5 Ways to Improve Your Home’s Value in 2018

With the arrival of the new year comes a perfect opportunity to make some January home improvements. Several reasons may come to mind, whether it is your new year home resolution, preparing your home for winter, or getting your house ready to sell.

Tips on improving your home this winter

Protect Your Plants

Starting off this year on the right foot can include protecting those beautiful plants in your yard that increase the value and curb appeal of your property.  We’ve had some unusually cold weather here in Florida, and your plants should be a priority. Cover any that are sensitive to the cold to give them their best chance of surviving the cold temperatures.

Take Down the Lights

Now that the holidays are over, it’s time to take down all Christmas lights and decorations. This is one of those projects that most people put off as long as possible, but it should be top on your list of things to do when selling a house at the beginning of the year. Check all of your lights and decorations as you put them away to see that none are damaged or ready to be thrown away. If they can be fixed, make the repairs before putting them in storage. They’ll be all ready to go for the next holiday season.

Indoor Improvements

Take advantage of the extra time you may have now that winter is here and you don’t need to mow the lawn every week. Use the time instead to work on indoor improvements such as repainting, decluttering, and organizing.

Winter is the perfect time to repaint rooms. In general, winter months have less humidity than spring and summer, making it ideal for drying paint. Make sure you have proper ventilation while tackling this project.

Getting rid of piles of unsightly clutter will go a long way toward getting your home ready to sell. It makes things look neat and organized as well as making the potential packing and moving process go more smoothly. So, pick a closet, cabinet, under a sink, or a particularly cluttered area and start getting rid of anything you can live without or haven’t used in at least a year. Donate, recycle, or throw it away.

There’s no reason to wait for spring to do a deep cleaning of your home. Go ahead and start now while outdoor activities are limited by weather. Clean baseboards, clean behind and underneath furniture, clean blinds, windows, ceiling fans, and anywhere else that may be overlooked in your regular cleaning.

Outdoor Improvements

Even though there may not be as much to do outside right now as there is during the rest of the year, taking time to do things like cleaning the gutters and the flower beds will make things easier on you when spring arrives. It will also help make a better first impression on any potential buyers.

By now, the leaves should be about done falling from the trees, so it’s a perfect time to make sure all of your gutters are free of leaves and debris. It may also be a good time to install some type of covered gutter to prevent clogged gutters in the future.

Planning your flower beds and garden areas now allows you to get a head start on spring gardening. You can put down mulch or pine straw in the flower beds to prepare them for planting.  Draw your plans for what to plant and how you would like to arrange everything. You can also order bulbs and seeds so that they will arrive in plenty of time. Seeds and bulbs can be started indoors about six weeks before the last expected frost in your area.

Pay for a Home Inspection

Having a home inspection done now will give you a good to-do list of repairs from a buyer’s perspective. Tackle each repair, and get them checked off as quickly as possible. By getting these repairs done now, you will save time during the selling process.

These are just a few home improvement tips that can be done during the winter months to help increase the value of your home and make it easier to sell in 2018. These ideas will help you get started. Maybe you can think of more!

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