Upgrading your home doesn’t always mean investing in costly renovations.
There are plenty of ways for you to give your propertya great facelift on a budget.
Here are 4 ways to get max BANG for your bucks:
1. DIY paint job
Giving your home a new lick of paint is one of the cheapest upgrades you can make. It costs an average of $10–$30 per square metre (including the ceiling) to have interiors professionally painted in Australia, so you can save plenty by doing the work yourself. It’s also a chance to get the whole family involved in a fun project.
Fresh paint will not only make your house sparkle, but it could potentially fetch you a higher price when it comes time to sell.
If, because of budget or time constraints, you don’t want to paint the entire interior or exterior of your house, consider what will make the biggest impact, like painting the woodwork, skirting boards or maybe a single room. When it comes to certain paint jobs, less is sometimes more. If you are painting to sell, pick warmer neutral colours, like off white.
2. New flooring
Upgrading your flooring is a sure-fire way to give your home a new look. Hardwood remains a popular and reliable choice for many, but other options include polished concrete, cork, vinyl or, for the environmentally conscious, bamboo.
Existing hardwood floors can be re-sanded, a process that opens up the possibility for staining, painting or resealing.
If your home has carpet, a professional clean can make a vast difference, as can getting rid of the carpet altogether – especially if it’s dirty, old or frayed.
3. Replace small fittings
Another easy way to spruce up your home without spending too much is to update tired-looking bathroom and kitchen fittings. Think faucets, showerheads and oven tops, as well as other fixtures like doorknobs, lighting and banisters.
4. Redistribute light
Your home can be illuminated, quite literally, by allowing light to reach small or enclosed spaces, such as windowless bathrooms, corridors and those awkward sections of living rooms where natural light doesn’t hit.
You can achieve better light distribution by installing a solar tube or tubular skylight. Design standards for these products have improved significantly in recent years, with options available for big and small budgets. Installations can even go as low as $100 if you prefer the DIY option.
These are just a few of the cost effective ways you can update your home with small jobs that make a big difference.
If you need help with funding your renovations, Go Mortgage can help you figure out how to make it happen.