If you're as addicted to Kirstie & Phil’s property programmes as I am, you’ll understand there is a lot more to simply putting your property up for sale. In this article, we’ll show you 5 easy steps you can take to improve your bathroom, if you’re looking to sell.
If programmes like Love It Or List It and Location, Location, Location have taught us anything, it’s that a nasty old bathroom with mould, mildew, stains and scratches can put potential buyers off. In fact, it could mean the difference between receiving a good offer and having to cut your asking price.
As we recently discovered, a new bathroom can add as much as £13,000 onto the value of your home.*
But don't worry, help is at hand! If you're looking to sell your home, simply follow these 5 steps to ensure your bathroom is appealing to buyers.
Step 1—Identify what action needs to be taken
First off, take a long hard objective look at your bathroom. If Phil or Kirstie aren’t available, get a friend or relative to pop round and give a no punches held view of your bathroom. Note down all the things that could potentially put a buyer off. This will give you a list of issues to address.
Step 2—New or redo?
Your list of issues may not actually be that long. It may be the case that your suite is absolutely fine and fit for purpose. If so, focus on the cosmetic issues such as a new paint job for your walls and ceiling, filling slight cracks and mending broken tiles. If your fixtures are grimy and covered in limescale, then a couple of new taps could make a real difference.
It could just be that your bathroom needs a blooming good spring clean and tidy. You'd be surprised at the transformation!
Replace that grimy old fixture, with a sparkling contemporary mixer tap like the Derwent
Step 3—Death to damp!
Damp or mildew can be really off-putting and will hint at underlying issues with ventilation. Make sure you deal with this immediately.
Regrouting or cleaning your tiles is actually pretty simple to do and there are plenty of how-to videos on our YouTube channel which will help get you started. You can also find plenty of tile accessories at VictoriaPlum.com.
You can remove damp from walls by using a stiff brush and a mix of bleach & water (1 part bleach to 3 parts water). Once removed repainting is recommended with a specific anti-damp paint. If you have damp in the first place, there could be an issue with ventilation. A new extractor fan will help address the problem.
Step 4—Bigger jobs
If your bathroom really has seen better days and needs a new everything, why not invest in a new suite? A quality toilet and basin suite can be purchased for little more than £100.
The difference a brand new set of ceramics can make shouldn't be underestimated. Even a sparkling new bath can be yours for around £100. So you really don't have to splash out, to make a massive impact.
Step 5 - Purely cosmetic
In the world of home buying and selling, beauty is only skin-deep. Yes, we realise your bathroom is a fully functioning part of your home, but that's not what potential buyers want to see. You need to sell an illusion. The illusion being that no one actually ever uses your toilet, bath or shower!
A pristine bathroom suite, like the Carter from Mode Bathrooms, will really help sell the illusion
So whilst you’re having viewings, be prepared to keep your bathroom (and your whole home) looking spotless. This means, toilet seats down, nice smells (not liberally-sprayed air freshener!), and ultra-clean baths, showers, basins. To help, why not invest in some easy clean coating kit?
This may also mean not using the bathroom as much as you usually do. Keep relaxing baths and a shower to a minimum.
If you have kids, stow all the bath toys away in a bag, so you can get them back out again. Keep toiletries to a bare minimum and out of site where possible. If your bathroom isn't the most modern, a nice set of coordinated towels will add a pop of colour. Move bath mats out. Introduce some greenery if possible and add nice little lifestyle touches (you can easily pick things like this up from pound stores or even charity shops).
So for very little outlay and just a smidgen of elbow grease, at least your bathroom will be attractive to potential buyers. What you do with the rest of your house is up to you!
*Based on the current average UK house price at the time of publication.
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