Many homeowners and even real estate agents looking to flip a property tend to focus solely on the interior design of a house or apartment. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with sprucing up your interior and decorating it for comfort and beauty, it’s important to remember that the value of your property and its overall aesthetic appeal will be largely influenced by its curb appeal and highly useful house extensions like garden storage sheds.
Whether you’re trying to restore your property to its former shining glory or if you’re trying to upgrade it to maximize its value in the real estate market, the curb appeal will have a leading role to play. With that in mind, here are the four excellent ways you can improve the curb appeal to breathe new life into your home.
Start some ways away from the house
Curb appeal is not just about the quality of the paint job on the porch, or how beautiful your front garden is – it’s also about those distant elements you never even think about. You see, curb appeal starts some ways away from your property, at the furthest point from which people can see your house. This is usually, you guessed it, the curb at the far end of the street. This is where you need to start.
Inspect this area closely and look for any unsightly elements that might be hindering the aesthetic appeal of your property. Move the trashcans somewhere else, and look for any irregularities in the pavement such as potholes. Now work your way slowly towards the house and fix everything that needs fixing before you move on to the property itself.
Invest in some beautiful landscaping
Landscaping is one of the best and most effective ways to elevate the aesthetic appeal of your home’s exterior, and an excellent way to increase its market value at that. However, it’s not just about maintaining a tidy lawn or removing wild shrubbery on occasion; no, landscaping encompasses the calculated use of natural elements to frame the design of the entire property.
Some of the best low-maintenance design ideas for your garden and landscape, in general, include high-rise plants, trees, artificial grass, water features and ornaments, beautiful rockery, stepping stones, and more. All of these elements should work together to frame the design and lead the visitor on a beautiful path towards the porch and the house itself.
Join the LED revolution
The way you light your home’s exterior can make or break the entire aesthetic design of the property. But beyond pure aesthetics, outdoor lighting needs to be functional, as these features need to last a long time. This is why the LED industry has grown so much in the US in recent years, and across the globe as well. In Australia, for example, electricians specialize in outdoor lighting that boosts curb appeal aesthetics and functionality.
Down Under, homeowners spend a lot of time under the stars, on the front porch or enjoying quality time with their family on the front lawn in the evening, hence the need for an experienced electrician from Inner West to design the external lighting scheme using LED lights to illuminate the entire property and at the same time accentuate key features. Follow the same mindset and invest in LED lights yourself, and don’t forget to illuminate everything from the walkway to the front porch and all other outdoor areas on your property.
Rejuvenate the exterior with new paint
And finally, there’s nothing quite as refreshing and rewarding as the look of a fresh coat of paint adorning the exterior of your home. Repainting the walls and other features such as the front porch and the fence can help you elevate the value of the property in an affordable way, but most importantly, make the property feel more inviting and homier as well.
Depending on the size of the house and the scope of work in general, it shouldn’t take you more than a weekend to repaint the walls, the window frames, the porch, and fence. While you’re at it, be sure to upgrade all of the hardware and don’t forget to replace any corroded wood you might find – it will prolong the lifespan of the element and elevate the aesthetics in the process.
Final thoughts
The curb appeal is the crucial factor that will either deter or invite homebuyers to check out a property. What’s more, the curb appeal of your home has the power to influence your mindset and shape your perception significantly, making you feel positive as you’re approaching the front door. Be sure to tend to these quick-and-easy tips, and you will have created a beautiful curb appeal that will make your home that much more valuable.
If you are planning to put your home on sale in the near future, chances are that your prospective buyer will be a Millennial. This working-age generation is currently between 23 and 38 years old and ready to choose and settle in a property and this is where your offer steps into the picture.
Therefore, to reach a fair price for your lovely home and to make sure that it goes into the hands of people who will take care of it, you need to learn as much as you can about millennial tastes. With that in mind, here are 4 steps that will help you stage the house in a manner appealing for a typical millennial.
Work on the curb appeal
Most buyers know from the first moment they see a house whether they like it – a great interior may sway them to change their opinion, however, this first impression is essential for their decision-making process. This means that you have to trim the grass and any bushes that you have in front of the house, to make it presentable. Also, make sure that the driveway and everything else is clean since almost every millennial dislike messy views. Another thing to consider is to change your front door because this generation takes pride in being eco-friendly while old doors with their many cracks and holes are not so energy-saving.
Tidy everything up
As mentioned, clutter and uncleanness is not something that millennials can stand. They prefer minimalism and everything having its place in the house so a dusty collection of old memorabilia will not be attractive to them. The first piece of advice is to declutter the rooms so they seem as if they only have essentials when it comes to furniture and decoration. It may seem like an undertaking but it really doesn’t have to be time-consuming and it will also be useful to cut down the number of things you would be transferred to the other home you will be living. The second piece of advice is to scrub everything clean since simple and clean is what millennials look for.
