8 Smart House Upgrades that are Totally Worth the Money

Published on: 29 September 2018 Last Updated on: 12 September 2024

Looking to add a little resale value to your house? Choose wisely! Some house upgrades are worth it, but not all of them are a great investment. Smart house upgrade is essential for your lovely home.

Upgrade your home the right way. Increase the value of your home with smart upgrades that return your money and then some! Different ways Smart House Upgrades can make things easier for you.

8 Smart House Upgrades that Pay Off

Here are some of the best ways to upgrade your home and increase the resale value. These 8 ideas are totally worth the money!

1. Clean, Fresh Paint:

When a buyer walks in, they want to see bright, clean rooms. Your paint has a lot to do with how the sunlight affects a room. A fresh paint job can brighten any room in the house.

You don’t necessarily need to go neutral, but your choice in paint colors can affect your potential buyer’s feelings about your house. If you’re not selling just yet, the right colors can also help lighten your own mood.

Choose a palette that you like. But, don’t stop there. Make sure it compliments your home’s age, style, and architecture. Check out these ideas for a modern look!

2. Modernize the Kitchen:

Look at the age of your appliances and countertops. Are they in poor repair or stained? If so, you should consider replacing them.

Here’s a list of kitchen upgrades that you can benefit from.

Newer, energy efficient appliances
Countertops that suit the space
Refinish cabinets
Tile backsplash
Sink upgrades
Accent paint

Save some cash! Check out dent and scratch or discontinued appliances. Discontinued tile can be used to make an attractive backsplash, too. You can get huge savings from buying these options.

Look for ways to accent and offset countertops and cabinets in your kitchen for a more modern look. Check out paint pallets that give your kitchen a pop of color and make your cabinets stand out.

3. Programmable Thermostat:

This is such a simple upgrade, but it gives your house a modern feel. Programmable thermostats are affordable and easy to install. Many are also easy to manage from your phone!

An added bonus for installing a programmable thermostat is instant energy savings on your electric bill!

4. Upgrade Bathrooms:

Ugly bathrooms can send a potential buyer out the door. Check out your bathrooms for any of these problems and fix them!

Stained toilet bowls and seats
Leaky faucets
Outdated fixtures
Old tile and paint
Evidence of flooding
Damaged cabinetry

You can easily and affordably upgrade a bathroom by switching out any old fixtures and lighting. But, making sure the bathroom is clean and in good working order is a priority.

5. Landscaping:

Ever heard of curb appeal? This house upgrade is a must. The first look a buyer has as they walk to your front door can influence their opinion about the whole house!

Walk outside and check your landscaping, in the front and the back of your home. Consider these upgrades for landscaping your home.

In the front:

Clean, groomed lawn
Flowers and shrubs that are trimmed
Trees that cut back and look nice
A walkway that invites people to come in

In the back:

A patio or deck for entertaining
Trees and flowers for privacy and color
Fences in good repair
Clean, groomed lawn
A small gardening area

Your landscaping matters in the value of your property. It should be well maintained and easy to upkeep. Good landscaping invites you to come out and enjoy the outdoors!

6. Install Solar Panels:

Nothing is more attractive to a potential buyer than the idea of their new home saving them money. If you’ve already installed solar panels, then you’ve given them a step up in that direction.

Solar power is a responsible energy choice and it will save you money in the long run. That’s good for you while you live in your home. It’s great for potential buyers, too.

Your new buyer will instantly save on energy costs. You’ve already made the investment for them! This increases the value of your home and makes the buyer more willing to pay the price you are asking.

7. New Flooring:

You’ve got fresh paint and clean rooms, but your flooring is filthy and worn. That won’t work when you sell your home.

Take a look at high traffic areas, carpets, and tiles. Is anything stained, worn or broken? If so, you need to replace it.

Look for neutral carpet colors. You want any type of furniture or paint to work well with your choice. Avoid white or extremely pale colors because they are so hard to maintain.

If you are replacing only one room of carpet, try to make it closely match what is already in the house. Nothing looks worse than mismatched carpet.

Tile can be a really affordable upgrade. It should be easy to maintain, durable and neutral. Make sure stone tile doesn’t have a lot of nooks and crannies for dirt to hide.

You can even get a tile that looks like wood! Take a look at options in your hardware store.

Save yourself some cash! If you are replacing a whole house of carpet or tile, try to find discontinued items at your local hardware store. They may be cheaper but are still good quality and new.

Another way to save is to learn to install flooring yourself. There are plenty of books at your local library and YouTube videos to teach you how.

8. Basement Improvements:

Paying outright to have the basement turned into a high-class lounge might not pay off. However, putting in the time and effort to fix up and finish off your existing basement can have an amazing return on investment.

