November 05, 2009
HomeGain Releases 2009 Home Improvement Survey Results
HomeGain reveals new survey findings of top 12 do-it-yourself home improvements for home sellers, based on responses from nearly 1,000 REALTORS®; cleaning and de-cluttering ranks as highest return on investment, followed by home stagingEmeryville, CA - November 5, 2009 - HomeGain.com, the first website to offer web-based free instant home values, today announced that it has released the results of its nationwide home improvement and home staging Home Sale Maximizer™ survey.HomeGain received responses from nearly 1,000 Realtors® nationwide and configured a list of the top 12 do-it-yourself (DIY) home improvements that cost under $5,000 and benefit sellers most when they sell their homes.
According to the HomeGain survey, the top five home improvements that Realtors recommend to home sellers based on cost and return on investment (from highest to lowest ROI) are:
1.Cleaning and de-cluttering ($200 cost / $1,700 price increase / 872% ROI)2.Home staging ($300 cost / $1,780 price increase / 586% ROI)3.Lightening and brightening ($230 cost / $1,300 price increase / 572% ROI)
4.Landscaping ($320 cost / $1,500 price increase / 473% ROI)
5.Repairing plumbing ($385 cost / $1,250 price increase / 327% ROI)
Cleaning and de-cluttering continues to rank as the top suggested home improvement (since the survey was originally conducted in 2000), recommended by 98 percent of Realtors, costing less than $200 and returning a value of nearly $1,700 to the home's sale price, or an 872% return on investment.
"Many Realtors agree, especially in a buyer's market, that sellers who make these recommended home improvements often get their homes sold faster and at higher prices," stated Louis Cammarosano, General Manager at HomeGain. "We have customized our Home Sale Maximizer online home improvement tool to help identify and prioritize the projects that can increase the salability and selling price of a home."
Rounding out the top 12, the list of low cost, do-it-yourself home improvements includes: updating electrical, replacing or shampooing carpets, painting interior walls, repairing damaged floors, updating kitchen, painting outside of home, and updating bathroom/s.
The home improvement projects with the highest price increases to a home's resale value is Updating the Kitchen ($1,200 cost / $2,850 price increase), followed by Painting the Outside of the Home ($900 cost / $1,815 price increase) and Home Staging ($300 cost / $1,780 price increase)."Inexpensive cosmetic home improvements and basic improvements greatly enhance the value of the home," stated Carol Wilson of Carpenter Real Estate in Indianapolis, IN, HomeGain AgentEvaluator member since 1999.
To see the complete survey results, visit the HomeGain Real Estate Blog.
