Updating your property can be in an exciting endeavor, but there are a few things that you need to think about before you get the ball rolling. Today we’re going to go over three considerations you need to make before you start any project in Wilmington NC, or anywhere for that matter.
Will The Market Accept The Updates
It would be awesome if any update you did to your property would add value to it but, unfortunately, life does not work that way. The first thing you need to do is look at the market trends in your area to see what updates people are making to properties that are similar to yours. The best way to accomplish this is to have your Wilmington NC realtor do a comparative market analysis (CMA), or contact a credible home buyer. Or adding a Jacuzzi may seem like a good idea, if other properties in your area are doing it that Jacuzzi is not gonna add any value to the property when you sell it.
Get The Permits You Need
This may seem like a no-brainer, but we’ve run into a ton of properties that made updates and additions without pulling the proper permits. Set a ton of liability on the buyer side, and can completely break a deal. Talk to your local permitting office when you’re looking to make an update to your property and make sure there are no permits that you need to be pulling in order to make those updates. Remodeling the bathroom is going to require permits for plumbing and possibly electrical, depending on what changes you are making. The last thing you need is for the government to come back by, inspect, and tell you that you need to redo your entire project because it wasn’t up to code.
Review Deed Restrictions And Restrictive Covenants
While that doesn’t necessarily apply to all neighborhoods, many of them have restrictive covenants that restrict certain activities and updates that property owners can make in that neighborhood. One I ran into recently required that any home put on the property be modular and it restricted owners from putting up a fence unless it’s approved. If you make changes that go against the restrictive covenants, you can be sued by your neighbors and have to pay for the cost of reversing any changes you’ve made. This can be a costly mistake and it’s always a good idea to stay in the good graces of your neighbors.
Make sure you’re keeping these three things in mind when you are planning to make any updates to your property. If you were to do nothing else, be sure that you get those permits that you need and follow any applicable laws while you’re doing the updates. It also helps, if you’re doing multiple updates, to have an inspector inspect the updates at each stage.