Quick Ways to Increase the Value of Your Home Like Joanna Gaines
If you’re hoping to sell your home, you’ve probably been binge-watching home improvement shows like Fixer-Upper. These shows make giving a home a facelift look like a quick weekend project.
While it may not always be as easy as it looks on TV, we’ve rounded up a few ideas to help you increase the value of your home without doing major home renovations. Roll up your sleeves and get ready to channel your inner Joanna Gaines.
Declutter
Any realtor, home staging expert or renovation show will tell you that decluttering your home is one of the most important things you can do to help it sell. You’ll instantly add value just by decluttering. Take everything that isn’t a necessity or a decor item off your counters, tables, dressers and other surfaces and see the full potential of your home.
Piles of mail, dirty laundry, toys, bathroom products and random trinkets should all be moved out of sight. Potential buyers may think your house is worth less just based on the mess.
Purge
In addition to decluttering, you should also purge items you no longer need. You can section off piles to donate or stuff to toss out. You want to make your home appear as big as possible. By clearing out unused items, the true storage capacity of your house is revealed.
Cleaning out closets and purging old or broken items can go a long way. Places like the master closet, mudroom, garage and any storage areas should be as empty and clean as possible when showing off your house to buyers.
Paint Your Walls White
When you think of Joanna Gaines, you probably think of white. White walls, white cabinets, white everywhere. She uses this color because white is neutral and bright. If you have a ton of mismatched bright and dark colors all over your home, the color scheme is less likely to appeal to buyers.
If a potential buyer sees a wide range of colors on the walls, they might also see dollar signs because of all the money they’ll have to spend repainting the place. By giving your house a white makeover, you give buyers one less reason to walk away.
Curb Appeal
Think of curb appeal as a first impression. Any home featured on Fixer-Upper gets a facelift in the front because it’s the first thing buyers see when they come to your home. Upgrade your curb appeal, and buyers will be more likely to both look at your house and make an offer.
It doesn’t have to cost a lot of money to enhance curb appeal. Start by freshening up the landscaping and getting rid of anything old or dead. Weather permitting, you can plant a few inexpensive flowers or shrubs to liven things up. Hang a cute wreath, flag or welcome sign, and you’re set.
Liven Up Your Entryway
You can learn a lot from the entryway of a home. If a person walks in and sees clutter, mail and old gym shoes, they’ll have difficulty seeing how they can make the home their own. They definitely won’t be thinking your home is worth top dollar.
To make a good first impression with your entryway, start by cleaning up and decluttering. Next, add a new rug and maybe a basket and some hooks if you don’t have a closet to store coats and other items. Add a cute mirror to finish rounding out the entryway.
Upgrade Your Lighting
If your home has a bunch of old, outdated light fixtures, upgrading your lighting can be an inexpensive way to increase the value of the home. It will give your home a bright new look, which is especially important for kitchen and dining areas.
Remove old lights and spring for neutral updated fixtures. Lights over an island in the kitchen are a good place to start since the room adds some of the most value to your home. Upgrade the fixtures over your dining room table and in master bath (if you have one) as well.
Update Your Fixtures
Lights aren’t the only fixtures you can update. If you don’t have the budget to do a major remodel, you can still upgrade faucets, cabinet pulls, doorknobs and other fixtures. These little details don’t require knocking down any walls, but they do add value to your home.
Potential buyers notice these little upgrades. Your kitchen, for example, could look more updated just by replacing the cabinet handles and pulls. A pretty new faucet can also add value to your kitchen.
Add Shiplap
You probably can’t say shiplap without thinking of Joanna Gaines. Shiplap is essentially large planks of wood affixed to a wall. Although you can leave it natural or paint it any color you can imagine, channeling your inner Fixer-Upper means you’ll probably want to paint it white.
Adding shiplap to even just a small wall or alcove can make a big impact. You’ll instantly add a focal point and some interest to your home. This adds visual value and makes it look more customized.
Accessorize
If you don’t have a ton of money to spend on expensive remodeling projects, save money by changing out inexpensive accessory items. Think of all the little details Joanna Gaines puts into a home. Think throw pillows, rugs, decor and bedding. A cute blanket or updated mirror can also give your home a trendy new vibe.
The nice thing is you can take these items with you when you move. Your home will look updated and expensive to buyers, but you take the benefits with you to your next house.
Update Your Window Treatments
Windows are one of the biggest selling features in a home. If you have outdated window treatments and blinds, give your windows a refresh by upgrading them to something new and stylish for added value.
