Three Low-Commitment Home Upgrades That Boost Property Value

Whether you are looking to sell your property or rent it out, you want to get the highest price possible. Maximising the return on your property investment is key to good financial health, but achieving this isn’t always easy.

Boosting property value can be a challenge. Making major changes, such as installing ensuites, constructing extra rooms, knocking through living space, restructuring external spaces and adding new features are all surefire ways to drive up value and interest, but they’re also high-commitment and high-investment projects.

Not everyone has the time or money to carry out such upgrades, but this doesn’t mean you have no options. There are plenty of low-commitment home updates available that can provide substantial increases to property value.

Bathroom Renovation

Bathroom renovation needn’t be an expensive project. An investment of a few thousand is all you need to transform a bathroom space into something that capitalises on modern trends and results in an environment within the home that people really enjoy spending time in.

Bathrooms are often cited as one of the favourite rooms within the house. Because of this, it isn’t hard to understand why buyers and tenants seek out well-designed and aesthetically pleasing bathroom spaces when choosing properties.

We aren’t talking about stripping out a bathroom completely, gutting the place, replumbing and starting from scratch either. We’re simply talking about replacing fixtures, retiling and adding some modern surfaces to give a bathroom the bright and contemporary vibe people want. It’s a project those adept at DIY may be able to manage themselves, although a bit of help from a local plumber may be necessary for more complex tasks like replacing baths, showers and toilets.

Such projects are very low commitment when compared to other home improvement practices, yet a bathroom renovation can add as much as 5% of additional value to your property.

Energy-Efficient Technology

Energy-efficient homes are in high demand. A combination of ethical factors and long-term bill savings has meant that prospective buyers and tenants are becoming increasingly aware of property energy ratings.

Those properties that have the highest energy ratings have been found to command prices up to 10% higher than the less sustainable competition. People are willing to pay more for greener, environmentally friendly homes — especially those of the millennial generation.

So green homes sell, and sell for more, but how can homeowners and property developers ensure they are hitting the targets required for top-level green homes?

• Modern central heating — Old boilers are woefully inefficient and highly unsustainable. New, modern systems are designed with green-energy in mind. Installing a new boiler can make a dramatic difference to energy ratings.
• Self-sustainability — Solar energy is no longer a futuristic-technology attainable only by the super-rich. Anyone can invest in even small solar panels to significantly boost property sustainability. You can also set up systems to collect, harvest and purify your own water source, reducing reliance on third-party providers.
• Energy efficient appliances — Dishwashers, dryers, fridge-freezers, washing machines, showers: you name the appliance and you’ll be able to find an energy-efficient version. Investment in green technology reduces energy consumption levels and boosts your property’s rating.
• Upgraded insulation — Insulation is incredibly important, but so often underutilised. Properly insulated homes, with sufficient padding in spaces such as between the walls, attic, basement areas and flooring, provide massive improvements to energy efficiency. Heat is retained in the winter and cool air in the summer, drastically reducing reliance on heating and air conditioning.

Kerb Appeal

Kerb appeal is a bit of property jargon that essentially refers to the aesthetics of your home — specifically, the outside areas visible from the street. This includes brickwork, front doors, fencing, windows and garden space surrounding the front of your property.

Improving kerb appeal is all about tidying up external elements and making the outside of your property, well, more appealing. Having brickwork cleaned, buying a new front door — or sprucing it up — and either replacing or having windows professionally cleaned can make a massive difference. As can removing shabby outside ornaments, fences and livening up the garden areas.

It may seem more like busy work than property improvement, but kerb appeal can actually make a massive difference. Experts have discovered that boosts of up to 20% in value can be secured by making these small, low commitment and relatively simple improvements.