Create a Champagne Home on a Beer Budget

Homes that are decorated according to classic tastes and today’s trends are more likely to be purchased. But redesigning your home to meet your dream standards can be expensive.
Here are five tips for decorating your “champagne” home on a “beer” budget.

1. Paint
Rather than adding a bunch of new furniture or upgraded fixtures to a space, you can apply a fresh coat of new paint to give it a brand-new feel. You can paint all your walls one color or you can mix things up a little. Here are some special tips on what you can do with paint:

~Paint an accent wall.
~Paint a pattern into the wall.
~Invite a talented artist friend over and let them create a mural.
~Paint an accent ceiling.
~Paint the doors and leave the walls white.
2. Forget brand names
You can save a ton of money by buying some not-so-new furniture outside the walls of traditional furniture stores. You can purchase furniture and accessories for a fraction of the retail price within a five-mile radius of you at places like these:

~Garage sales.
~Yard sales.
~Thrift stores.
~Near (but not in) dumpsters.
~Online auctions.
~Estate sales.
Pro Tip: You can save even more money if you know how to haggle. Put these negotiation skills to good use.

3. Follow the DIY trends
Now’s your chance to make all your Pinterest board dreams come true. Rather than calling in experts and paying them hundreds or even thousands of dollars, you can upgrade your light fixtures, floor boards, door bells and appliances yourself to give your home that champagne feel.

4. Recycle, Reuse, Repurpose
Use your creative skills to reinvent some of your yard sale finds or repurpose some of the items you already own into new treasures. Here are some examples of what we mean:

~Use old window shutters as mail organizers.
~Stack and arrange wooden pallets to make a shabby-chic coffee table.
~Promote your old coffee table to new patio table.
~Use a trunk or chest as a functional coffee table.
~Lay glass over an old door and make it into a new dining table.
~Hang an old stepping stool to create a shadowbox-like shelf.

 
5. Have a yard sale of your own
You can make room in your home and in your budget by selling some of your old clothes, furniture pieces, games or DVDs. A yard or garage sale is a fun way to remove unwanted clutter. You could also ask your customers what they plan to do with the items they purchase to get ideas on how you can upgrade your home.

If you need more ideas on how you can make your home more inviting to prospective homebuyers, reach out to me with questions.

Powered by HomeActions for Laura S. Rossinow, Broker, Keller Williams Realty, Newton, MA