Neighbor’s Home Upkeep Can and WILL Affect Your Home’s Value. What’s In It for You, Neighbor?

Recently, I’ve written a couple of articles to better assist Charlotte home buyers with regards to doing due diligence on neighborhoods which they are considering residing. There are neighbors that you just can’t do anything about–how will their very existence affect your home values? Then, there are neighbors that may just need a little help from you or your HOA to improve upon their neighborly status.

Have you thought about how YOUR neighbor’s home sale affects YOUR home value? We all worry about the home next door that may be being sold as a short sale or going into foreclosure but, did you ever consider that your home affects their sale? Further, their sale affects your home value.

When driving to a listing appointment, I pay special attention to the surrounding homes. I also give my sellers recommendations to help their neighbors improve upon the appearance of the neighborhood. Many sellers are not willing to approach their neighbors to make changes or improvements upon their own homes though. So, they just ‘hope’ that their prospective buyers won’t notice.

A “bad” or “messy” neighbor can ruin the investment you’ve been working so diligently to maintain, to pay off or to sell.

“It can make your home unmarketable,” Joe Magdziarz, president of the Appraisal Institute, recently quoted in a Business Insider article. Remember that ‘bad yards’ or poor exterior maintenance on homes within a community CAN affect the neighborhood values at a minimum of 10%; buyers perceive this as a sign of a declining neighborhood.

What can you, as a good neighbor, do to help your neighborhood sales and ULTIMATELY the value of your own home as well as all of the home values within your community?

Keep up the maintenance on the exterior by pressure washing when you notice discoloration.
While you have your pressure washer out (or have someone doing it for you), use it on your sidewalks and driveway. You won’t believe the difference it makes in the appearance of your home from the street.
Is there any rotten wood on your home’s exterior? Have rotten wood repaired or replaced, and repainted.
Do you find yourself becoming complacent about the kids’ toys in the driveway or front yard? You may not be hosting guests or preparing for prospective buyers to come through your own home but, your neighbors may be! Being a good neighbor is also beneficial to you by keeping everything in its place–less hassle for you and yours!
Keep your lawn mowed; tall grass makes prospective buyers think that the neighbors don’t care about the neighborhood and will generally move to another community where the neighbors DO care.
Keep your landscaping manicured. Fresh flowers and trimmed shrubs not only make your yard look better but, look inviting for prospective new residents.
We all carry our doggie bags while walking our 4-legged friends; if you see paper trash on the street or sidewalk or even in a neighbors yard, pick it up and dispose of it.
Keep your garage clean or keep the door closed! A messy garage leads prospective new residents to think that the homes in the community are too small or don’t have enough storage.

All of these are recent comments from buyers that I’ve had in my car! These buyers opted for communities that appeared to be in ‘better shape’ and that the neighbors seem to actually care about the community. While these buyers are buying in other communities, your neighbor is reducing the price of his/her home, further reducing the value of not only his/her but, YOURS!

Be a good neighbor and do what’s right for the values in your community–for everyone’s sake!