DIY Home Improvement: 15 Tips for Increasing Your Home's Value

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Looking for that maximum value for your home improvement dollars, things you can do to add to your home's value without breaking your budget? We have 15 ideas any DIY home improvement enthusiast can tackle easily.

1. Paint. One of the easiest--and cheapest--ways to add value to a room is to add a fresh coat of paint. For under $100, any room can look fresh and new. Tweet
2. Landscape. Bedding plants, too, are an inexpensive way to spruce up your home and add curb appeal.  Not a gardener? Stick with colorful annuals, like petunias and geraniums, and replace them each spring after the last frost. Tweet
3. Change your cabinet hardware. Old drawer pulls and cabinet knobs can date a kitchen or bath. For a couple of dollars each, you can update your cabinets with new, sleek hardware. It's a cheap DIY home improvement anyone can do. Tweet
4. De-clutter. Do you have piles of newspapers in the corners of your living room, or other clutter. Invest in storage containers that fit under the sofa or under the bed and get rid of the mess. Tweet
5. Replace your old light fixtures. Light fixtures can also make your home seem dated and are easy and inexpensive to replace. Search discount renovation supply houses. You can also find simple ceiling fixtures for under $50 at most big box home improvement stores.
6. Hang family pictures and artwork. Combine a few yard sale picture frames with old family photos, your own nature photographs or your child's artwork and you have instant, interesting wall art. Tweet
7. Enhance your entrance. The first thing a visitor or potential home buyer sees is your front door. Add a coat of paint, an attractive door knocker and a couple of plant urns for instant appeal. Tweet
8. Add trim. Ceiling moldings and chair rails are an easy way to add European-style elegance to your living or dining room. It's also a relatively simple DIY home improvement for any skill level. Tweet
9. Refinish your wood floor. Refinishing your old wood floor is another affordable way to add value value to your home. If your room is too large to sand by hand, you can rent power sanders from most big box home improvement stores. Once you've sanded the floor, apply one or two coats of stain and a varnish coat to seal it. Tweet
10. Replace that old carpet. Similarly, old carpet detracts from the overall freshness of your home. Although laying the actual carpet is best left to professionals (the stretching can get tricky), home DIYers can get ready for the installers by removing old carpet, removing nails and prepping the floor. Tweet
11. Change your switch plate covers. New switch plate covers add a finished look to your room for under $5. Sounds like a cost effective DIY home improvement project. Tweet
12. Reface your kitchen cabinets. You don't have to replace your existing kitchen cabinets to get a fresh, new look. Adding new doors, or refacing the existing cabinet doors, will give you the look of new cabinets without all of the expense and mess of installing new cabinetry.
13. Give your bath a mini-makeover. Bathroom makeovers don't have to mean big bucks. Give your bath a mini-makeover by replacing cabinet hardware; adding a new, shiny faucet; and re-grouting the tile. Tweet
14. Organize your closets. Messy closets are the bane of most homeowners' existence. Closet organizing systems (available at most home improvement stores) add a custom look for a fraction of the custom cost. They are also a big plus when it comes time to sell your home.
15. Wallpaper just one wall. You don't have to wallpaper an entire room. Just do one wall to add inexpensive flair. Tweet

So...what are you waiting for? Start adding value to your home today with a few DIY home improvement projects. Looking for more ideas? Download the free guide below.

(creative commons photo credit)