What can you do to make your Southeast Florida home more attractive to buyers? What else can you do to get top dollar for your house? Here are five steps to consider taking:

 1. Assess the Value 

A Waterfront Properties real estate agent can show you the recent selling prices of comparable homes. But it does not hurt to look around yourself, just so you both can have a similar starting point. Bear in mind that these are what owners want to get for their houses, not necessarily what they will get. A better method is to look at recent sales prices with a real estate agent. 

You may have to pay capital gains taxes on the profit from the sale of your main home, but only if you make a bundle. Single individuals can keep up to $250,000 of the gain on the sale of their houses tax-free; married folks can keep $500,000 of the gain.

2. Depersonalize

Sure, you’re daring with paint, and those blue accent blocks in the family room are striking in your eyes. To a buyer, however, those walls say, “You’ve got a big paint job ahead of you.” Political paraphernalia? Take it down and put it in a drawer somewhere. And doesn’t everyone love the flamingos? Put it away. 

3. Declutter

Obviously, you’re going to have a clean house when you put it on the market. But you don’t want a cluttered house, either. If you’re planning on downsizing time to get busy. Start with the easy decisions: If you’re going from a four-bedroom ranch to a two-bedroom condo, you’ve got two rooms (at least) of furniture to dispose of as well as lawn mowers and dozens of yard tools. Then move on to the harder stuff. You might consider hiring an estate agent to help you select what you want and what to sell. Estate sales are not only for when a person dies, it is a good way to help people downsize.

4. Make Improvements 

According to Remodeling magazine’s 2022 “Cost vs. Value” report, you don’t have to add another wing to the house to improve its value. Top on the list of home improvements with the best resale value: a new garage door. A tattered garage door does not have curb appeal. Big remodeling jobs are a gamble. You might love an ultramodern, however, buyers might like something a bit more coastal. You might be wiser to add a neutral shade of paint and let your buyer do the remodeling. A major kitchen remodel was near the bottom of remodeling’s resale value list.

5. Increase Curb Appeal

You can increase curb appeal even more by tidying up the lawn and gardens. It has been suggested that houses with mature trees tend to increase a home’s value; houses with vines tend to decrease value.