{"id":2508,"date":"2025-07-02T02:00:48","date_gmt":"2025-07-02T09:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/?p=2508"},"modified":"2025-12-19T06:34:38","modified_gmt":"2025-12-19T14:34:38","slug":"how-to-increase-home-value-for-appraisal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/how-to-increase-home-value-for-appraisal\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Increase Home Value for an Appraisal"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Whether you\u2019re thinking about <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/what-to-do-to-sell-your-house\/\">selling your home<\/a>, borrowing from your <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/what-is-home-equity\/\">home equity<\/a>, or <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/can-i-cancel-pmi-if-my-home-value-increases\/\">canceling private mortgage insurance (PMI)<\/a>, it\u2019s worth considering how to increase home value for an appraisal.<\/p>\n<p>While you can\u2019t control every aspect of how your home is valued, properly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/home-appraisal-checklist\/\">preparing for a home appraisal<\/a> can assist in making sure credit is given where due.<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re selling your home to a buyer prequalified for a home loan, it\u2019s important to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/how-much-is-a-house-appraisal\/\">prepare for the appraisal<\/a>. This step will be required before closing to determine the amount of money a lender is willing to provide.<\/p>\n<p>Home values across the nation increased by an average of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.spglobal.com\/spdji\/en\/documents\/indexnews\/announcements\/20250624-1478670\/1478670_cshomeprice-release-0624.pdf\">2.7% in April 2025<\/a> compared to the same period last year. This may encourage homeowners to put a portion of their equity gains toward a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/cost-of-gutting-a-home-and-remodeling\/\">remodeling project<\/a> in the near future, but they\u2019ll need an appraisal to obtain a home equity loan or take out a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/advisor\/home-equity\/what-is-a-home-equity-line-of-credit\/\">home equity line of credit<\/a> (HELOC).<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s take a closer look at what you can do to increase your home\u2019s appraised value, including light-lift projects as well as larger investments.<\/p>\n<p>\n\n\n\n\n<div class=\"geo-cta widget-cta widget-cta--content     widget-cta--dark widget-cta--dark-blue-gradient\">\n    <div class=\"widget-element--content\">\n        <div class=\"widget-element--content-header\">\n            <img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"homelight logo\" class=\"widget-element--logo\" src=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/wp-content\/themes\/ccprototypev5\/images\/logo-small-cta.png\" width=\"106\" height=\"25\" \/>\n        <\/div>\n        \n                <h3 class=\"cta-headline widget--bold\">Get a Free Home Value Estimate<\/h3>\n                        <p class=\"p1\">Enter a few details about your home, and we\u2019ll provide you with a preliminary estimate of value in less than two minutes. This won\u2019t replace a comparative market analysis (CMA) or home appraisal, but it can be a helpful starting point.<\/p>\n        \n                <div class=\"widget-element--buttons\">\n            <a data-type=\"In Content CTA\" href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/simple-home-value\/quiz?#\/qaas=0\/\" class=\"cta-click-track widget-element--button\">Request Estimate<\/a>\n        <\/div>\n                    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n <div id=\"section--1\" data-toc-header=\"Start with a free online home value estimate\" data-toc-type=\"head\"><\/div><\/p>\n<h2>Start with a free online home value estimate<\/h2>\n<p>An easy step to take before an official appraisal is to look up your home\u2019s estimated value using a free online home valuation tool like <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/home-value-estimator\">HomeLight\u2019s Home Value Estimator (HVE)<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Our HVE combs public data, including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/buyer-how-to-search-property-records\/\">tax records<\/a> and assessments, and pulls recent sales records for other properties in your neighborhood. Using a short questionnaire, we also factor in specifics about your home, such as the property type and described condition.<\/p>\n<p>Input your address, and we\u2019ll provide you with a preliminary home value estimate in under two minutes. Although it\u2019s not a substitute for an appraisal, an online home value estimator is a helpful starting point to orient yourself in the appraisal process.<\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>Option to increase value for appraisal<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Estimated value added*<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Install new garage door<\/td>\n<td>$8,751<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Paint home exterior<\/td>\n<td>$10,184<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Remodel kitchen<\/td>\n<td>$28,826<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Update kitchen (midrange)<\/td>\n<td>$26,406<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Update bathrooms (midrange)<\/td>\n<td>$18,613<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Make minor repairs as needed<\/td>\n<td>Reduces appraisal report value deductions<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><em>Sources: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.homelight.com\/blog\/real-estate-top-agent-insights-for-end-of-year-2024\/\">Top Agent Insights for End of Year 2024<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jlconline.com\/cost-vs-value\/2024\/\">2024 Cost vs. Value Report<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p>*The value of these improvements can depend on your individual property, location, and other factors. These estimates are not a guarantee of appraised value and have been collected for educational purposes only.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Advice on how to increase your home\u2019s value for an appraisal inside and out, whether you\u2019re selling or borrowing equity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":317,"featured_media":31091,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[320,242,322],"tags":[780,314,729],"class_list":["post-2508","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-add-value","category-home-appraisals","category-logistics","tag-how-to-increase-home-value","tag-how-to-increase-home-value-for-appraisal","tag-preparing-for-the-appraisal"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.0 (Yoast SEO v27.0) - 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