Is it worth renovating before listing your home?

Focused young woman renovating her home — 'Spending large amounts to turn the place into your dream home doesn't make it someone else's dream home'

(Image credit: Pancake Pictures / Getty Images)

When selling your house, making a good first impression is key. Getting your home in tip-top shape will not only help attract potential buyers, it may also allow you to secure a better purchase price and minimize the back and forth in negotiations.

But there is a fine line when it comes to shelling out for home fixes pre-listing and deciding what changes are worth it to make. "While renovating your property will inevitably sell your home faster and for more money," making improvements can also involve "having to fork over lots of cash" and "dealing with the headaches of those improvements," said Realtor.com. Plus, "spending large amounts to turn the place into your dream home doesn't make it someone else's dream home," said The Wall Street Journal.

Some improvements might be worth making before you put your house up for sale — but others you are probably fine to skip. Here is how to tell the difference.

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How can you decide if you should renovate before selling?

Before you start calling up contractors or whipping out the paint cans, "get an expert opinion — or better yet, several opinions — regarding how much updating and repair work would be required to boost the home's bottom line," said Realtor.com. Beyond that, consider if you actually have "the cash, the time and the patience to see the project through."

It is worth weighing the likely reality that you will not recoup all of the money you spend on the renovations in the sale. "Remodeling by JLC cites the national cost recovery for big-ticket projects like a major (midrange) kitchen remodel as only 49.5%, and the addition of a primary suite as 35.5%," said Investopedia. Meanwhile, "simply renovating a closet may only recoup 83% of your investment."

It is "important to consider market conditions as well," said Investopedia, since "whether you are in a buyers' or sellers' market may influence what you fix." For instance, "in a buyer's market, when sellers face heavy competition, repairs and renovations may tip the balance for a strong sale," whereas in a seller's market, it is "easier to say no to fixing up a home" and save on at least that cost of selling.

What renovations make the most impact when selling?

If you know you want to do something to increase your home's appeal to buyers, there are some renovations that are more worthwhile than others.

"A garage door replacement may be one of your best bets to recoup your costs from an easy home improvement," as "a practical, attractive replacement can typically earn a return," said Quicken Loans. Similarly, "replacing an entry door cost $2,355 on average and added $4,430 to resale value, recouping 188% of the cost," said the Journal. Other potentially high-impact updates include "new exterior siding" and "a fresh coat of paint," added Quicken Loans.

Beyond these more surface-level tweaks, "significant safety issues like mold or high levels of radon" should be "fixed by the seller," said Investopedia. After all, not many buyers are willing to take a chance on a buying fixer-upper.

While not exactly a renovation, per se, "one thing all realtors seem to agree on is deep cleaning and decluttering every room of your home," said Investopedia. "Decluttering the spaces, washing windows and treating lingering smells" will ultimately "help the house to show better," said the Journal.

What home renovations are sellers fine to skip?

"There is a high bar for doing costly work, like remodeling a kitchen or adding a new bathroom," said the Journal, especially given that "your tastes aren't guaranteed to appeal to potential buyers, meaning they won’t necessarily be willing to pay lots more." Adding an "upscale primary suite to a house" also falls into this category, as it "costs $339,513 on average, but only adds $81,042 to the resale value."

Although "it can be tempting to correct cosmetic issues," doing so might not be worth your time, "especially when the buyer may want to customize the home after it is purchased," said Investopedia. So you may want to reconsider replacing "outdated fixtures," redoing "cabinets and countertops," "adding trendy upgrades" or putting in "outdoor landscaping."

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Becca Stanek has worked as an editor and writer in the personal finance space since 2017. She previously served as a deputy editor and later a managing editor overseeing investing and savings content at LendingTree and as an editor at the financial startup SmartAsset, where she focused on retirement- and financial-adviser-related content. Before that, Becca was a staff writer at The Week, primarily contributing to Speed Reads.