Home equity is an underrated wealth builder. Increasing your house’s perceived value with your hands reduces significant labor costs, which are usually higher when booking contractors on convenient dates. The projects you can legally do yourself typically involve minimal construction, which in turn entails fewer, cheaper supplies and no permit requirements. Together, these savings eliminate the need to borrow money, allowing you to avoid interest payments and appear more creditworthy by having less debt.
Some DIY projects promise better returns than others. The key is to tackle those that require the least skill and effort but yield the most impact. These three projects can make your home more desirable to most serious buyers.
1. Deep Cleaning
A spotless house looks hygienic and move-in ready. If every inch of your residence is immaculate, it signals to observers that it’s in good condition and they shouldn’t have to worry about unpleasant surprises.
Deep cleaning is a crucial component of home staging. This task makes it easy to declutter, depersonalize and organize your house. It can even reveal hidden damage that may become apparent during a thorough home inspection. Discovering your abode’s deepest, darkest secrets early gives you time to address them before listing your property for sale and welcoming guests during private tours and open houses.
An intensive cleaning process can be time-consuming, regardless of your house’s square footage. A solid strategy to complete the job efficiently is to prepare a separate checklist for each living space, including hallways and closets, to ensure a methodical approach. Start from the top and work your way down. Sweep or vacuum the floors last and begin from the farthest corners, cleaning surfaces only once.
2. Lawn Revamp
Most people judge houses by their exterior appearance, so focusing on enhancing your property’s curb appeal makes sense. The fastest way to make it pretty from the street is to keep its vegetation in check.
Between two similar houses, the one with a well-manicured lawn would almost always attract more pairs of eyeballs in a positive way and fetch a higher price on the market. Nothing screams neglect than an unkempt yard, creating an impression that the rest of the house is poorly maintained. This notion can embolden buyers to lowball you.
Mowing your lawn is relatively straightforward with the right equipment. The machine does most of the heavy lifting. To make the job easier, remove all obstacles and cut the grass when it’s dry. Start around the perimeter or the middle, and aim to overlap straight lines to cover every area. Rent a lawn mower if you don’t own one to save money.
3. Extra Seat Addition
Adequate seating makes living spaces more functional and inviting. It can turn a porch into a convenient resting spot, an overlooked side yard into a peaceful nook, the back door into a makeshift mudroom and a vacant bay window into a center for socialization.
Buy used furniture to cut costs rather than hauling freebies to your place. Think twice before bringing home unwanted upholstered dining chairs and sofas left on the street, as they may come with pesky bugs. Garage sales, consignment shops and online marketplaces are the safest avenues to find private sellers of used, clean furniture. Local churches even sell old pews to raise funds.
Choose wood furniture over any other kind. Its natural warmth is universally appealing and sets off focal points in the house. Disinfecting wood with a mixture of 1 cup of vinegar, 2 cups of water and 5 drops of dish soap effectively kills germs while preserving its beauty.
Raise Your Home’s Value With Sweat Equity
DIY projects are not a thankless job. Deep-cleaning your house, sprucing up your lawn and adding extra seating will delight most buyers and reward you with higher offers.
