Selling the house as-is is usually best for people who don’t want to go through the troubles of selling the house on the market. However, if you do want to sell your home on the market but it’s not in the best condition, or you want to increase your home’s value prior to selling, here comes the question about whether or not it’s worth renovating a house before selling.
While it’s true that you may get more than the actual market price when you renovate, it still doesn’t guarantee the price you are hoping to get, especially when you are selling during a cold market. So here are a few things to think about when you’re still deciding to do a presale renovation or not.
Pros and Cons of Getting a Renovation Loan
Improving and preparing your house before selling is a great thing to do. Not only will it increase your home’s value, but it would also increase your home’s appeal and chances for a quicker sale. However, not everyone has the resources to cover 100% of the renovation costs on their own. This is why home improvement lenders exist — so people can get their house renovated before listing in on the market.
Because it is a loan, home improvement lenders charge an interest rate — it’s how they profit from the business. As of July 2021, interest rates for home improvement loans range from 3% – 36% per annum. But what’s great about home improvement loans is that majority don’t require collateral (except for Home Equity Lines of Credit), some don’t ask for a downpayment, and borrowers can receive a lump sum within three days. Plus, unlike a lot of mortgage loans, these types of loans have fixed interest rates which means that you can predict all of your payments.
There are a lot of home improvement loans to choose from. If you do decide to apply for a home improvement loan, just make sure that you are able to cover the high interest rates, pay the annual services fees, and pay on time. Because home improvement loans are unsecured (no collateral), traditional lenders put in high interest rates to compensate. Below is an example of an FHA loan.
Do You Have a Lot of Stuff You Don’t Need Inside?
Home improvements don’t only address structural damages, infestations, and broken electrical, plumbing & HVAC systems. In some cases, decluttering and cleaning your home is also a form of home improvement, especially if you have accumulated too much stuff over the years. You can find plenty of D.I.Y home renovation tips online, but you can also opt for zero-cost improvements just by decluttering, washing your linens, and making your surfaces squeaky-clean.
If this sounds appealing to you, but you don’t have the time to clean your home, you can also sell your home to us directly at Spire Home Buyers. You won’t have to do anything with your stuff and can leave them as-is when you turn your house over to us.
What’s in Your Local Safety Code?
Every building, including personal dwellings in Georgia, are required to follow minimum safety standards. If your home is in too much distress and you don’t know which renovation works you want to do, you can refer to state and county laws that cover occupant safety. Some of these include:
- The National Electrical Code 2017 of Georgia
- The Georgia State Minimum Standard Building Code
- The Georgia State Standard One and Two Family Dwelling Code
- The Georgia State Minimum Fire Prevention Code
- The Georgia State Minimum Plumbing Code
The cost of renovation will vary, but always remember to ask your contractor for a detailed cost estimate before giving the go signal. If your home needs so many fixes to meet at least the minimum safety standards, you may want to find a contractor who charges per type of work and not by the number of hours. This way, you can ensure that you’re not paying for potentially lazy repairmen.
Are You Willing To Risk Not Getting a Renovation ROI?
Some home renovations give an ROI of more than 100%, while others only bring back around less than 50% of the costs. If you get an ROI of at least 100%, then great; but if you get way below that, your renovations may not be that worth it after all.
To give you a better picture, say, for example, the original value of your home is $140,000, and you spend about $15,000 on renovations; then time came that you really need to sell the house already, but the highest offer you got was only $146,000. Are you willing to take it? Will your equity be enough to cover the rest of the $9,000? Do you have equity left after subtracting the repair costs? If you are willing to take the chance though of getting back your investment, make sure that you work with reliable contractors and realtors who know exactly which are the best renovations to do before selling.
Deciding to sell the house as-is or fixing it first is a big decision to make. You may want to take your time with it or call us at Spire Home Buyers to help you weigh your options. We don’t recommend that you sell your home to us right away, but we will help you identify which alternatives would be comfortable for you. For more information, call us at (678) 318 – 1801 or fill up the form below.