Transform Your Home with 6 Manageable DIY Projects

You love your home. You’ve spent years imprinting yourself upon it, making it representative of your style. And when you put it on the market, a prospective buyer will want to imagine themselves doing the same. 

So, as you prepare your home for sale and perform repairs and updates, a good goal is to leave the space an aesthetically pleasing blank slate. That way, viewers can envision making themselves at home there. 

A few well-thought, easy DIY (do-it-yourself) projects can transform your home into one that meets that mark. Here’s how to revamp your property with a little elbow grease and on a budget. 

1. Repaint interiors

Repainting is a budget-friendly way to impactfully revamp your property. And interior repainting is a very DIY-able weekend home improvement project. 

A fresh coat of paint covers up years of grime, making your home look cleaner to viewers. You also save a potential buyer the hassle of having to paint walls before moving in. Finally, repainting shifts the aesthetics of your home, giving you an opportunity to upgrade dated (or wacky) hues to stylish, refined ones that appeal to buyers. 

Another unseen benefit of repainting is that it pushes you to declutter and move furniture around as you make space to lay down protective plastic tarps and so on. This gives you a head start on packing, cleaning, and staging, as you can take advantage of this moment to store personal items, wipe out those dusty corners, and rearrange furniture in a way that maximizes space. 

2. Update fixtures 

Updating fixtures is an easy DIY home improvement hack that transforms the look of spaces, bringing dated rooms into the present. 

Remove (with the help of an electrician if necessary) old wall light fixtures and replace them with contemporary models. Consider upgrading to smart lights, which can be controlled by an application, providing an additional plus for a potential buyer. These fixtures aren’t only convenient but they can help future homeowners lower electricity bills since they can easily turn off unused lights remotely.

Then, change out any older drawer and cabinet pulls and door handles. A bedroom door that’s 20 years old suddenly looks like it was installed yesterday when you install a sleek modern handle. This job is highly DIY-able, as it requires only simple tools (like a screwdriver), basic know-how, and just a few minutes. 

Finally, consider switching out plumbing features with the help of a professional (or by learning how via YouTube tutorials). Adding a long-necked, spray-nozzle, stainless-steel faucet to your kitchen sink can transform the entire space, making it look newer and more functional. The same logic applies to swapping out old bathroom fixtures for more contemporary ones.

3. Landscape 

A buyer starts forming their first impression of your property as they pull up to it. So, boost your home’s curb appeal with landscaping. Mow the lawn, trim bushes, and plant perennial gardens that’ll bloom year after year for the next homeowners. Gather the family or friends for a fun weekend project and paint clay pots in trending hues. Put plants in them and arrange them around your front door for a welcoming effect. 

Don’t forget to do some interior landscaping as well. Compost dead plants, prune dry leaves off live ones, and keep greenery watered (and looking perky). Healthy house plants make your home look more vibrant and fresh.

4. Upgrade the kitchen

People spend a lot of time in their kitchens, so they’re understandably particular about the layout and aesthetics. Chances are the next homeowner will want to make the kitchen their own. So, spending lots of time and money on a high-end custom kitchen remodel may be a losing bet. The buyer could just tear it out, and research shows that extensive kitchen renovations aren’t high-ROI (return on investment) upgrades anyway. Projections show that you’ll only make back 30% of what you spent on the remodel when you sell the home. 

But a DIY makeover can be quite savvy. Strip, sand, and repaint kitchen cabinet doors, swap out old knobs, and line drawers with trendy paper. Feeling adventurous? Retile the backsplash—a project that has a transformative effect on a kitchen. Finally, if your budget allows, replace old appliances that limit the beauty and functionality of the kitchen with new ones. If you can, install efficient units—a perk for wallet- and energy-conscious buyers. 

5. Organize built-in shelving 

Built-in shelves can be a major plus for buyers with a lot of books, toys, or a growing record collection. But messy shelves are a “minus” for viewers.

Ensure your shelving doesn’t detract from the tidy look of your home. Remove excess books, items like frames or nostalgia, and stacks of papers from the living room and office shelves. And put all those kitchen accessories away behind cabinet doors. Leave behind only your best cookware or dishes or an organized selection of books. If you can’t move all your clutter behind doors or into storage, put items into nice-looking fabric bins, wooden boxes, or baskets. Check out interior design shows or platforms like Pinterest for organization inspiration.

6. Stage

Staging is the art of redecorating your home so that it appeals to buyers. Once you’ve completed your DIY renovations (and some deep cleaning), stage your home. While some people hire a professional designer for this task, you can take it on yourself using the following few tips. The goal is to leave your property looking spacious and aesthetically pleasing—kind of like a model home.

• Depersonalize the space by removing family photos, knickknacks, and art (and get a head start on packing by moving these items into boxes, and then, storage).

• Declutter, ensuring that floors and other surfaces only contain necessary items like furniture or well-placed home decor.

• Move any excess furniture and items you don’t often use (like old kids’ toys, extra lamps or chairs, and modular shelving) into storage. 

• Swap out linens for new ones (think: towels and bathmats, sheets and comforters, curtains, area rugs, and accent pillows or throws). Opt for neutral tones or universally appealing patterns.

• Get new bathroom and kitchen accessories, so that any items left out on counters in these spaces look coherent in the spaces. 

• Put out fresh flowers and light candles on open-house days for a polished look and appealing smell.

Maximize your DIY efforts with help from Titus

DIY projects provide low-cost, high-impact ways to update your home. But if your budget is already tight, even affordable home improvements can feel like they’re breaking the bank. When you work with a Titus partner agent, you get excellent advice on how to maximize your upgrades. And Titus only works with top listing agents with a proven track record of selling homes fast.

Plus, Titus-affiliated agents have exclusive access to closing lines of credit (CLoCs), funds you can use to perform a DIY home transformation. Credits of up to $25,000 are interest-free, and Titus doesn’t ask home sellers for any money upfront or out of pocket. Discover how it works here.