So you’ve bought a house, but did you realise you’ve also made an investment? Sure, it may not feel like it’s the same as purchasing stocks and shares, but putting your money into property is a huge business, and that’s exactly what you’ve just done. Obviously you want your house to feel like home, but whilst you’re doing that, why not think about the ways you can do that AND add value to it. That way, should you decide to sell in future, you stand the best chance of getting a higher sale price than you bought it for. Now, that’s a savvy investment.
Interested? We’re sharing some of our favourite ways to help add value to your home, at varying levels. From little tweaks to larger outlays, each one of these will not only improve your enjoyment of your home but also help to boost how attractive your house is to future buyers should you decide to move on.
Build In Your Bedroom Storage
According to Ideal Home, built-in wardrobes can add up to £100k onto the value of your home, even more so if you can create a built-in, walk-in space. The reason for this seems to be that it removes the need for future buyers to have to purchase storage themselves that will fit. With clever fitted solutions now available in a huge range of configurations, you can really maximise the room that you have, even in spaces that may previously have been considered as awkward such as angled ceilings. Good storage solutions allow you to keep clutter to a minimum, leading to a calmer, more enjoyable and ultimately more attractive living space.
Make It Feel Spacious
Whilst we’re on the topic of creating a spacious feel with good storage, it’s a good chance to think about how you use your home. These days, people tend to move toward a more open style of living, although many want the ability to still shut rooms down when they need to create cosier zones. There are a couple of ways you can achieve this; think about some of the smaller spaces you have; could you remove an internal wall to open it up further and improve the ‘flow’ of your home? Key examples of this are often kitchen and dining spaces or opening up hallway corridors. You want the house to feel larger and lighter. Ways to achieve this with less investment? Think about flowing wall colours and flooring throughout key spaces so that it feels like a continued space rather than a number of smaller ones. Lighter colours and tactically places mirrors can help add a sense of space by bouncing light around, whilst wooden floor running lengthways in the direction of a room (ie. down the hallway rather than running side to side) can draw your eye through and help elongate the space.
Make A Splash With A Pool
Adding a pool may feel like an extravagant step but it really isn’t. Researching reputable pool builders can help you to find companies that will work with you to design a pool space that’s perfect for your home. Indoor? Outdoor? Plunge? The choices are endless! A well landscaped pool can create a real focal point of your home and provide years of benefits. It’s a place to relax with friends, to teach the children to swim, to workout early in the morning… and research suggests that a pool can add around 7% to the value of your home. Suddenly it feels like a no brainer, doesn’t it?
Refresh The Front Door
Getting a new front door unsurprisingly adds to the value of your home – you get instant impact and the benefit of boosting your home’s curb appeal. Not only that but there can be security benefits and it can help to make your home better insulated. Remember that the front door plays a bit part in what your house looks like from the outside and the initial perception people have, so try to keep it in-keeping with the style of home, whether that’s modern or a more traditional style. Can’t afford to put in a full replacement? You can easily improve your front door vibes with some simple DIY. Almost all doors can be painted, including uPVC, composite and wooden doors which can breathe fresh life in to them and save you having to replace them – we painted our side door with uPVC paint last year to match our new front door in colour and you wouldn’t know that it wasn’t originally that shade! Word to the wise: make sure you get suitable paint for your purpose as this will differ depending on the type of surface you’re looking to cover.
Add A Garden Office
Thanks to a huge shift around in the way that many individuals work, home-working is increasingly popular and as such many are looking for houses with a suitable office space, research shows it can add around 8.5% to the value of your home. Of course, it may be that you look to add an outhouse style area but use it for something else; a workout space, a room for older children to hang out, a workshop, or even sticking with the traditional office! Garden offices don’t need to be particularly large or that fancy; waterproof, damp-proof and with available electric for lighting/heating etc. Firstly consider if you have existing outhouses that could be reconfigured (for example, we turned a ‘lean-to’ style outhouse that was full of junk into a beautiful office – I WILL share how one day!). Then, if that’s not an option, consider the wooden cabin style ones. For a small investment you can add value and give yourself extra room, whatever you may choose to use it for.
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