When looking to buy an investment property, you can easily increase your borrowing capacity by increasing the equity you have in your home. More often than not people looking to purchase an investment property need to borrow against their home’s value instead.
Investing in your home will help you capitalize on its value. Even if you’re only looking for a home equity appraisal, the right home renovations could make the difference between funding that much needed deposit or not.
Here are the top five ways to increase your home’s value.
Step 1. – Nothing freshens up a home like a new coat of paint.
Paint is relatively inexpensive compared to other home improvement items. For as little as $25 a gallon, you can make your house look like new again. The majority of buyers like neutral colours so focus on getting rid of flashy wallpaper or your kid’s florescent pink bedroom. The bank will return the favour by appraising your property at a higher value.
Painting is also something that doesn’t require a big skill set. It’s easy enough to do on your own instead of having to hire an expensive contractor.
Step 2. – Bathrooms are small on space but big on value
If you can’t afford a full remodel, small changes can still make a big difference in how your home is valued. Replacing items like old lighting, sinks and faucets with new ones will update your bathroom without costing you a fortune. Look up DYI websites and images to see what little changes you can make that will create a modern flare to your bathroom.
Step 3. – Update your kitchen for added value
Kitchens are the most important room in the house when it comes to home valuation. However, full kitchen renovations are costly and time consuming. There are little things you can do though that will make it look like you did a full renovation. Painting cupboards and swapping old appliances for new energy saving stainless steel models will not only add big value to your home but will also help save you money on your next energy bill.
Step 4. – Flooring updates always add value to your home
Flooring can be one of the most expensive renovation items on the list but it is well worth the investment. Everyone looking to buy a property wants hardwood flooring. “Hardwood flooring helps rooms flow together and makes spaces look bigger.” Says Dino Livanidis, Senior Consultant. Especially if the type and colour of flooring is consistent from room to room.
If you don’t have the budget for hardwood flooring, you can still create the same clean linear look with engineered hardwood or laminate flooring.
Step 5. – Focus on your home’s visual space
Finally, don’t forget to focus on how your home looks visually. How a home feels or its ‘visual space’ also impacts value. A cluttered 1,800 square foot house could be valued much less than it’s neat and clean 1,200 square foot counterpart. Do your spring cleaning early and get rid of any unwanted items. Do you really need to keep all of your 10 year old’s baby toys? The more ‘stuff’ you have in a room, the more cramped it feels.
If you just can’t part with any of your stuff, invest in some attractive shelving to store your clutter out of sight.
Mirrors and light window coverings help to brighten rooms up to also create a more visually appealing space.