If your basement is unfinished, check it out for these problems.

Cracks in walls or floors
Wood damage to the supporting structure
Leaks and flooding damage
Excessive clutter

For already finished basements, here are some things to think about.

Patch damaged walls and repaint
Paint the ceiling bright white
Replace all light bulbs
Install more lighting to brighten the room
Remove excess, unused furniture
Go with a traditional theme

Fix any problems you find and clear out the clutter.

A man cave or game room may be exciting for you, but tame down your theme if it’s over the top. Your potential buyer wants to see open, clean space. Let them imagine how they might use it.

Upgrade Your Home, Today:

If you really want to increase the resale value of your home, pick one or more house upgrades on this list. The money you invest will be worth it.

Check out these interesting articles about home and garden topics!

Read Also:

Content Rally

Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.

View all posts

7 Tips to Increase The Value of Your Home

Increasing the value of your home is not as difficult as one might initially think. Increasing your home's value is a smart plan, especially if you plan to sell your home over the short term. In fact, according to real estate experts across the industry, you are two to three times more likely to sell your home if it possesses fresh renovations or improvements. 7 Tips to Increase The Value of Your Home: 1. Remodel Your Kitchen: Remodeling your kitchen is one of the more expensive home renovation tasks that you can do to substantially increase the value of your home. This renovation will likely include replacing or refinishing your kitchen cabinetry. You will also need to replace your kitchen countertops, as they are likely to be old and outdated. The flooring is likely going to need to be torn up and replaced as well, especially if even the slightest amount of water damage has occurred. Lastly, you will likely need to replace your appliances such as your stove, microwave, and refrigerator, especially if these items will be included in the sale of your home. A company like Gold Coast Veraniece Construction Corp can do this kitchen renovation job for you very quickly and affordable if you aren't into a DIY gig. 2. Get Your Attic Cleaned: Some people don't even look into their attic for decades. If you plan to increase the value of your home or sell it quickly, then you should get into the attic and thoroughly clean it. Replace any broken floorboards, completely clean out the dust and debris, throw away or sell stored away items that you are not using anymore, and just generally get the attic into a much more presentable state. You would be shocked at just how cluttered some people's attics can become after decades of letting space fall into neglect. 3. Get Rid of That Popcorn Ceiling Texture: If you haven't already heard, the popcorn ceiling texture is officially out of style. Thankfully, this is a job that is not particularly difficult to undertake yourself, however, it could take a bit of time and elbow grease to complete it. If you do the job yourself completely then you could end up saving yourself a fairly large amount of money ranging into the thousands of dollars. Another way to go about getting rid of the textured ceiling is to do a partial DIY renovation. In this case, you would remove the ceiling texture and then let a professional come in and refinish the ceiling. Lastly, you could also just opt to have a contracting company come in and do the entire job for you, however, this option will obviously cost you the most money. With regard to what you can do to replace a textured ceiling, there are really just two options that are currently in style at the moment. You could go the easiest route and paint over the texture free surface with a color that matches the walls, or possibly even using a color slightly offset from the wall color. The second option is that you can add panels to the ceiling, however, you should be aware that this is the more expensive of the two options. Regardless of what you choose in the end, getting rid of that textured popcorn ceiling is guaranteed to improve the value of your home. 4. Remodel Your Bathrooms: Outside of a full kitchen remodel, remodeling your bathrooms is one of the more expensive home renovation tasks. Thankfully, however, money and effort spent on doing this can substantially increase the value of your home. Bathroom renovation tasks will likely include replacing old toilets, professionally cleaning or replacing shower cabins or bathtubs, refinishing or replacing bathroom cabinetry, and putting a fresh coat of paint on the walls and ceiling. 5. Brighten up Your Interior: Studies have shown that brighter interior living space is much healthier and far better perceived than a dim or dark interior. A great way to increase your home's value is to replace old light fixtures, add in more energy-efficient bulbs, lighten up your curtains, and possibly even do some repainting that lightens up your living space. All of this is especially important if you are seeking to make your home more attractive to a prospective buyer. 6. Freshen up Your Landscaping: It doesn't take much of a break from yard work to cause your landscaping to fall a bit behind the curve. If you plan to sell your house, however, freshening up the landscaping is a great way to not only increase the value of your home but doing this will also more than likely help you sell your home more quickly. Let's face it, your front and back yards are the first thing a prospective home buyer will see when they enter the property, so it is definitely a first impression builder. You can quickly and affordably freshen up your landscaping by getting rid of the junk or needless yard debris, raking up leaves or trash, and trimming your shrubs, hedges, and trees. It is also a great idea to plant fresh shrubs or flowers, add bark dust or garden pebbles to plain dirt covered areas, and edge your grass line. All of these tasks can be done yourself and will definitely add more equity to your home's overall value. 7. Fix Any Plumbing Issues: Nearly every home out there is going to accumulate plumbing problems over time. These problems could be a leaking faucet, clogged drain, leaking sink pipe, malfunctioning toilet flush, or even a basement pipe leak. Whatever the problem is, you will need to fix it if you plan to sell your home. A house with perfectly functioning plumbing and zero problems is going to be extremely attractive to any prospective home buyer. Making these repairs will also dramatically increase the value of your home, whereas numerous plumbing problems could do the opposite and sink your home's value. Read Also: 5 Ways A Home Maintenance Plan Can Prevent Disaster How You Can Increase The Value Of Your Home With Stone Veneers

