People more often than not tend to associate home improvements with large expenses. Of course, it goes without saying if you’re planning on entirely renovating key rooms like kitchens and bathrooms, or extending your home, then yes, it’s likely to cost you a fair amount. But what if you don’t have the money to spend? Selling a house is expensive enough as it is without having to make extra expenses, however it can be difficult to sell a house when you’ve failed to make the appropriate improvements. Luckily, there are some options available. If this sounds like the situation you’re in, then here are some of the low cost home improvements that you should consider making before you put your home on the market.
Work on Your Curb Appeal
First things first, it makes a lot of sense to work on your curb appeal. Curb appeal is literally defined as the way your house appears from a street view. Whether you’re going down the traditional route of using a local estate agent, or whether you’re hoping to find another way to sell – curb appeal is an absolute must for making your home more attractive for passers-by who of course, could be potential buyers.
Messy gardens and front yards are an absolute no-no if you’re wanting your home shifted off the market in a reasonable time frame, so simply tidying it up can make a big difference to this. If you don’t tidy up the front of your home, you can’t expect people to be booking in to see the rest of it too. First impressions really do count in the property business – so it’s advisable you make sure yours is a good one.
It can be as simple as trimming the lawn, painting the fence and renewing the front door. As well as this, make sure your gate is well oiled and in working order – there’s nothing less welcoming than trying to enter a property and having to literally fight your way in! Sometimes the easiest and least expensive improvements are by far the most effective.
Give Your Kitchen Some Attention
The kitchen is often considered to be the heart of the home – and it’s no wonder. If you’ve got a kitchen/dining room combo, it automatically becomes one of the most social rooms in the house. It’s the room where you cook meals for special occasions, and sustain the family on a daily basis.
That being said, it’s also one of the first rooms people look at when they look to buy a home. Kitchens can increase the value of a property by a surprising amount, so it’s definitely a good room to focus on when making your improvements.
It goes without saying that an entire kitchen renovation would be expensive – but there are small improvements you can make yourself that will make the room look brand new! Take your kitchen cabinets and cupboards for example – instead of replacing them, renew them! Upcycling is all the rage right now, so make the most of all of the advice and tutorials that are available online. It’s as easy as sanding and painting your cupboards and replacing the handles. You could even look at renewing the grouting between your tiles in order to give them a cleaner and more precise finish. All of these smaller things contribute to the overall effect of the kitchen – so take the time to look at the finer details. It’s worth it.
Treat the Bathroom
The bathroom… the room that everyone will surely use, but no one discusses – but sprucing it up could help you to sell up that bit quicker.
It’s all about cleaning in the bathroom. Make sure your whiteware is as white as it can be, and any surface mould is treated before you put your home on the market. A top tip is mixing salt and lemon juice, and using it to treat your grouting – a cheap and natural alternative to the nasty chemicals in store bought stuff!
Improve Your Lighting
Last of all, remember to check all of your lighting. It could be the difference between showing your home to its best, and having it hidden in the shadows.
A good place to check is making sure all of your bulbs work – after all, there’s little more irritating than a flickering overhead light! After that it’s all about making sure the lighting you have shows off the best parts of your home. Replacing and repositioning is a fine way of doing this.