Drapes are the most inexpensive window treatment to update. Blinds and shades may have to be customized, meaning they may cost more money to replace. You’ll likely get most of your money back on the investment, but if you’re worried, add some inexpensive drapes instead of custom blinds. Drapes can add a trendy look to your space for less.
Open Up Living Spaces
If you do have a small budget for a remodeling project, knocking out a wall is a good use for it. It’s especially important to open up the main living areas. Small, closed-off spaces may decrease the appeal of your home to some buyers.
A home with an open floor plan can be listed for more than another home with the same square footage on the same block. If a wall isn’t load-bearing, you can usually remove it without spending tons of money. If it is, you’ll have to pay additional money for support, but it’s money well spent in terms of adding value.
Give Your Bathroom a Refresh
Bathrooms and kitchens sell homes. Any money you can spend in the bathrooms of your home will likely give you a good return on your investment. You can work with a small budget and just refresh your vanity or take on a larger project like changing out the tile in the shower.
If you are tight on money, you can make smaller changes like painting vanity cabinets or staining them a new color. You can also change out tile, update rugs and shower curtains, or change the fixtures without going way over budget.
Stage Your Home
If you really want to imagine you’re selling a home like Joanna Gaines, staging is where it’s at. If you have outdated or mismatched furniture, or if you have unique uses for rooms in your house, staging — arranging furniture strategically — can add value to your home.
Some buyers may not be able to see past all your stuff. By staging the house, you are telling buyers what they can do with your space. You can paint a narrative of how they can use the house by placing furniture in such a way that it reveals the potential of each room..
Paint Cabinets
If you’re working with limited funds, gutting your kitchen isn’t in the cards. Instead of tearing out cabinets, consider painting them or staining them a new color instead. Just by doing this, you can add a ton of value — your kitchen can look completely new for under $1,000.
The Washington Post reported a statistic from HomeAdvisor that the average kitchen remodel costs around $22,632. The average cost for painting kitchen cabinets? Only about $1,000 if you use a professional. If you do it yourself, you’re only looking at $200 to $600 to give your cabinets a facelift.
Update Your Backsplash
The backsplash in a kitchen or bathroom can be easily overlooked, yet it can make a difference in a kitchen’s appearance. If you want to change the look of your bathroom or kitchen without a gut remodel, changing the backsplash can help it feel fresh again.
The pattern you choose contributes to the aesthetic of the entire kitchen. Depending on the material or tile you choose, you can usually add or change out backsplash for just a few hundred dollars and a single weekend — if you’re handy or hire a professional, at least.
Add a Barn Door
When it comes to farmhouse flair, Joanna Gaines is the queen. A barn door is a quick and inexpensive way to add a functional focal point to a room. If you have sliding or pocket doors in a room, replacing it with a barn door can add unique flavor.
Barn doors can also be used to separate or close off a space that was otherwise open. If you have a little alcove in your home, you can add a barn door and create an entirely new room to add more utility to your home. Buyers will notice this trendy touch.
Revamp the Fireplace
A fireplace almost always add value to a home. If it’s outdated, ugly, or broken, however, it can hurt your house’s value. If you have room in your budget, spend a little money to revamp your fireplace. This valuable asset in your home deserves a little love.
If you’ve watched a few episodes of Fixer-Upper, you’ve likely seen some of their fireplace transformations. Just adding new tile, stone or a fresh coat of paint can give your fireplace an entirely new and updated appearance. This is a low-cost project compared to other renovations as well.
Get Rid of Dead Plants
Nothing turns off buyers like dead plants. A front- or backyard full of dead plants, weeds and overgrown trees, makes it look like you don’t take pride in your home. By simply removing dead plants, trimming hedges and raking leaves, you’ll give your yard a cleaner appearance.
You can often replace dead landscaping without spending too much money, and it will give your outdoor space a new sense of life. Nice landscaping, or even just landscaping that isn’t dead, adds value to your home.
Create an Outdoor Living Area
Outdoor living spaces are huge money makers in homes. A little space outside can increase the value of even a tiny property. Whether you have a two-seat balcony or acres of property, don’t forget your outdoor spaces.
By adding a set of chairs or dining area outside, you increase the space that people can enjoy. An outdoor seating area can add value to your home even if you don’t have warm temperatures all year round. No matter what climate you live in, people enjoy outside spaces to entertain and hang out in.
Hide Your Toys
When you want to sell your home for top dollar, you need to make it look as polished and put together as possible. If you’re likely selling to another family with kids, there’s no need to hide all evidence that children live there. However, you do want to hide toys to avoid a cluttered feeling.
