Should I Decorate My House To Sell It?

If you’re preparing to put your home on the market, you’ve probably heard the traditional advice: “you need to fix this place up to get the best price.”

We’re often told that fresh paint, a new kitchen, or a bathroom makeover will help us achieve a higher sale price. But what if spending thousands on decorating and renovations actually leaves you with little – or no – extra money in your pocket?

For homeowners facing relocation, financial pressures, probate, divorce, or simply wanting a quick and straightforward sale, extensive decorating can become an expensive trap.

Before you pick up the paintbrush or start collecting quotes from contractors, it’s worth asking a simple question: Will the money and time I invest actually pay me back?

Many home improvements can add value, but often not as much as people expect.

According to data from Schofields Insurance, based on a typical £250,000 three-bedroom property:

• Loft conversion: Costs around £35,000, adds approximately 16% value = potential profit of £5,000
• Kitchen renovation: Costs around £15,000, adds approximately 10% value = potential profit of £10,000
• Bathroom remodel: Costs around £6,000, adds approximately 4% value = potential profit of £4,000
• Landscaping: Costs around £5,000, adds approximately 3% value = potential profit of £2,500
• Whole-house decorating (painting and flooring): Costs around £8,000, adds approximately 3% value = potential loss of £500

At first glance, some of those figures sound encouraging. However, there’s an important catch – these estimates are based on perfect, textbook scenarios.

In reality, a £15,000 kitchen renovation today can easily spiral to £20,000 or £25,000 once you factor in rising labour costs, plastering, electrics, and plumbing, leaving you potentially breaking even on your outlay. And that’s before the moving charges of estate agent fees, legal costs, survey issues, and the inevitable price negotiations from buyers are considered.

As Phil Schofield of Schofields Insurance explains:

“Increased value doesn’t always increase your return, and even a positive ROI doesn’t always equal profit. Properties rarely sell at their market value, and there are several costs associated with selling your property.”

And money isn’t the only cost. Even relatively modest decorating projects can take weeks. Larger renovations can take months. During that time, you’re still paying:

• Mortgage repayments
• Council tax
• Utilities
• Insurance

If you have inherited a vacant property, or you’re paying for another home elsewhere, those holding costs can quickly eat into any potential gain from improvements.

Then there are the inevitable delays:

• Contractors running behind schedule
• Materials arriving late
• Unexpected structural issues
• Additional work discovered once walls or floors are removed

As Checkatrade notes, the average renovation cost for a three-bedroom house can range from £43,530 to £110,350, and homeowners should budget an additional 10-15% contingency for unforeseen costs.

Another common mistake is assuming buyers will value your improvements in the same way you do.

Jones Robinson Estate Agents puts it perfectly: “Value is driven by what buyers want, not how much you’ve spent.”

A bespoke £20,000 kitchen may look stunning to you, but a buyer might dislike the colour scheme, layout, worktops, or style. In some cases, highly personalised renovations can actually reduce buyer appeal – and the value of any offers – because people immediately start budgeting for changes they’d want to make themselves.

Today’s trendy dark green kitchen or grey flooring could become tomorrow’s renovation project. Buying a property ‘as is’ allows the next owner to choose their own style.

Many buyers actually prefer unmodernised properties. It gives them a blank canvas to style as they wish and, by keeping it untouched, you could appeal to professional buyers such as property investors, developers, and fast-sale companies that already have their own:

• Trusted contractors
• Trade discounts
• Established renovation teams
• Experience managing refurbishments

These types of buyers aren’t expecting perfection. In fact, an untouched property often allows them to implement improvements more efficiently than a homeowner trying to maximise value through piecemeal upgrades.

For sellers, this can provide something that’s difficult to put a price on – the emotional relief of skipping the hunt for reliable contractors, not having to live in a building site, and no stressful delays or surprise costs.

We’re not saying you should ignore your property completely. Simple maintenance and low-cost improvements can give your home a much-needed boost in curb appeal and make a great first impression at viewings, without significant investment.

Do:

• Deep clean
• Declutter rooms
• Tidy the garden
• Replace broken light bulbs
• Fix dripping taps
• Bleed radiators
• Repair obvious minor defects

But, if your primary goal is selling quickly and efficiently, think carefully before investing in major renovations.

Don’t:

• Install a new kitchen
• Replace a full bathroom
• Repaint the entire house
• Lay new flooring throughout
• Carry out a full rewire
• Make significant structural alterations
• Add extensions

These projects carry the highest risk of overspending and rarely guarantee a proportionate increase in your final sale proceeds.

Think doing it yourself will save your profit? DIY work can be particularly risky.

Jones Robinson Estate Agents warn: “Low-quality workmanship can raise red flags for buyers and lead to further costs down the line. Even small mistakes in tiling, plumbing, or joinery can give the impression that bigger problems might be hidden.”

Similarly, Clifton Private Finance advises against cosmetic fixes that disguise underlying issues, noting that: “[they] will be discovered in valuations and surveys and will erode trust from your buyer”.

When a house sale falls through at the last minute, it costs the seller in wasted time and money.

Before you spend a single penny on contractors or paint, ask yourself: Is the stress and financial risk really worth it?

Sometimes, the best move isn’t renovating at all.

Companies such as Sell Up offer an alternative route by purchasing properties directly, regardless of condition.

For many homeowners, especially those need to sell a house fast, selling this way can be the more financially sensible option. Some of the key cash house buyer benefits are that you can avoid lengthy chains, house sales falling through, and the disruption that often comes with preparing a property for the open market.

Yes, you will receive a more realistic price that reflects the property’s condition and the speed of the sale. However, weighing up a fast-sale cash offer with what you think your asking price on the open market would be, isn’t always a reliable comparison.

According to a recent survey by Zoopla, 44% of UK homes listed for sale in the past 3 years failed to sell. Among those whose homes remained unsold, more than a third admitted their initial asking price was too ambitious, despite believing it to be fair at the time.

Their data also shows the average home sold for 3.5% below the asking price in the first 3 months of 2026, equal to £18,000 below the original advertised figure.

When you also factor in that you’ll be saving thousands on the cost of home improvements before selling, and the expenses associated with a traditional sale, the difference in your fast-sale offer can be surprisingly small.

Unlike with a traditional property sale, companies such as Sell Up don’t charge sellers any fees for purchasing their property. Sellers also avoid estate agent commissions, marketing expenses, and legal fees. This means the offer you receive is not subsequently eroded by a long list of selling costs, allowing you to keep more of the proceeds from the sale.

UK estate agent fees typically range from around 1% to 1.5% of the final sale price plus VAT, while solicitor fees commonly add another £600-£950 or more. On an average property, this can easily amount to £4,000-£6,000 in selling costs alone. When these costs are removed entirely, alongside the expense of renovating, the financial gap between a traditional sale and a professional cash purchase can be far narrower than many homeowners initially expect.

For homeowners dealing with:

• Financial pressures
• Inherited property
• Relationship breakdown
• Relocation
• Retirement
• Problem tenants
• Major life changes

a guaranteed cash sale in as little as seven days can provide something more valuable than squeezing every last pound from the property: certainty and peace of mind. Selling your house ‘as is’ can give you the funds and the freedom to move on more quickly.

If you’re considering selling and want to understand what your property is worth exactly as it stands today, don’t pick up the paintbrush yet – get a free, no-obligation cash offer before committing to costly improvements.