With housing pricing surging in recent years, you may be thinking of ways to cash in on the recent boom. However, most home improvement projects can be prohibitively expensive and some interior designers question whether some upgrades are worth the money.
This brings up a key point for any project – especially those which are meant to boost the value of your home. Will the project give you a bang for the buck? If the answer is no, then you probably want to save your money and focus on improvements that can be done on any budget, such as the following list of upgrades to boost the value of your home.
- Usable Square Footage
Let’s face it, buyers will be keenly interested in the amount of usable square footage of your home. As such, the simplest and easiest projects are those which can add usable space without making massive investments.
This could include finishing your basement or attic as well as converting a three-season porch into a space that can be used year-round. Another option could be adding another bathroom – as you can never have too many bathrooms in your home.
- Keep it Clean
Based on a recent survey from HomeLight, decluttering and deep cleaning can add up to $4,000 to the value of your home. An added advantage of this is that reorganizing your home will not only increase its value, but it will also help you to make better use of your space.
One thing to keep in mind when decluttering is that you want to have a plan for organizing everything in your home. This includes deciding what you will keep and what you will do with the items you don’t want anymore. Options include having a tag sale or giving away unused items to goodwill.
- Make Your Home Energy Efficient
Winter is here for most parts of the country and this means spending thousands of dollars on keeping your home toasty during those cold nights. As such, you might want to think about simple options such as installing a smart thermostat, insulation, or even upgrading your windows.
Another thing to look at is your kitchen appliances, especially if they are getting on in years. While you might not have the budget to replace your appliances, you can look at getting them serviced as this will help them to run more efficiently.
One example of this would be to clean or replace the door gaskets on your refrigerator. Doing so would help the doors to get a better seal when closed and this will help to keep the cool air in.
- Clean Your Fireplace
When was the last time you cleaned your fireplace and flue? For many homeowners, this is a once in decade event – if they do it that often. However, making sure your fireplace is in good working order is an indication to potential buyers that you have taken care of your home.
According to fireplace store in Houston tx, Home and Patio, “taking care of your fireplace not only reduces the risk of an accident, but it is a nice touch to light a fire when having guests over for the holidays.”
- Fresh Paint
Another low-cost way to boost the value of your home is to paint it – inside and out. Doing so can help to breathe new life into your home by updated a dated exterior or interior room. If you are not sure where to start, then look around your home for that one room which is a little bit behind the times.
A plus to painting is that you probably can do it by yourself and this will help you to save money. Just make sure that if you take on a painting project that you know what you are doing and if there is a tricky section, then get the help you need to do it right the first time.
- Focus on Curb Appeal
This is especially true if you are planning to put your home on the market as real estate agents have found that curb appeal might play a bigger role in determining your home’s value than was previously believed.
Things like taking care of your lawn and garden, front steps, driveway, even the hardware on your front door can add $1,000 or more to the value of your home. If you are not sure where to start, then take a step back and look at your home as it is the first time you’re seeing it. Write down what you like and what you don’t like and then start to take steps to correct them.
As you can see there are several upgrades for every budget that will boost the value of your home.
