One of the best ways to invest your money is to purchase a home. Most importantly, it gives you a place to live, which we all need. If you are staying in your house for at least five years, your house will increase in value. The longer you stay in the house, and the current market dictates how much it will grow in value, but you can expect to make at least a small amount of profit. There are simple home projects you can do that help to improve the condition of your house, which ultimately increases the value.
Make Smart Choices
When it comes to taking on simple home projects to improve the condition and value of your home, you want to make smart choices. If you keep the projects small and simple, you will see a return on your investment. When you start to take on larger and more expensive projects, you may not get a large return on your investment. When you are considering a large investment project, make sure you are doing it for the right reasons. It would be best if you did it to improve your home, not because you want to increase its value. The fact that the changes you make to your home will increase its value should be a bonus, but not the entire purpose. If you are making changes solely to increase the value, you should approach it differently. It would be best if you approached it so that you get the most bang for your buck and the maximum amount of your investment back. This article is going to focus on smaller projects that you can typically do yourself and do not require a considerable investment from you.
Kitchen Refresh
It is no secret that the kitchen is the hub of your home. It is where everyone gathers and what people look at first. If you wanted to sell your house, potential buyers would look at the kitchen. You can make a significant amount of your money back when you do any work in the kitchen. There are some simple home projects that you can do to improve your kitchen. A great way to refresh your kitchen is by working on your cabinets.
You can resurface your existing cabinets. If, overall, your cabinets are in good shape, but there are some areas that need work, or you want a new look, you can completely resurface your cabinet fronts. If you do not want to spend the time or energy resurfacing them, or you do not like the cabinets, and you are ready for something new, you can replace just the fronts. You can easily take off the front of your existing cabinets and replace them. Even the most inexperienced person can remove the cabinet fronts easily. If you are considering replacing your cabinets, you could consider a lighter option on top and a darker option on the bottom. Another option is to replace the hardware on all your cabinets and drawers. You will be surprised at how much of a difference changing out the existing hardware on your cabinets makes.
Fresh Paint
One of the most basic and simple home projects you can take on is repainting your walls. It is a relatively easy way to give new life to your boring walls. Your walls may be discolored due to time and wear. Adding color to your walls will give your house a completely new look. Doing something as simple as painting your walls can make your home look like a brand new home. This is a popular way to improve the condition of your home. You can handle painting your home on your own. Hiring a professional or being a professional is not necessary to handle a new paint job. There are some details of which you should be aware of painting your walls properly. You can refer to some instructions on the internet to get some step-by-step instructions on how to paint your walls properly.
Painting the walls in each room should only take a few hours to complete. Painting will make drastic changes to your home, and you immediately see the transformation. You could consider a matte finish to give your room a more sophisticated look. You can pick some contrasting colors to add depth and detail to the area.
Add Smart Technology
When potential home buyers are looking at your house, smart technology is going to be of interest to them. Adding smart appliances is one of those simple home projects that does not cost a lot, and you can do it by yourself. The great thing about smart technology is you do not have to buy everything at once. You can buy a couple of items at a time and continue to upgrade your system. Smart home technology is a great way to add value without blowing your budget. You do not need to go through an entire renovation to add these items.
Smart technology includes items like a home security system, keypad locks for the doors, security cameras, lighting, and thermostat, to name a few. Not only will these items increase the value of your home, but they also can help save you money in home costs. If you add a smart thermometer, it can shave about $150 off your cooling and heating costs.
Appliance Upgrade
One of the top ways to make your kitchen more appealing is to upgrade all of your kitchen appliances. You can invest in energy-efficient appliances, which helps you save money long term. Not only will your kitchen run smoother, but it will look much better. It will help you save money on your electric bills. You do not have to run out and replace all of your appliances immediately. When you need new ones, be sure to get energy-efficient options and consider stainless steel models. When you are considering your appliances, do not overlook HVAC maintenance.
Over time and with use, your heating and air conditioning system needs attention. You want to make sure your cooling and heating unit is serviced regularly. If you maintain it on a regular basis, have it cleaned, and replace the filters, it will run more efficiently. This helps your system last longer and burn less energy when they are running.
Decrease Water Usage
There are many ways you can decrease the amount of water your house uses. There are simple home projects that can help you reach that goal. The simplest way you can improve water conservation and the way your kitchen looks is to replace your kitchen faucet. If your kitchen faucet is old, it is possible that it has leaks or does not function efficiently anymore. An easy resolution is to replace your faucet. You can update your sink quickly just by replacing the faucet with a modern version.
Another upgrade that can help your water conservation is installing a water treatment system. This water system can include a water filtration system, which gives you a way to have clean water to drink. When you can access clean water this way, it reduces the number of water bottles you consume. This gives you and any future home buyers a convenient way to get pure and tasty water right at the sink. Another way to improve your water and electric bills is to replace your old dishwasher. When you install an energy-efficient dishwasher, not only will you get cleaner dishes, but also save approximately $30 per year and just about 500 gallons of water.
Improve Your Flooring
Flooring may not seem like one of those simple home projects, but it is easier than you think and can do a lot to improve the look of your home. It can increase the value of your home and help save money on your energy bill. A great way to add a cushion and create a warm floor is to add cork. It gives your house an earthy but stylish look. It is durable and eco-friendly. Cork is easy to install, and you do not need a professional to do the installation. You can find the flooring that snaps together without the mess of glue. You can put cork flooring over any existing floor that you have. This helps keep your feet warm, and you can avoid buying an area rug.
While you are on a flooring kick, you can consider upgrading the flooring in your mudroom or laundry room. Vinyl tile is easy to install, affordable, and easy to keep clean. It is a great way to re-vamp those smaller rooms with flooring that has many styles and patterns from which you can choose. If you have a concrete floor that you want to spruce up, you can put down epoxy flooring. It is a great way to give your room and clean look.
Exterior Renovations
When you are looking for simple home projects you can complete outside your house, there are so many options. One of the main areas you want to consider is your landscaping. This is the first thing that people see when they come to your house. No matter if it is potential buyers, your own guests, or even you, you want the first vision of your house to be pleasant and welcoming. It does not take a lot of landscaping project materials to improve the overall look of your house. You can add healthy flowers, plants, and trees to the outside of your house. You want to make sure your grass is always cut and looks well cared for. You want to remove anything that is dead or dying. Whatever you do have planted, you want to keep them neat and trimmed.
You want to make sure you keep your trees trimmed and away from your house. You are most likely going to need to hire a professional that handles tree services. If you do not know what you are doing, you can kill your trees. It should not be a large sum to have your trees trimmed to give your house a clean look. This also keeps the trees from damaging your house or roof.
Check the Roof
While you are outside your house, you want to make sure you take a good look at your roof. If you do not want to climb up on the roof, you should take a good look at the areas you can see. Another one of those great simple home projects is to clean your gutters. This task does require that you climb a ladder. If you are not comfortable climbing the ladder, you should hire a professional with the right equipment. You do want to make sure that your gutters are clean and do not have any debris in them. While you are cleaning out your yard and touching up your landscaping, you may have a lot of debris and trash to remove. You may want to consider truck rentals as an option to haul away all the junk. Your trash company might not take it, and it may be easier and more cost-effective to get a truck to haul it away.
Conclusion
You have read an entire list of simple home projects that you can take on mostly by yourself to help improve the look and value of your home. It is important that whatever project you decide to take on, you are doing it because you want to make that improvement to your house. Not everything you do will improve the value or improve the value enough that it pays for the upgrades. Be cautious about the amount of money you are spending, especially if it is not in your budget.