Home remodeling doesn’t have to cost a fortune to add value to your home and improve its overall aesthetics. In fact, if you have the time and patience, not only can you save tons of money, but you can find one-of-a-kind pieces that can make your house truly unique and individual. By getting a little creative, you’d be shocked by how easy it is to enhance your home on the cheap.
As soon as you decide to do some home remodeling, you’ll want to keep your eyes out for cheap steals. That doesn’t necessarily mean hitting up sales at your local warehouse store. Some of the best places to find some well-made and quality additions to your home such as cabinet faces, doors, lighting fixtures, and even items as varied as bathroom sinks are flea markets, antique shops, garage sales and thrift stores.
Antique shops and flea markets tend to be on the pricier side for home remodeling projects, but there is still the opportunity to haggle and find some hidden gems. Garage sales and thrift stores will have the best prices, but will require plenty of hunting, determination, and possibly some elbow grease to fix damage. Remember that even small items, such as doorknobs and handle pulls can make dramatic differences be quite eye-catching for their minimal investment costs.
When choosing home remodeling projects, you can save mega bucks by doing it yourself. Even if you’re not the greatest handyman, there are plenty of projects that you can successfully complete including painting, applying stains to furniture or flooring, and even some tiling work. You’d be surprised at what you can accomplish even without much training or even many tools. Check out some do-it-yourself books at your local library for ideas and instructions on some plausible projects.
Don’t be afraid to enlist in your friends for help. Although it may seem like a lot to ask, you can often make it more fun by having food, playing music, and offering to return the favor to them in the future. Most friends are more than happy to pitch in their services and can provide some valuable skills. You may even have some that can give you some home remodeling ideas or advice. Some can even surprise you and have extra materials lying around from a project they have long since abandoned. If you don’t ask, you’ll never know.
Another simple and inexpensive way to spruce up any real estate is by capitalizing and refurbishing what you’ve already got. Remodeling doesn’t have to mean replacement. Strip old cabinets or walls of outdated paint and wallpaper and refinish them. Remove carpeting to reveal natural floors underneath (if possible) and give them a fresh stain and polish. Add window tints or frosting to increase privacy indoors. You can even increase home value by doing a little landscaping. Be sure to check your local newspaper. Many people have ads for free soil, bricks, or stones that can be used to create pathways or enrich a garden.