How Long Does Vinyl Flooring Last?

Maintaining a home is costly; you have to replace components now and then, and you also have to remodel some or all parts of the house to keep it sustainable and to prevent any more damage from happening. The floor is one of the things that you have to take care of, as it bears the brunt of heavy foot traffic every single day. In choosing a type of floor, you must consider if it is durable enough to withstand years of wear and tear without showing any signs that it is ready to be replaced. Luxury vinyl flooring is one such option that is slowly gaining ground in home flooring, because of several factors, such as durability, cost-efficiency, and look, among others. 1. Synthetic materials designed to last Synthetic or human-made materials are what comprise vinyl flooring. You can find chemicals such as ethylene and chlorine in vinyl flooring. Other materials such as fiberglass, felt and dye also make up its composition. Manufacturers create a formulation that ensures that vinyl flooring will last a decade or so under normal circumstances. 2. Making vinyl flooring last past its lifespan Generally, vinyl flooring has a lifespan of ten to twenty years. But if you take proper care of it and maintain it, you can make it last for more than twenty years. Kids and pets can scratch the surface of the floor, and heavy foot traffic contributes to the deterioration of the boards. But if you clean it frequently and remove stains and scratches, it can withstand years of the same use and abuse. 3. Choose a design that you can stand the look of for years to come Since you will be looking at your floor for decades, choose a design or look that is timeless and classic. You can never go wrong with a simple and classic look. Over the years it will still be good to look at. You don’t have to go crazy with a design that will lose its charm throughout the years and will make you regret choosing it. 4. The thicker, the better Vinyl flooring is available in different thicknesses. The general principle is that the thicker the boards, the longer it will last. The thicker variety can last well over twenty-five years, while the thinner one can only last up to a decade. Of course, the thicker one is costlier, but if you think of the hassle of replacing cheaper vinyl flooring after several years, the price that you pay for thicker vinyl will be worth every cent. Final Take Away Just like with any type of floor, proper care and maintenance will make it last longer. Make sure to dedicate time to keep it clean and free of dirt, dust, and debris that can scratch the surface. With a wide variety of flooring available on the market, it is very easy to get lost trying to determine which type best suits your home and your budget. Keep in mind that vinyl has excellent benefits and will not cost you as much. Read Also: List Of Most Durable Kitchen Flooring What You Must Know About Wood Flooring? Use Floor Polishing For Keeping Your Flooring Looking New

