Five inexpensive tips for increasing your home’s value

You might not be selling your home right away, however if you think selling may be a possibility in your near future it’s a good idea to start deciding now where best to spend your time and money.

For very little outlay of cash, these five ideas could help you maximise your home’s value.

Tip 1: Spend an hour with a professional

Invite a real estate agent or interior designer over to view your home and give you some advice on the current market trends and where there see the market headed. Many real estate agents will do this as a courtesy, but you will probably have to pay a consultation fee to a designer.

Check with several designers in your area and in an hour they can give you lots of ideas for needed improvements, some of these you may be able to do yourself.

Even small suggested improvements, such as paint colours, decluttering, re grouting tiles or furniture placement, can go a long way toward improving the look and feel of your home for very little output.

Tip 2: Inspect it

Home improvements may not always be purely cosmetic though, deteriorating roofs, water damage or outdated electrical systems – you can’t fix it if you don’t know it’s broken. Hiring an inspector to go over the areas of your home that you can’t see can be really useful to find these unsuspected issues.

They may discover hidden problems that could negatively impact your home’s value or potentially even be a safety hazard. Small problems (such as a hidden water leak) can become big, expensive problems quickly; the longer you put off repairs, the more expensive those repairs will be. Get in early, months before your ready to sell and get the home prepared to save a huge upfront cost when everything needs to be replaced at once.

Tip 3: Paint, paint, paint

One of the simplest, most cost-effective improvements of all is paint!

Freshly painted rooms look clean and updated – and that spells value. Keep in mind when selecting paint colours that neutrals appeal to the widest audience therefore making your home more desirable to a higher number of potential buyers. Don’t forget the rollers, painter’s tape, brushes and a spare pair of clothes. If your budget is higher you can get a professional in to take care of this for you.

Tip 4: Find inspiration

Instead of splashing out and hiring a designer, a great alternative is to search through magazines, books, website and TV shows. Even create a vision board with cut outs of ideas and colour schemes you are leaning towards, put this up for a reminder of what you want to achieve for your home.

Keep it simple – when you’re on a tight budget, manageable do-it-yourself projects are best.

Tip 5: Cut energy costs

The amount of money you spend each month on energy costs may seem like a fixed amount and not something that will be of interest to buyers however, many utility companies provide information for their customers on how to save energy in their homes which can be a really helpful, inexpensive tool to utilise. They can show you how to maximise the energy efficiency of your home.

An energy-efficient home will save you money now, which can be applied to other updates, and is a more valuable and marketable asset in the long run. 

Source: www.domain.com.au