When you’re buying a home, it’s often one of the most exciting times of your life. Its value, however, may be forgotten in the shuffle.

If you don’t put in the work to maintain your home, once it comes time to sell, you may find the value has severely dropped. It’s important to know what could be causing this reduction and how to avoid it. Here’s a list of 10 factors to keep an eye out for.

Interior Factors

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Certain things you do in and around your home can alter its price. However, there are ways to change these things and return your house to its original value.

1. Cracked or Peeling Paint

Your home’s paint is the first impression to potential buyers and real estate appraisers. If they arrive for their walkthrough and see a poor paint job, it will negatively affect the price of your home. Consider a fresh coat of paint before your house is appraised!

Certain colors can also affect how a buyer or appraiser views your home. On the interior, Zillow research found that bright colors captured attention but did not lead to purchases. However, don’t think that your paint choices need to be boring. Light neutrals and pastels can create a feeling of hominess that buyers will love.

2. An Unkempt Yard

Rough-looking yards will also lower your home’s price. If your yard is full of holes, weeds, or items that need to be disposed of, people’s interest in buying your home will be significantly reduced.

Having good landscaping can increase your property value by up to 12.7%. Consider giving your yard some love before you start looking to sell!

3. Lack of Maintenance

Both inside and outside, not keeping your home in shape can decrease property value. These things can look like:

• Leaks and water stains

• Driveway cracks

• Poor shingling

• Unfixed damage

Try to fix these problems as soon as you’re able. Once your home is looking nice, the value could possibly go back up.

4. Too Much Personal Style

Though you may want to include a lot of personalization in your home, doing so to an extreme extent can affect your home’s value. When potential buyers do walkthroughs, they are often taking note of possible things they will want to change.

If you’ve added a lot of striking wallpaper or filled rooms with vibrant colors, buyers might not want to spend the money to adjust your home to their tastes. Consider designing your home with removable decorations to keep up the price.

5. Bad Carpeting

Old and worn-out carpets can lower your house’s property value. If your carpets are wall-to-wall, consider replacing them if they are in need of it before you sell. Any damage, stains, or potential smells will deter buyers from making a decent offer or any offer at all.

Carpeting is fine in a home if it’s in good condition. Take a critical look at your carpet, as if you were looking at it for the first time, and judge from there if it needs a touch-up or a complete changeout.

Exterior Factors

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Some factors you will not be able to change when appraising your home. There are plenty of things that will be out of your control, but these don’t need to deter you from the selling process!

1. The Environment

If you live in an area with repeated instances of adverse weather conditions, it will lower the value of your home. Living in a flood zone could reduce the price by over 10%. How your home handles such disasters can help buyers feel more confident when purchasing.

2. Bad Neighbors

You may have done everything in your power to fix up your house inside and out, but if there’s still trash in your neighbor’s yard, it will affect the property value. Other problems could be:

• Frequent noise complaints

• Neglect to their home

• Criminal activity

• Odd smells

Letting your neighbors know that you’re selling might encourage them to spruce up their own homes a bit! Think about letting them know when showings and appraisals are happening, as well, to ensure the neighborhood is doing its best when the time comes.

3. Recent Foreclosures

Appraisers will look at how much surrounding homes have sold for recently when appraising your property. If a neighbor has recently foreclosed on their home, this can have a negative effect on your home’s value when the house sells at auction.

Additionally, if the house doesn’t sell, your curb appeal will drop as the foreclosed home starts to deteriorate. Calling your local code-enforcement department can help, as they can enforce fines on the lenders who own the property and let it decay.

4. The Economy

Quite simply, if the economy is suffering, it will be harder to sell your home. Property values will drop as appraisers and realtors do their best to sell houses. You will often find it necessary to accept a lower offer during a recession. If you have the ability, wait until the economy starts to strengthen again before you put your house on the market.

5. Proximity to Undesirable Locations

If you’re very close to a railroad or an unsafe area of town, this will also affect your home’s price. However, this could be subjective to whomever you’re selling to. Buyers might still be willing to buy your home if it has other points of interest. It’s worth a shot to put your house on the market and see who’s interested!

Try Making Changes to Increase Property Value

Once you know what’s decreasing your property’s value, or likely to, you can start to renovate your home to influence its price. Better yet, think about these factors before your house’s value starts to fall. Proper maintenance, styling, and location can all have positive effects!