3 Home Upgrades to Make Your Property Unique

Your home is one of the most valuable things you’ll ever buy. Whether you plan to stay long-term or sell soon, making your property unique is worth considering by Home Upgrades. While upgrading the kitchen or bathroom adds value, it won't always attract attention. These basic changes may not transform your lifestyle. That’s why we’re exploring clever ways to make your home the talk of the town. Invest in Fun and Relaxation: Having the most modern kitchen or bathroom on the block is great, but it doesn’t make your home much different from any other on your street. On the other hand, investing in the things you enjoy the most could be a great way to make your home stand out, and improve your lifestyle at the same time. For instance, if you’re the kind of person who loves movies, why not turn a spare room or basement into an entertainment center for you and your friends. If you love taking trips to the spa with your loved ones, why not invest in having your own luxury spa experience at home, by installing your own sauna or hot tub. It might seem indulgent at first, but this is one of the best ways to ensure that you get the house of your dreams, and it could mean that you could sell your property for more too. Spend on Long-Term Convenience: Have you ever considered installing awe-inspiring residential elevators into your home? Many people assume that they should only begin thinking about a home elevator when they’re getting older or having trouble with their mobility. However, these investments can also make it much easier to get around the house and move things between floors too. You can carry huge amounts of shopping and laundry up and down stairs without having to worry about hurting your back or dropping things along the way. What’s more, as you do get a little older, you’ll find that having your own home elevator protects you from a range of accidents. All that, and you’ve got a fantastic way to make your home stand out. Experiment with Tech: These days, we're all adding more technology to our homes. Smart speakers and AI-enhanced devices are becoming more common. If you want to join the tech revolution, consider upgrads your home’s tech solutions. One option could be a security system with facial recognition or biometric scanning. Forget about keys that are easy to lose. Another option is smart lighting and entertainment systems controlled by your smartphone or voice. The number of smart home upgrades is increasing every day. Home Office Enhancements: Elevate Your Remote Work Experience With remote work becoming the norm, transforming your home office into a functional and appealing workspace is essential. While many focus on basic furniture, upgrading your home office can significantly boost productivity and comfort. Here’s how to make your home office more effective and enjoyable. Ergonomic Furniture: Comfort Meets Functionality The foundation of a great home office is ergonomic furniture. Start with a high-quality, adjustable office chair. Look for one with lumbar support to reduce back strain during long workdays. An ergonomic chair promotes good posture and helps avoid discomfort. Next, invest in a desk that suits your needs. Whether you prefer a standing desk or a traditional setup, ensure it’s the right height and provides ample space for your work essentials. Adjustable desks offer flexibility, allowing you to switch between sitting and standing throughout the day, which can improve your overall health and comfort. Soundproofing: Create a Quiet Work Environment Noise can be a significant distraction, especially if you live in a bustling household. Soundproofing your home office can enhance concentration and productivity. Start by adding acoustic panels to the walls. These panels absorb sound and reduce echoes, creating a quieter space. Consider using a white noise machine or noise-canceling headphones to further block out background noise. Heavy curtains or blinds can also help minimize outside disturbances. If possible, choose a room away from high-traffic areas to create a more serene work environment. Tech Integrations: Upgrade Your Workspace Modern technology can greatly enhance your home office experience. Begin with a high-quality monitor or dual monitors to expand your workspace and reduce eye strain. Ergonomic monitor stands or adjustable arms can help you position your screens at the right height and angle. This is also known to increase the overall productivity of your day. Upgrade your keyboard and mouse to ergonomic models designed to reduce strain. Consider investing in a docking station to keep your workspace tidy and streamline connections between your laptop and peripherals. Smart home technology can also be a game-changer. Use voice-controlled assistants to manage your schedule, set reminders, or control smart lighting. Adjustable lighting is crucial; choose a desk lamp with customizable brightness to reduce eye strain and enhance focus. Personal Touches: Make It Your Own Finally, personalize your home office to make it a space you enjoy spending time in. Add some artwork, plants, or personal items that inspire you. A well-decorated workspace not only boosts your mood but also makes working from home more enjoyable. In conclusion, upgrading your home office involves more than just buying new furniture. By investing in ergonomic pieces, soundproofing, and advanced tech, you can create a workspace that enhances both productivity and comfort. Read Also: Home Remodeling Tips 3 Trendy Lighting Ideas for Your Kitchen Island Small Kitchen Storage Ideas Top 5 Trending Home Renovation Ideas For Australian Families

8 Smart House Upgrades that are Totally Worth the Money

8 Smart House Upgrades that Pay Off

1. Clean, Fresh Paint:

2. Modernize the Kitchen:

3. Programmable Thermostat:

4. Upgrade Bathrooms:

5. Landscaping:

6. Install Solar Panels:

7. New Flooring:

8. Basement Improvements:

Upgrade Your Home, Today:

Natural Latex Mattress Vs Foam Mattress

How Does Structural Fire Protection Work?

Content Rally

Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.

Leave a Reply

Popular

Technologies For Creating A Startup Idea

How to Download Facebook Videos on Android?

7 Rules of Effective Ecommerce Web Design

The 10 WordPress Plugins Every Sucessful Blogger Uses

Follow Us

Recent

The Impact of India VIX on Options Pricing

Best Practices In Banking Mobile App Development

5 Money-Saving Tips for Houston Drivers

Enterprise SEO Services: How Large Brands Dominate Search Results

Related

7 Tips to Increase The Value of Your Home

How Long Does Vinyl Flooring Last?

3 Home Upgrades to Make Your Property Unique

8 Smart House Upgrades that are Totally Worth the Money

8 Smart House Upgrades that Pay Off

1. Clean, Fresh Paint:

2. Modernize the Kitchen:

3. Programmable Thermostat:

4. Upgrade Bathrooms:

5. Landscaping:

6. Install Solar Panels:

7. New Flooring:

8. Basement Improvements:

Upgrade Your Home, Today:

Share this Article

Natural Latex Mattress Vs Foam Mattress

How Does Structural Fire Protection Work?

Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.

Leave a Reply

Popular

Follow Us

Recent

Related