The real estate market still isn’t what it was 10 years ago.
Image credit: Idea go | FreeDigitalPhotos.net
It remains flat, and many homeowners are waiting for it to recover before even thinking about selling. While you’re waiting for your home to increase in value again, there are some things you can do now that will enhance its value even more when the market bounces back.
You might want to look at some of these upgrades this summer.
Exterior painting
Most homes are aluminum sided or brick, so for an exterior paint job, that leaves soffit, fascia, trim and doors to paint. That’s not an unbearable burden, and it’s not an expensive task either, particularly if you do it yourself.
This can be the most inexpensive exterior remodeling job you do. Results are dramatic while investment is low. Curb appeal increases noticeably.
Landscaping
Also a curb appeal factor, but you can get some enjoyment from it, too. Since the front of your home is the first thing that people see, you’ll want landscaping along with fresh paint. You don’t have to plant every spring and summer. Evergreens are forever, and perennials come back year after year.
Matured trees enhance the aesthetics of the front of any home and yard. Some trees like the blue spruce grow faster than trees after planting. Walk from the curb to the front door. Look for what your yard might need. Whatever it is probably won’t be expensive.
Plantation shutters
These are interior shutters that are custom-fitted for your windows, most of which are slatted like blinds. They’re made of wood inside of a solid frame, and the slats are similar to jalousies that can be opened for light or closed for privacy like blinds.
Blinds aren’t made of wood though. Blinds are mass-produced, made of cheaper materials and don’t last forever like plantation shutters do. They can even be made from solid wooden panels that open out into the room or fold into the window recess. They provide enhanced security over slatted plantation shutters.
Clean and fresh plantation shutters are appreciated as a very attractive option.
Buff up the kitchen
You don’t have to spend $25,000 on your kitchen to make it look great. You can do it for a few hundred dollars. Some scrubbing, paint and new lighting fixtures are a great start to brighten up a kitchen.
A new faucet and handles spruce up an otherwise old kitchen sink. It doesn’t cost much money to replace that sink either. New cabinet hardware will brighten doors and drawers up.
For a little more money, you don’t have to replace the cabinets. You can reface your existing cabinets at a fraction of the price. Just a new coat of paint inside and outside of the cabinets along with the new hardware gives the fresh and clean kitchen look.
Clean up the bathrooms
Your home’s bathrooms can be freshened up at even less cost than your kitchen. New toilet seats are cheap and simple to install. So are towel racks. A new sink is relatively inexpensive and also easy to install.
New flooring can often be installed over the old flooring. Installation of a prefabricated tub and surround shower might require somebody that’s done it before, but they’re still a drastically less expensive alternative than the others.
Whether you’re planning on trying to sell your home this selling season or not, it’s always nicer to return to a home that looks clean and appealing from the curb to the kitchen. Upgrades take money and time, but all of them don’t have to be done at the same time.
You’re probably going to be there for a while anyway. You’ll be happy you did them.
Lizzie Weakley
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