How to increase the value of your home

Buying real estate is an investment option that might be suitable for you. An investment property should be about increasing your wealth – how effectively you manage your property will determine whether or not it helps you reach your financial goals.

For those with a longer term ‘buy, hold, sell’ strategy, here’s a few tips to add value to your investment property over time.

1.  Don’t overcapitalise

We’ve all heard this one before, for good reason.  As a rule of thumb spend no more than 4 to 6 weeks renovating and invest no more than 5-10% of the property’s value on your renovations.

With any improvements you undertake it’s important not to overspend. You need to be sure you can comfortably recoup all of the money you’ve spent when it comes time to sell.

2.  Renovate wisely

There are certain improvements that tend to add the most value to a property.

It’s the simple things that can often make a huge difference for minimal effort and cost – think a quick lick of paint, fresh blinds, new light fittings and flooring.

If you have a bit more in your budget, consider updating the bathroom and kitchen.  As the most highly frequented rooms in the house, they often make the biggest impact to the overall look and feel of a property.

Other valuable improvements can include; 

• adding a room
• creating an outdoor living space or garden
• adding more storage
• providing off-street parking 

3.  Create wider appeal

When renovating an investment property, it can be tempting to have a bit of fun with fixtures, fittings and colour palettes – but money is better spent on modest furnishings with universal appeal.

Renovations won’t add any value if future buyers have to modify them to suit their own tastes.  Stick to neutral colours and simple fittings.

4.  Go low maintenance

It’s important to create a low maintenance property if you plan to rent it out.  Repairs and maintenance are a drag for both landlords and tenants, so here’s a few ways to avoid them: 

• create a low maintenance garden that looks after itself
• avoid cheap appliances, invest in quality items that will last
• use durable materials that will withstand wear and tear.