If you are gearing up to sell your San Francisco home you have probably decluttered, deep cleaned, repainted the walls, and changed up a few fixtures as part of your attempt to market your home and increase your home’s sale price. But while you are updating indoors you may be missing a very important item that will improve your appraisal and attract more buyers: your gutters. Your gutters are an overlooked and underappreciated part of your house, but they are responsible for reducing soil erosion, preventing ice build up, and stopping water damage.
A working gutter system is considered an integral part of the upkeep of your home. If your gutters are clearly uncared for your appraisal will reflect this in a lower value.
While a gutter professional should do any repairs or installation you can assess the state of your gutters by looking in the gutters, examining all gutter junctions, and watching the flow of water through the gutter and the downspout. If your gutters need work or a complete overhaul, contact a top San Francisco, California real estate agent about the styles of gutters that are popular in your area as well as what type of gutter will best suit your home.
Match your gutters to your home
Gutters are meant to blend with the exterior of your home rather than stand out. Match your gutters to your home by choosing a style and color that matches the outdoor trim on your house. The standard size for gutters is six inches, but if you have a larger home you can find them in eight inch.
Gutters come in a couple different shapes.
- Half-round: semicircular trough with a curled front lip – fits traditional homes
- K-Style: most common gutter shape, flat bottom and profiled face that looks like crown molding
Gutter materials
Vinyl: Cost $1 to $2 per foot
- Pros:
- the least expensive
- easiest to instal
- Won’t rust or rot
- Cons:
- Becomes brittle in extreme cold and intense sun
- Can bend or bow under heavy rain, window, and snow
Aluminum: Cost $1.50 to $8 per foot
- Pros:
- Won’t rust
- Comes in many colors
- Seamless
- Lightweight
- Con:
- Susceptible to denting and bending
Steel: Cost $2 to $8 per foot for galvanized, $4.50 to $12 for stainless
- Pros:
- Seamless
- Stainless steel option never rusts
- Can survive heavier rain, wind, and snow than others
- Cons:
- Difficult installation
- Regular painting required
Zinc: Cost $9 to $10 per foot
- Pros:
- Strong
- Rustproof
- Last 30 to 50 years
- Cons:
- Vulnerable to acidic runoff from cedar-shingled roofs
- Difficult installation
Copper: Cost $11 to $18 per foot
- Pros:
- Never rusts
- Never needs painting
- Last 100 years in any climate
- Seamless or sectioned
- Cons:
- Expensive
Now more than ever, due to the rise in inflation that has created new attention to making a home purchase a solid investment that will continue to appreciate in value, buyers are concerned about energy efficiency, foundation issues, and overall home strength. Upgrade or replace your gutters to protect your home’s foundation and make your home appealing to potential buyers.
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