Stating the Facts About Real Estate

Hiring a home appraisal for your property is an essential step anytime you are refinancing your mortgage or you plan to put your home on the market. With an appraisal, you have a professional valuation of your property and its condition along with any updates you have put into the home. When you are planning an upcoming appraisal, here are some recommendations to help you get the highest valuation for your home.

Make Some Minor Repairs

When you have lived in your home for some time, it can be common for your repair list to grow without you having time to make the repairs. This can result in small repairs and fixes left undone around your home that need to be handled. And if you don't take the time to fix these small areas, they can bring your home's appraisal value down. When you are counting on every additional dollar to be added to your home's appraisal so you can refinance or sell your home, you want to make the most of it with what you can.

Take a weekend or a few days off from work to make the small repairs around your home. This may include details such as repairing the baseboards that are damaged or missing in one part of your home or the electrical outlets that you didn't replace after you painted in the home interior. Look at areas of your home that need sprucing up, such as scratched paint, old fixtures, and other small projects that can make a big impact on your home's appearance and overall value. When your home has small issues throughout the interior and exterior, it can come across as not maintained well and it can affect your home's appraisal value.

Update the Outside

Just as the details on the inside of your home are important, you should also look at the exterior appearance and the condition of your home's landscaping. Take a walk outside around your yard to see what condition it is in. At the very minimum, you should mow your lawn and pull any weeds that are sprouting up around your yard. Weeds growing and a long lawn can really make the appearance of your yard look shabby. 

If you have bedding areas around the yard, such as around the foundation of your home, shrubbery, and trees, you can update their appearance easily with a new layer of mulch or bark. Mulch, especially one of a dark color, makes your yard look tidy and makes the soil look rich and healthy. Reach out to a professional who provides property appraisals to see what else you can do to increase the value.