Whenever possible, store your kids’ toys in cute baskets or bins. This can help give your home a tidy appearance but still show it’s a family-friendly home. The cleaner your home is, the more it sells for.
Fix Stuff That Is Broken
If you’ve been staring at a cracked light switch for months, now is the time to fix it. Small broken fixtures, cracked tiles, or burned-out lights may give buyers the sense that your home isn’t well-maintained. These little details can stand out and cost you money at closing time.
To make sure you get the most value for your home, spend time and a little extra money to fix items that need repair. Come closing time, you’ll also be saving some hassle — these items will likely come up in the inspection, and you’ll have to pay for them anyway.
Put Out New Bath Towels
There’s something about new fluffy bath towels that can make a home so much more appealing. Old, smelly towels hanging on drying racks during a showing look sloppy and can detract from the quality of your bathroom. Tidy up and spend a little money on some new towels.
Think of your bathroom like a hotel and give your best towel roll a shot. Just roll some up on a shelf, the edge of a bathtub or in a shower rack. This helps create a clean and organized appearance for your bathroom and without costing much money.
Make an Accent Wall
An accent wall painted or textured differently to act as a design element. An accent wall can be a great way to highlight an architectural detail or feature.
You can paint a wall with a pop of color to make the rest of a room stand out. Alternatively, consider incorporating shiplap or using wallpaper, exposed bricks or tile. Doing so can add variety and aesthetic value to a room. Potential buyers will notice little details like this.
Add Window Boxes
Joanna Gaines can take an ugly facade and incorporate beautiful window boxes to up a home’s curb appeal. By adding window boxes to the front of your house, you too can instantly add a focal point and some greenery to your home.
Window boxes are like a frame for your windows in that they can accent and showcase them beautifully. Depending on the weather, you can incorporate seasonal plants, pumpkins, evergreens or flowers. Go for a wow factor with your greenery.
Bring in Some Plants
When it comes to greenery, don’t stop at outdoor spaces. Bring some life into your home with indoor plants. They can liven up dreary spaces, form connections to the outside world and make a home feel cared for.
You can easily use plants to spruce up (no pun intended) your fireplace, kitchen, entryway or windowspaces. You can also add fresh flowers to tables and bathrooms for an aromatic touch when potential buyers come to view your home. Even if you don’t have a green thumb, they don’t need to know that.
Update Your Bedroom
Even if you don’t have a master suite, you can make your master bedroom feel like a luxurious hotel spa. Potential buyers want to envision themselves in your home, so paint them a pretty picture by revamping your bedroom.
This update also doesn’t have to be expensive. Just by purchasing fresh bedding and new linens and towels, your room can feel updated and chic. Freshening up your bedding can make buyers feel like the house is more updated. Who doesn’t love crisp new sheets?
Create a Guest Bedroom
Whether you have a guest bedroom or not, you can create a space that can function as a guest area if need be. A lot of potential buyers look for extra space for family and friends. If you have an unused room, stage it as a guest room so people can see the potential.
If you don’t have an extra room, consider using part of a basement or other large area. Add a fold-out couch, daybed, or other option to show people the possibilities. The more potential you offer potential buyers, the more value you add to your home.
Don’t Forget the Laundry Room
The laundry room is an often-overlooked space. Laundry’s no fun, so it’s probably the last place you want to be. However, it does see a lot of action, and if you have one, it can be a valuable asset. Plus, those mystery powders Joanna Gaines always puts in jars just look adorable.
Instead of just using your laundry room as a catch-all space, declutter and clean it up before showings. Make sure you remove the jersey from last night’s soccer game as well. Add fresh flowers and buy inexpensive hampers and laundry baskets to breathe some life into this undervalued space.
Make the Personal Universal
We all have photos and little personal trinkets in our homes. While these mean a lot to you, a potential buyer may just see clutter. When it comes to collections, photos and other personal items, less is more.
Choose a few nice pieces to keep out on display and store the rest. You don’t want to remove everything and leave your house feeling cold, but you also want to declutter the space as much as possible. For family pictures, consider making a clean gallery with some updated frames. Remove a few from different areas to keep your home looking streamlined.
De-Pet Your Home
While pets are part of the family, not all potential buyers may share your affinity. When you’re placing a house on the market, stay on top of cleaning pet hair and pet odors to avoid scaring off the pet averse. Consider also giving Fido a cute new set of dog bowls or bed you can take with you when you move to entice other dog owners at the same time.
If you have outdoor space, make sure to clean up after your little pal. A yard is a great asset, especially pet owners, but you don’t want your guests stepping in your pet’s business. The same goes for litter boxes as well.
