Your house is like every other tangible item you own. The more you use it and the more time that passes by, the more wear and tears it undergoes.
Eventually, you’ll want to make some updates and upgrades. Common home improvement costs can be sky-high, but for the frugal-minded, there are some simple and low-cost ways to update a well-used aging home.
3 Tips for Making Home Upgrades on a Budget
There are dozens of ways to make tiny but noticeable improvements to your home on a tight budget. Here are three you might want to consider.
Bathroom Hardware
It’s no surprise that your bathroom takes a beating. It’s where you shower every day, brush your teeth several times a day, and fulfill Nature’s callings. When you really think about it, it’s probably the most used room in the whole of your home.
For a room that gets a lot of use, it usually doesn’t get lots of love. A very easy way to bring new life to an old bathroom without a full renovation is to just replace old and outdated bathroom hardware.
New knobs, handles, hinges, hooks, and bars will go a lot further than you think.
Use that Wall Space for Something Useful
Aside from your bathroom, another room that takes a major beating over time is your kitchen. It’s also a very important part of your home as it’s where you prepare the meals that fuel your family.
Over time, kitchens tend to gather more and more clutter. Even the kitchen of a very organized person can take on a messy appearance as your owned cookware overcomes your available storage.
If your kitchen has unused wall space, it’s time to make good use of it. New cabinets can be expensive. But, floating shelving is much less costly. It allows you to add additional storage at a reasonable price, and it looks great as well. In fact, while bulky cabinets can sometimes make your kitchen appear smaller, floating shelving can do the opposite.
Don’t Forget the Exterior
It’s easy to get caught up in making small upgrades all over the interior of your home. After all, you spend a lot more time looking at the insides of each room than you do admiring the exterior of your home. But, that doesn’t mean you should neglect the exterior altogether.
A quick, easy, and fairly low-cost way of sprucing up a worn-down exterior is to focus on the front door area. Repainting a sun-beaten front door with a bold new color can really make it pop. Leave the soft neutral tones and whites for trim, and go with something more bright and brilliant. And, update the doorknob and deadbolt hardware to go along with the new look.
You can also upgrade some small details around your door. Replace old boring house address numbers with something more stylish. Add or buy a new welcome mat, or if you’re feeling creative, paint one directly onto your stoop.
If you have the time, energy, and extra funds, you may want to spruce up your outdoor furniture as well. This can go a long way in making your outdoor space more visually appealing and comfortable to lounge in. Porch or outdoor furnishings are must-haves to maximize the use of your outdoor area and create a more welcoming and homey atmosphere. If you have great weather in your city all year round, you need to take advantage of that by building a livable outdoor space.
These small changes yield big results.
Wrap Up
When you want to make some upgrades to a home in need of new life, but you don’t have thousands of dollars to do so, you still have plenty of options. Instead of trying to overhaul entire rooms from floor to ceiling, make small but noticeable upgrades. You’ll love the results and your wallet won’t be left in tatters.
Author Bio: Cheryl Miller is a residential design consultant for Knobs.co. She is a big fan of both mid-century modern design as well as shabby chic but doesn’t feel limited to any specific style choices when working on a new space.
