Every homeowner wants to get the most out of their investment. Keep these tips in mind to help boost the value of your home.
Key takeaways
- Upgrade your kitchen and bathrooms with energy-efficient appliances, lighting fixtures, and floor tiles.
- Opt for lighter, neutral colors when painting your walls to make a room look larger.
- Keep up with regular maintenance, hire an inspector, and invest in low maintenance landscaping to prevent major damage.
1. Update your kitchen and bathrooms
Most homeowners know that the kitchen and bathrooms are the most important areas to renovate when it comes to raising your home’s value. If you’re not ready for a full remodel, consider making simpler changes. For example, upgrade your kitchen appliances to newer, more energy-efficient models. Also, replacing lighting fixtures and floor tiles can easily transform your bathroom.
2. Opt for lighter, neutral colors
As opposed to bold choices like red or purple, neutral colors are generally more marketable. If you’re painting your walls, lighter colors are better for making a room look larger than it is. You may choose to save money by painting the walls yourself, but don’t expect it to be easy to do on your own. Properly painting a wall takes patience and attention to detail.
3. Cut down on energy costs
Energy-efficient upgrades are great for saving you money while also increasing the value of your home. You can request an energy audit to learn about the best ways to make your home more energy-efficient. Some examples of energy-saving updates include: using a programmable “smart” thermostat, sealing up leaky doors and windows, installing ceiling fans, and upgrading your lighting to LED bulbs.
4. Invest in low maintenance landscaping
If you live in a dry climate, consider your xeriscaping options such as hardy, native plants that don’t need a lot of water. If you absolutely love your flowers, shrubs, and grass, you should invest in a sprinkler system with a programmable clock. These irrigation systems can keep your plants from either drying out or getting over-saturated.
You may choose to invest in landscape renovations that add enormous value to your home. New features like mulch beds with plantings, walkways, paver patios, and retaining walls can transform your yard into a more beautiful and functional outdoor space.
5. Replace old carpets and maintain your hardwood floors
Carpets generally need to be replaced within 5-15 years after installation. If your carpets look worn down despite regular vacuuming and steaming, then they probably need to be replaced. Hardwood floors, on the other hand, last much longer than carpet. However, you need to maintain your hardwood floors by using non-abrasive cleaning solutions and getting them rebuffed every couple of years.
6. Hire an inspector
It’s hard to notice every last issue in your home that may cause serious problems down the road. The first step to preventing damage to your home is knowing if something is broken. Hire professionals to inspect for problems such as deterioration to your roof, termites or pests, outdated electrical systems, or hidden water leaks. A professional may notice significant problems that you simply cannot see. The longer you put off fixing these issues, the more expensive it’ll be to repair them later on.
7. Keep up with regular maintenance and repairs
Regular maintenance is absolutely essential for preventing major damage to your home. If you don’t keep an eye on small items like fixing leaky faucets or caulking your bathtub, these minor issues can lead to big problems later on. After hiring a professional to inspect your home, you’ll have more insight on how to keep up with regular maintenance.
A great tip is to have a maintenance checklist handy to keep you on track throughout the years. Also, you should put together a list of trustworthy maintenance and repair companies BEFORE you need them. Having these companies plugged into your phone’s contacts means not needing to scramble to find help when an issue does come up.
