Like anyone I grew up with dreams of coming home to a swanky New York Penthouse, or a luxury condo in Miami, never did I dream of the leaky pipes or patchy lawn that would become the grim reality of my average suburban home. But the dream is not dead! We’re all not as old as we begrudgingly tell ourselves, regardless where you are in life there’s always time to achieve those dreams of comfort and luxury. Firstly though you’re going to have to sell that old place and, more importantly, squeeze every dollar out of the property as humanly possible.
To achieve this you’re going to have to take a good hard look at your home. There’s always work to be done, but being over eager about home improvement can lead to drastically cutting into that all important bottom line, the final dollar amount that could be the difference between a nice house in the burbs or a studio apartment with the insomniac drummer living upstairs. The following are 5 easy tips to increase your homes value without breaking the bank:
Deep Clean
The first step anyone thinking about selling their home should take is to clean absolutely EVERYTHING. Rent a cheap carpet cleaner and scrub those walls because nothing will turn off a potential buyer like an old spaghetti sauce stain by the baseboard. This step is not only absolutely essential in building your homes value but also incredibly affordable, just be ready to get down and get dirty.
Create Space
As comfortable as that enormous couch in the middle of the living room is people don’t want to be told how a room should look. They want a blank canvas, a space that opens itself up to a wealth of possibilities. They should be filling in the blanks for themselves, you don’t need to do it for them. Open space also helps keep smaller rooms from looking cramped and crowded, a big detractor for many home buyers. So instead of spending money unnecessarily on new furniture for the perfectly staged home, consider instead taking some aspects out.
Landscape
For the love of god people TAKE CARE OF YOUR YARD! No matter how terrifically furnished the living room, or how well lit the kitchen is, a patchy lawn or bevy of untrimmed trees is an instant turn off. A yard is the home’s first impression so keep buyers from spotting issues before walking in the front door and water that lawn, plant some grass seeds, and trim those trees and hedges .
Paint
Painting can be one of the cheapest but also most effective steps in increasing your homes value. Everything should look as clean and new as possible and nothing accomplishes this like a fresh coat of paint. Pick soft, neutral colors. A strong dark color can turn off potential buyers by jumping out at them, you want them to make their own decisions and assumptions about how the room should look.
Replace Old Fixtures
I’m not suggesting you go out and purchase brand new platinum faucets and gold cabinet hardware, but finding affordable fixtures is much easier than you might think. Like most things nowadays online is the way to go. Sites like Faucet Direct make ordering new fixtures easy and are extremely affordable.