Five minor renovations that won’t break your budget

When it comes time to sell your home, you will likely be put in a situation where home updates, repairs, and upgrades are recommended to boost your home's value for maximum returns. Now before tearing down a wall or spending your money on everything, it's important to understand not all home renovations are equal. Below you will find a list of the top five home renovations that have a significant impact on your selling potential while they won’t break your budget:

Improve Energy Efficiency

This one is often a surprise to people - when you think of home improvements, you generally see the physical changes necessary, noticeable only to the naked eye. The secret is that potential buyers are taking energy efficiency very seriously when deciding what to buy, and you should aim to upgrade your house to a new level of energy efficiency.

Selling a house in Canada means you live in a cold climate, and attic insulation saves a huge amount of money on the heat. Not only are attic insulations one of the simpler projects, but they also return all your invested costs! Other energy-efficiency upgrades that are effective include updating HVAC, water heaters, and windows. If you do these changes early in the process (enough to get utility bills), your real estate agent can show potential buyers the difference between the monthly costs before and after the upgrades!

Spruce up Your Curb Appeal

You can fix many things, but you can never fix a first impression. The moment a potential buyer lays eyes on your home, they're deciding whether or not they see themselves living in your house. These exterior improvements don't need to be radical; many subtle touches have a huge impact. Power washing the home exterior, repainting window frames and doors, and installing some spotlights can make a massive impact on the overall feel of the house and your selling potential as well as the price.

If your property has abundant green space, you should consider landscaping services that beautify the lawn with mulch, shrubs, and planting seasonal colorful plants. If you have the means for it, adding new stone veneers, entry doors, and garage doors almost always recoup their cost. When selling a house, remember that attention to detail makes all the difference.

Minor Kitchen Remodelling

Buyers often report that the kitchen is their favourite room - so it's easy to see how a gorgeous kitchen can entice even the most reserved buyers. In fact, if the kitchen is impressive enough, buyers may be more forgiving of other outdated spaces. Think of a buyer's perspective - the kitchen is where the whole family spends most of their time, so the overall atmosphere must be inviting. Open space kitchens are the best when selling a house because the idea of entertaining and hosting dinner parties entices a mind to desire to live that idea.

However, you don't need to spend a fortune on kitchen remodelling. A few simple changes will make all the difference. Re-paint your cabinets to a cozy colour such as chocolate brown or creamy white. Install new handles, such detail might not be visible to everyone, but buyers will love the look without knowing why. Install stainless steel appliances - they give off a fresh, modern and new look. Upgrade your countertops and put up a new backsplash; the difference is massive while the cost is minor!

Bathroom Remodelling

Next to the kitchen, buyers will zipline to bathrooms to develop their opinion of the home.

Regrout your tiles; it's a job that takes no more than a day and makes an incredible difference in your bathroom. Remove and replace a mouldy caulk around your shower, tub and toilet. If you can, replace the toilet for both a modern look and energy efficiency.

Upgrade your shower control - replace your shower valve or add a new shower head for a spa feeling. Uncover any windows for a flow of natural light and upgrade your lights, so when a buyer walks in the bathroom, they feel relaxed. An accent colour surrounded by neutrals makes a great addition when making minor changes to your bathroom, further increasing your chances of selling your house.

Add a Fresh Coat of Paint

A clean coat of paint is the facelift every seller can benefit from. New paint will lighten rooms and hide any defects. If your home has rooms with non-neutral paint colours, then painting over those spaces with neutral tones can have huge benefits. The buyer wants to enter the home and impose their personality within it, and areas with too much personality often work against your selling goal effectively.

The neutral fresh paint appeals to more people and thus increases your buyer numbers. A good paint job helps show buyers that you care about your property and that it will serve them well in the years to come. This can lead to a great ROI when you aim to achieve a sale. The overall clean and maintained character of neutral colours add to your property's value, and when selling your house, it's all about increasing value and potential.

AleksProperties.com is managed by Aleks Pavlicevic, an experienced Real Estate Sales Representative serving the GTA. With a passion for all facets of real estate, Aleks helps guide her clients to their next Real Estate endeavor with ease, expertise, and a personalized approach. Aleks' clients range from first time home buyers, families upgrading, retirees downsizing, to investors looking to grow their portfolio. 

-Author Bio-

 Romi plays nice with other kids at One Day Itinerary, works as a copywriter for the Great Content agency in Berlin, and writes original   content for businesses around the world.