7 DIY Ways To Improve Your Home Before Selling

If you are looking to sell your house fast and get the best value for it then you should probably start improving it early. There are some simple do it yourself home improvements you can make that will uplift the look of your house and make it stand out in order to attract potential buyers. Whereas remodeling sounds expensive and you may be on a budget the following pocket-friendly tips will leave your house looking classy and new.

Woodinville painters

1. Keep it clean

Selling your home is all about first impressions. You want buyers to fall in love from the first viewing. The path leading to your house should be clean. If you have a yard or a garden make sure they are trimmed and the lawn recently manicured. The house should be sparkly clean as well. Clean everywhere in the house and consider hiring professional help for all your carpets. Remember to buff all the wooden surfaces as well.

2. Lighting

It is important for you to let natural light take over your house whenever you schedule a viewing. Dark spaces should be eliminated. Clean all your windows and blinds and leave them wide open for some fresh air to enter all the rooms. Check that all your bulbs are working and replace dim lights with new bright ones. You can spruce up the living room by adding a chandelier if you have the money for it.

3. A fresh coat of paint

New paint gives your home an improved image. Paint all your interior and exterior walls. If you want to appeal to a large number of people then consider neutral colors.

4. Home staging to sell

This helps potential clients envision themselves living the kind of lifestyle that you have staged your house to depict. It helps if you declutter the house and rid it from personal items. Keep it simple with bright furniture and unique accessories. Spice it up with good wall art or a mirror. Mirrors are especially helpful as their reflective nature opens up a room making it seem spacious and less cramped up.

5. Change all your fittings

Replace your door knobs and light fittings to encompass a modern design for modern homes. Replace all loose light fittings and broken taps. Check if your floor has broken skirtings and replace them. Fittings include having a good electrical system. Check that your doorbell is working and that your sprinklers are not blocked. Ensure that your house can pass a standard home safety inspection test.

6. Kitchen

These are very sensitive areas. Replace all broken kitchen appliances. Restore your kitchen with a modern version of common kitchen appliances like microwaves and dishwashers. Keep all kitchen surfaces sparkly clean.

7. House plants

Most people appreciate nature and plants give life to any home. Improve your home by going green. Place a few houseplants in the living room.

Even though you can do most of these home improvements on your own, consider having a second opinion from a professional. A professional eye will guide you on the areas that you need to improve on to get the best value for your house.

STIHL Pressure washer BR800

The claim

According to STIHL, the BR800 is a professional grade pressure washer built for daily commercial use.

Test of time

2-month update: We have pressure washed roughly 20 single family residntial homes. All homes between 2800 and 6000 square feet. Our new machine has been perfect. It has started on the first pull every single time!! (with pressure released)

6-month update:

1-year update:

What we love about our Stihl washer

Vibration dampers

A first notable feature is vibration dampers. With all of our other pressure washers, the body begins to fall apart within the first 20 jobs. STIHL attempts to solve this issue by adding engine vibration dampers between the motor and the pressure washer body. The pump and the motor vibrate, but the body of the power washer remains very steady!

This pressure washer starts easy!

This is the easiest starting pressure washer we have ever owned. Assuming you have released pressure and kept the trigger pulled while pulling the rope, a gentle pull on the rope is all that is need! We have washed about 20 homes with our new Stihl machine, and not once has is not started with the first pull!

Pump oil view window

Unlike most other washers, the Stihl washer has a large and easy to see pump oil viewing window

Tip holders that actually hold the tips

These tip holders actually hold the tips snugly.  Combined with the fact that this machine does not vibrate, your tips are sure to never be lost.

See this pressure washer on Stihl website

You might also be interested in How to change motor oil on a Dewalt Pressure washer

Read this article on Redfin

Whether you’re planning on painting the interior or exterior of your home, adding a fresh coat of paint is one of the simplest ways to update your space.

We’ve worked with paint experts to answer homeowner’s most frequent questions – ensuring that your summer paint projects go off without a hitch.

1. Should I Pick Interior Paint Color or Furniture First?

When designing a room, New Look Painting recommends always deciding on your furniture first. Then use your furniture for inspiration in choosing your wall colors. Subtleties and undertones in paint colors are more easily matched to the furniture than the other way around. By opting to paint your walls first and then purchasing the furniture, you may find yourself repainting the walls to match your new decor.

2. Can I Paint Over Wallpaper? Or Should I Remove It?

Supreme Painting explains that short answer is yes, but if possible the wallpaper should be removed prior to adding a texture or painting. If the water in the paint gets to the glue, it might release the paper from the wall causing bubbles in the wallpaper which would be noticeable after painting. If you just have to paint over wallpaper, it is a good idea to prime it with an oil-based primer to seal and protect from water.

3. What Type of Paint Should I use to Make a Room Look Bigger?

Elegant Painting recommends four steps for making a room look bigger with paint:

1. Choose similar shades of the same color for walls, ceilings, and trim. In other words, minimize the contrast between surfaces. Choosing contrasting colors will divide up your space and make it appear smaller.
2. Stick to lighter colors. Stay with whites and off-whites. Light grays and taupe are great choices as well.
3. Choose Sherwin William’s® high reflective white for the ceiling. High reflective white is a very bright white that will make your ceilings appear higher.
4. Order lighter shades of your favorite colors. Most paint stores can mix your colors at 50% or 25%.

4. What About if I’m Trying to Avoid Toxins While Painting my Home Interior?

Paint Green has found that choosing your type of paint has the biggest impact on exposure to toxins. It’s easy to avoid the harmful chemicals of past times by using non-toxic paint and materials. In the rare occasion that you need to use toxic paint indoors, keeping your windows open and fans on for 24-48 hours after painting will help.

Better yet, take a vacation while the project is going on for the best (and most fun) way to avoid the vapors and off-gassing.

House painters Redmond, WA – Elegant Painting®.

Step 1: Apply a heavy coat of deck or flooring coating of your choice.

After cleaning, scraping and priming the surface, roll on a heavy coat of deck or flooring paint.

Step 2) Sprinkle traction material

While the paint is still wet, apply a heavy coat of traction material; GacoGrip or similar product.

Step 3)  Roll traction material into the surface

Using a roller, work the traction material into the paint.  Allow some drying time and enjoy!

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