The housing market is heating up. With few homes on the market, sellers are experiencing bidding wars which end up with houses selling to the highest bidder. Do you want to get in on that? Afraid your house is too ugly to sell?
There are many ways you can end up with an ugly house. Maybe you’re handling an estate after the death of a loved one. Maybe you’ve been living in a less than ideal home for a while, and you’re about to move to an upgrade. Whatever the reason, you may need to sell a house fast, but it’s hard if there’s much work to be done.
Luckily with the right simple steps, you can either fix up your house yourself for the market or find someone to buy ugly houses and make a profit! If you’re wondering the best method for selling my house, keep reading to find out more.
1. Price Your Ugly House Appropriately
Nothing will kill your chances of selling your home more than an inappropriate price. Be realistic with your goals to have the most payoff.
Even if your house is unique in a special way, if it’s ugly or dilapidated, the buyer will need to put more money in to bring it up to taste. They won’t want to spend top dollar while purchasing a project house.
Look at other listings of ugly or fixer-upper houses in your area to help come up with a fair price.
2. Highlight the Beautiful
Even the homes in the worst condition have something worth highlighting. Maybe your home is a classic Victorian that needs some updating. Maybe with the right care, your home could be a rustic-looking cottage.
Maybe some features beautiful features won’t need to be replaced. Your home could have beautiful original hardwood floors that need to be cleaned and resealed. Check your window frames for subtle details. Oftentimes, ugly homes are old homes, and old homes have vintage qualities that could make them desirable to buyers.
Whatever makes your home beautiful underneath its ugly, highlight that in your listing. Include the positive aspects in titles, descriptions, and images.
3. Be Honest About Shortcomings
Don’t be tempted to lie on your listing or try to cover up the truth. Admit that your home is a project someone will have to undertake and should only be bought by someone willing to do that work.
You may think that by avoiding it in your listing, you’ll be able to trick buyers, but your home’s downsides will become all too apparent as soon as they do any in-person viewing.
Include pictures of problem areas in your listing at the end. Make your potential buyer fall in love with the positive aspects before they start considering what they’ll need to fix. This will also help you avoid any items during inspections that the buyer will then expect you to pay for. For this reason, it’s also good to include a “for sale as-is” disclaimer.
4. Declutter and Clean the Interior
The worst homes will only look worse if they look unclean or unkempt. You can do a lot for your home’s value simply by tidying up.
Remove unnecessary items from rooms and move furniture so that it looks as spacious as possible. Make sure that floors, tables, walls, and corners are clean up dust and dirt.
Even the most outdated kitchen can sell as a vintage charm if you keep it clean and decluttered—hideaway food in cabinets or attractive storage containers. Wipe down counters frequently and keep your sink free of dishes. If you’re going to keep out any utensils or dishes, make sure that they look fashionable and like part of the old-world charm.
Make the beds and invest in attractive bedding. Hang pictures on the walls. Do whatever you can to inspire the idea that this home has charm despite its deficits. Plant the seeds in the buyers’ brains of the potential the space has.
5. Maintain the Best Curb Appeal You Can
Exterior details matter too. When was the last time your porch was painted? Do you have an attractive wreath hanging in the doorway?
If your yard is full of leaves and other debris, you aren’t selling your front lawn as the attractive space it could be. Take a day to clean up the yard and show off the lawn.
Buy some cheap planters and flowers to place on the front porch to look more inviting and promising. Make sure your windows are clean and sparkling.
A power wash to the front of your house can also make a world of difference.
6. Brighten Up the Space
People like homes that look bright and welcoming. A dark, drab, dreary place is no place to work, raise a family, or entertain. Something about darkness seems like you’re hiding flaws, infestations, or other detriments.
Brighten up the space to its fullest potential! Remove curtains or replace them with a white sheer option to allow as much natural light into the room as possible. There’s no need to treat your house like the home of an agoraphobic recluse.
Bring extra lights into a room before taking photos for your listing and invest in a few extra light sources for in-person viewings as well. The light will make the space seem larger and cleaner.
7. Sell to a Third Party
If you don’t think you’ll be able to sell a house fast to the usual housing market, you’ll want to contact a housing investor. These people buy ugly houses for a cash value to flip them themselves and make a profit.
The best investors will do a walk-through before making an offer to ensure that you are getting the fairest deal on your home.
After buying your home, they’ll put the investment into making the necessary changes to sell it at a higher price. They’re professionals and will have more time to put the work in than you will.
Instead of worrying about budgeting how much work to put in before selling your home, you can trust you’re getting a fair deal with minimal effort on your part. Skip the investment and get straight to the earnings.
Selling Your Ugly House
Selling an ugly house can be exhausting, but you can also make it a wise money-making endeavor. Keep things clean and tidy, be honest about upsides and downsides, and know when to call in a professional for help.
Interested in finding out your home’s value as-is? We buy houses! Contact us for an offer today!