
  • Lightening and brightening – cost: $230
  • Home staging – cost: $300
  • Replacing or shampooing carpets – cost: $300
  • Landscaping front & back – cost: $320

 

5 DIY Projects With The Greatest Return On Investment

The home improvement projects that have the greatest return on investment value for home sellers are:

  • Cleaning and decluttering – 872%
  • Home staging – 576%
  • Lightening and brightening – 572%
  • Landscaping front & back – 473%
  • Repairing plumbing – 327%

     

5 DIY Projects Which Affect A Home’s Resale Value The Most

The home improvement projects that have the highest price increases to a home’s resale value are:

  • Updating the kitchen – price increase: $2,850
  • Painting the outside of the home – price increase: $1,815
  • Home staging – price increase: $1,780
  • Painting interior walls – price increase: $1,770
  • Cleaning and decluttering – price increase: $1,700

 

Cleaning and de-cluttering continues to rank as the top suggested home improvement since the survey was originally conducted in 2000.  See which other items from the list have continued to be high-ranking year after year.