Home Improvements on a budget

Feature - How to carry out Home Improvements on a budget
Recent Halifax research has shown that most British DIYers favour simple, low-cost improvements to their homes over complex, lengthy projects. A new coat of paint is Britain’s favourite quick-fix home improvement with over 75 per cent of homeowners saying that this is the first thing they would choose to do in a revamp. Cosmetic improvements like this would satisfy most homeowners in the long term and few now feel the need to make drastic renovations, move house or extend.

This is probably no surprise in the current economic climate – but it is also the safest choice for many UK homeowners! The same Halifax study showed that there were over 200,000 DIY injuries in the UK last year – 2,506 with power drills, 1,920 with circular saws and 622 with chainsaws. So it’s probably safer to stick to smaller – and lower budget – home improvements this year! Here are five top tips to achieving the lowest cost, highest impact home improvements:

1) Redecorating
You could always follow 75 per cent of the nation’s DIYers and redecorate a room. A new coat of paint or some fresh wallpaper can really change a space and needn’t be a big job. If you don’t want to redecorate entirely, just pick one wall to change and make a feature wall. If the room is already painted, pick a flamboyant complementary wallpaper and you will completely change the look! If you need more than one roll, make sure the wallpaper you buy is from the same batch number – different batches often have colour variations which only become apparent once you’ve finished the job.

If the room you want to change is already wallpapered, simply pick a durable ‘one-coat’ paint and paint over it – there are plenty of paints on the market now which will cover even the boldest designs in just one coat, for as little as £10 a tin! There are also different types of paint available for different areas of the house – for busy areas you can buy scuff resistant paint which doesn’t mark if it’s crashed into and can be wiped clean if sticky fingers make a mess on it!

2) Little things make the biggest difference
For a quick-fix at minimal cost, consider replacing door handles on kitchen cupboards. This can instantly lift a room and adding some funky handles can update a dilapidated kitchen in seconds. If you have a bit more money to spend, consider replacing the entire cupboard doors – as long as the cupboard structure itself is sturdy, a new door will really make a difference.

Along similar lines, replacing taps in the bathroom can change the feel of the room. There are many designs to choose from, from modern and stylish chrome to retro brass and copper creations. If you are replacing taps and you’re a bit of a novice, it’s probably best to hire a professional plumber. Amateur DIYers in Britain last year spent an average of more than £5,000 hiring plumbers to sort out botched plumbing jobs.

3) Updating the floor
A down-trodden carpet or outdated lino can really age a room, but updating your flooring can be relatively quick and easy. It will also give instant impact, even if you don’t change anything else! The most important thing when changing your flooring is to plan carefully what you are going to do – is the space you want to change a well-trodden area like the hallway or conservatory, or is it likely to get wet, for example in the bathroom or kitchen?

All of these factors will make a difference to the type of flooring you need – you don’t want to put luxurious soft carpets in an area where it will get worn down very quickly. Similarly you wouldn’t necessarily want wooden floors in a bathroom as it becomes very slippery when wet – also stone or ceramic tiles may look beautiful in a kitchen, but can be very cold and hard when you come down for your tea in the morning!

Whichever type of flooring you choose, it is worth considering hiring a professional flooring specialist to fit it. The last thing you want is your new floor instantly ruined by poor fitting.

4) Sprucing up the exterior
If you are looking for a drastic change without the expense of building an extension or changing the windows, painting the outside of your house can make the most dramatic difference. However, to save potential complaints from the neighbours or even the council, it’s always best to check with them first which colour you are intending to use. Bold colours that are not in keeping with the rest of the street could land you in trouble with the local planning office, not to mention the neighbours who may think your house is an eyesore! The best way to avoid trouble is to look at the other houses around you and pick a muted, non-offensive colour which fits in.

Another way to improve the look of your property is to buy a new front door. With this you can afford to be a bit bolder with your colour choice – a bright front door can be a quirky feature and will instantly brighten up your home’s façade! If you are not looking for such a dramatic change, rearranging the garden or placing some large feature plant pots around can also improve the look of your home. Large exotic trees in decorative pots can add impact and really set your garden apart from the neighbours'!

5) Slightly higher budgets
If you have a slightly larger budget, it is worth considering some high-spec home improvements, which not only improve your home life, but also instantly add value to your property. Most are still relatively small jobs too. The first is to create some off-street parking – building a car-port or garage doesn’t have to cost the earth, but will add more than £10,000 to the value of your home. If you don’t have space to build a garage, ask for permission to lower the kerb outside your home so you can easily park in the driveway.

You can get permission from the local council and lowering the kerb can costs as little as £650.

Inside, it is worth considering something like roof windows, which will instantly add more light and an airy feel to an upstairs space. A single roof window can start at around £155 plus installation costs, and will make a dramatic difference to a room.

There is also an increasing demand for technological improvements to houses. Things like streamed music systems linked to lighting, Internet and TV are becoming more desirable to property buyers. You can buy systems which feed the music you’re playing in one room to every room in the house, and link this to mood lighting which corresponds to the volume of the sound. It’s also possible to stream music from the Internet through the same system and also to make the music videos from your iPod visible on plasma screens anywhere in your house! Systems like this cost anywhere upwards of £3,000.

It’s not always necessary to spend big bucks on home improvements. Low cost developments can make just as much impact and add significant value to your property. The most important thing is to hire professionals and get any work completed to a high standard. A professional is also guaranteed to get the work done, whereas if you’re fitting in DIY around your job and other commitments, chances are you may not get it finished at all! Hiring a professional may be the cheaper option in the long run as half-finished or poorly executed home improvements can knock as much as £10,000 off your home’s value.

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