A home isn’t just a place to rest and sleep. It’s a place to enjoy, live in and make cherished memories. As homes and properties age, they can suffer from certain forms of both functional and aesthetic decay, leaving them less than desirable places in which to live. Whether you intend to stay in your current home or sell it in the near future, keeping your home in pristine condition is a worthwhile and necessary endeavor.
All too often, people consider only the inside of the home when renovating or remodeling. However, curb appeal matters in many ways and often just as much as interior renovations, so taking care of your home’s exterior and lawn deserves the utmost attention.
Let’s examine some renovations outside of the home that can add real value to any property.
Paint or Re-Side the Home
A new coat of paint or re-siding an aging property can add an immense amount of value to the home. For homes that still have siding that’s structurally sound, a new coat of paint is often the best bang for your buck, adding thousands of dollars of value virtually overnight. For an even simpler yet valuable project, consider re-painting the front door: a nicely-painted front door can add real curb appeal and can make your home more desirable when on the market.
Re-siding the home is considerably more expensive but often necessary for homes that are several decades old. A fresh color and new siding will also help protect the structural elements of the home from weathering, which can otherwise create repair costs that exponentially grow over time.
Invest in Borders and Framing
Your lawn and green spaces provide a safe haven of beauty throughout most of the year, but improvements can always be made to improve its aesthetics. One of the easiest ways in which to do this is to add borders and framing of some sort to various segments of the lawn. This can consist of stone walls along sloped areas and the perimeter of the property, or walkways made from stone or rock gardens that break up the monotony of the yard while adding beauty (to learn about these ideas and more, see here).
Fencing is another form of framing that can add appeal to properties and increase value. Many families value privacy, as a fenced-in yard can create an additional feeling of isolation and peace when enjoying your outdoor areas.
Build a New Deck
One of the most cost-effective outdoor improvements home owners can make, building a deck or patio provides functional and aesthetic benefits to your outdoor areas. Generally speaking, home owners can expect to recoup approximately 85 percent of the deck’s building costs when it comes time to sell, and sometimes, even more.
As such, renovating your back yard with a functional addition that provides a social setting for families and guests, adding thousands in property value, simply makes sense.
Improve the Driveway
Last but certainly not least, the driveway and parking space available on your property can affect its overall value. Driveways come in many forms – concrete driveways are the most popular, but also the most expensive. For those who currently have a gravel driveway, investing in resurfacing and/or a fresh load of gravel can improve the property value if you plan on selling soon. Additionally, carving out an extra outdoor space or two for parking can further improve property value, while adding functionality to the property.
While the interior of the home often gets attention, your outdoor spaces deserve focus too. These four projects range in terms of cost and benefit but can all enhance your property value and provide benefits for the remainder of your time in the home.
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