Pay attention to the room layout
Fragile figurines and expensive furniture that is a hassle to clean do not make up a room display approved by millennials. Their love for the visual simplicity and open spaces is no secret so providing them with the feeling of open space could be a perfect idea. If a renovation project is not something your budget can sustain, you can achieve a similar impression by getting rid of chunky furniture and leaving more free space. Another thing which might tip the scale to your advantage is a pet-friendly rug because this generation has taken the love for animals to a whole new level. Besides being beautiful, these rugs are durable and can stand being vacuumed daily, as well as a bit peed and nibbled on by the little groomed angels.
Transform the spare room into an office
If you have a spare room you are using as storage space, you might want to put it to another use. Millennials often work from home or run their own business, so the idea of a house already having a home office would be pleasing. The trickiest thing about turning your storage room into an office space is getting rid of all those things you don’t need. Once you are done with that, all you need to do is set up a table and a chair next to the window and make sure they have enough power sockets for their many gadgets. Then you can place your laptop on the table and gingerly arrange some pens, notes and a coffee mug, to look as though you just left the table. This will certainly leave a strong impression and make them decide on your house.
The perfect starting point with staging your house for a millennial buyer is thinking from the environmentally responsible perspective. A messy driveway with garbage everywhere and rooms filled with unnecessary things are in no manner eco-friendly so decluttering and cleaning everything are the first steps to boosting the appeal of your home.
In line with thinking green, millennials will not find luxurious decorations attractive because they always aim for simplicity. So, it is best to put away your fragile expensive trinkets and leave the bare essentials and a lot of free space because too many things can make the room be stifling. If you sprinkle your house with thoughtful elements such as office space and pet-friendly additions, you will be on your way to winning over their hearts.
A rental landlord’s obligations don’t end with providing a home for your tenants and picking up the rent each month. Their welfare, as well as the safety of their belongings, is partly your responsibility, not to mention your rental’s security.
You need to make sure you put into effect all necessary measurements against burglary and break-ins. Providing a space where your tenants feel safe will probably result in them settling there for a longer period. Here are a few tips on how to keep the burglars at bay and your tenants satisfied.
Fix what needs to be fixed
Take a turn around the house and analyze the potential risks – are there any places that can give burglars easy access? If you know that the window latch in your bedroom is faulty, don’t wait another minute to replace it. Are there any bushes which can provide good cover for an uninvited guest? There are things we know that ought to be dealt with but somehow, we get used to them and forget that the particular state is not common. However, ignoring the possible risks is careless, so it is vital to do all that we can to ensure the safety of your rental and your tenants as well.
Add more light
Common sense tells us that a well-lit house is not an eligible target for a thief. Without the cover of darkness to hide their criminal activity, they will not be able to sneak up on your tenants. So, investing in additional outdoor lighting is probably one of the most practical ideas to provide a clear view of what is going on around your house. Motion-sensor lights are bound to scare off any unwanted visitors, and if the tenants aren’t fast asleep, it will also be a type of an alarm for them that allows them to know that someone is prowling around the house.
Take out an insurance policy
If you want to be completely certain that everything will be taken care of in the case of some event, you can opt for an insurance policy. However, mind you, you need to read the small print to know for sure what the policy covers. To be safe, always choose more comprehensive policies, such as Youi home cover landlord insurance, which encompasses natural disasters as well as damage caused by people. It even covers the content of the property, so you can be at peace even if your keys get stolen or any furniture or furnishings are damaged due to the insured event.
Secure doors and windows
For better security, equip your door with a double-cylinder deadbolt, especially if your doors have glass panels or windows that are close by. This kind of deadbolt cannot be opened from the inside, so it won’t be easy for a burglar to break the glass and reach inside. As for the windows, you can go with locks, which will probably make the perpetrator re-think whether to attempt to get in by breaking the window. Naturally, if you had an unpleasant situation and you had to evict the tenants, don’t forget to change the locks, just in case.
Keep private
Curtains and blinds are not there just to protect you from the sunlight. They also serve as protection from unwanted attention, so advise your tenants to keep the curtains drawn, especially when they are not at home. When the property is not being rented, it is advisable you keep the blinds down. Shielding your privacy in this manner will prevent the burglars from spotting any valuable items that you or your tenants might keep in the house. Also, don’t disregard gossip: if you have any valuables in your rental property, don’t inform the neighbors since you never know who that information may reach.
Renting your real estate can be quite a profitable scheme but it is also a responsible one. Every landlord wishes to have a long-term relationship with their tenants – nobody wants to have shady people marching through the house every month or so.
In order to achieve this rapport, you need to communicate openly but also to ensure their safety. This includes securing doors and windows, installing external motion-sensor lights, and also taking out an insurance policy. By protecting your rental property, you are protecting your tenants and your relationship with them.
