Renovate to Sell: Improve Your Home Sale Process

If you’ve decided to put your beach house on the market and your real estate agent is recommending that some renovations be made before listing it, you may be wondering why. It all comes down to time and money. Making the right renovations will not only increase the selling price of your home but renovating to sell will also reduce the amount of time your house is on the market.

Improving your home sale process through a renovation isn’t a “one size fits all” endeavor. In other words, a renovation checklist can vary depending on the home's location and numerous other factors. For instance, preparing Panama City Beach houses to sell would require considering elements such as extreme heat, humidity, above-average sunlight, and salt air, compared to a home located in a midwest suburb of Chicago that experiences all seasons.

Bay Real Experts has put together this list of suggested pre-sale renovations that will take the guesswork out of renovation priorities before listing your home for sale. The team’s specialty is Panama City Beach houses, including Breakfast Point real estate, and they’ve had years of experience helping their clients do the right renovations to improve ROI when they sell.

Panama City Beach, a small resort town in Florida’s panhandle, is home to the world’s most beautiful beaches and is known for its clear, sparking turquoise water and white sand. A popular tourist destination, especially to those in the Southern U.S., there is no shortage of attractions, including Gulf World Marine Park, St. Andrews State Park, Shipwreck Island Waterpark, restaurants, museums, and nightlife.

Within Panama City Beach is the desirable subdivision of Breakfast Point, named for the anglers who met for breakfast every day after fishing on West Bay. Located near the Emerald Coast, Breakfast Point real estate offers fantastic views of the water and nature preserve, lots of open green space for hiking and biking, and easy access to shopping, dining, and entertainment.

Have a home in Breakfast Point or another neighborhood in Panama City Beach? Keep in mind the following possible improvement projects to do before you list.

A fresh coat of paint, inside and out, will make the biggest visual impact on potential buyers, often even making a space appear larger. The colors that traditionally sell homes faster are:

 

While classic, neutral colors will attract the most buyers, you should keep in mind that when selling a beach house, you may have a little more room for creativity with subtle shades of blues and light greens.

Bathrooms are not a space most buyers want to renovate before moving in, so it’s important to pay attention to yours before listing your home for sale. Some updates you can make are as simple as re-caulking, replacing faucets, or changing a shower head. Other areas to think about are the vanity, tub, tiles, flooring, and toilets. When making bathroom renovations, be sure to remember that you’re marketing to your potential buyers and make choices accordingly.

Just as with bathrooms, buyers don’t necessarily want to update the kitchen of their new beach house, especially if it’s a second home. Focus on making your kitchen as energy efficient as possible while creating a space that’s clean, neutrally attractive, efficient, and comfortable. Buyers love granite countertops, white, flat panel cabinets, medium shades of hardwood floors, and stainless-steel appliances the most. Lighting (discussed further below) also makes an impact on how the space is perceived, and buyers love islands or peninsulas in the kitchen. Again, consider the home's location as a house directed on the beach may do better with an easy-to-keep-clean bamboo or laminate versus hardwood.

Yes, you can add value to your home by updating the flooring, but it’s a relatively large expense, even doing it on your own. When choosing your flooring, consider what suits your own household’s needs while picking something that’s not trendy and won’t be dated after several years. Traditional flooring colors that are also currently trending include light blondes and browns. Greige is replacing the recent trend of gray because of its warmer tone. It’s important to note that lighter beige browns and greige are more popular in the warmer, coastal regions of the country.

When renovating your house to sell, don’t forget the exterior, as it’s your buyer’s first impression. Some of the areas to consider updating that will add the most value to your home before selling include:

 

Lastly, one of the most simple renovations you can do that will add value to your home is to update your light fixtures. You’ll want to be careful in choosing the correct fixture for each room, still keeping in mind that you want to appeal to as many buyers as possible.

With all of these recommended pre-sale renovations, once again, remember that each home is different in age and style. In a newer home, you may have a much shorter checklist compared to the homeowner in a house built in 1930 and then renovated last in 1980.

If you’d like more information on this subject or have a home to list for sale, don’t hesitate to reach out to Bay Real Experts. With over 40 years of combined experience in Northwest Florida real estate, these top-producing and top-rated agents, along with their dedicated Panama City Beach real estate agents, are ready and able to provide you with an experience that will exceed all expectations.