Tips On Updating Your Home Without Breaking the Bank

June 27, 2022

Tips On Updating Your Home Without Breaking the Bank

We moved into our current house 4 years ago, and yes, we are still updating it and working on it. Owning a home is a never-ending project. I like projects and love updating/decorating, but there's only so much $ in the budget and so much time each year for home renovations.

Our house was built in 1990 so it had bright brass doorknobs, hinges, faucets, etc. It even had linoleum in the kitchen and bath and carpet in the dining room. The first year we moved in we repainted the entire house. It was yellow and I'm just not a fan of yellow. We replaced all of the doorknobs and hinges from brass to black. That was a time consuming job, but it didn't cost a fortune and was something I could do myself. I also painted the front shutters which were burgundy, to a sage green color. We had to paint the deck because it had been neglected for quite some time. If you have a big deck, I highly recommend buying a paint sprayer. It was worth every penny!

The second year I decided to sand and paint the kitchen cabinets and bathroom cabinets. That was very time consuming, but did not cost much at all. As a matter of fact, I only had to get 3 gallons of paint and some sandpaper, less than $200. The cabinets were cherry. I painted the kitchen cabinets black, bathroom cabinets gray and the shelves/mantle in the living room from cherry to white. What a difference a coat of paint makes! If you decide to take on sanding and painting something, I would for sure splurge on a handheld sander. It makes life much easier and makes your project move along faster. I also suggest you do it in the summertime or fall or spring when you can take doors off and do them outside. Definitely not a winter job.

The third year we paid someone to replace our floors. We kept the hardwood areas, but put tile in place of the linoleum areas and in the dining room. I never did understand carpet in a dining room. I would have loved to have put hardwood everywhere, but we would have had to sand and refinish the current hardwood because they don't make our color anymore. I wasn't up to that, nor was it in our budget. I love how the tile floors turned out!

This year we have been replacing faucets, from brass to black. We had to change out the towel bars, toilet paper holders and faucets in the bathrooms. This can be quite expensive to do it all at once. We spread them out and did a few each month. We have a roman bathtub and could not find a faucet under $400 to replace the one that is on there. I couldn't bring myself to pay that, so I took the old one off, sanded it and painted it matte black. It looks great and has held up wonderfully! When you go to replace a faucet, try to get the same brand, especially in the shower. We found out that replacing one faucet with a different brand can be quite the challenge. Not all of the fittings are the same. If you stay with the same brand, installation is much easier! Also, if you have a pedestal sink, most likely you will have to remove the sink from the wall before you can replace the faucet. What a pain that was, but it worked.

We have also been replacing light fixtures. Some of them I liked, but just not in brass. We took them down and I spray painted them matte black and just put them back up. The only cost was a $10 can of spray paint. Others we have replaced completely. The only ones we have left to replace are the 2 ceiling fans. I've purchased them, but we just haven't put them up yet. It does take 2 people to hang lights, so make sure you have someone nearby when you need help. I've also been gradually painting baseboards. We didn't paint those when we first moved in and I hate that job. That's something that's good to work on in the winter time.

There is joy in owning a home, along with never-ending projects. Creating memories with family and friends are priceless. Building equity in your home is an investment. There will always be upkeep and work to do. I say, embrace it and enjoy it. We had to strip and sand our front porch this Spring and repaint it. Not one of my favorite things to do. The deck will need another coat of sealant/paint this fall. Again, not a project I enjoy. But, I do enjoy having friends over and sitting on the back deck, grilling out and enjoying our backyard - well worth the time and effort we put into maintaining it.

Create a checklist of things/projects that you want to do and projects that you need to do, but maybe don't like doing. Divide them up into the month you want to work on them. This helps with your budget and won't burn you out doing them all at once. Maybe alternate doing projects you look forward to with the ones you dread. You can also alternate big $ projects with smaller $ projects so you don't kill your budget all at once. Now that you've divided them up into months of the year, put them on the calendar! This helps ensure that they actually get done. Then, research your project before time to do it. Look up DIY videos on YouTube and check out pictures on Pinterest. Shop around for the right item at the right price before time to buy it. Then, when it is time, you know where you will go and how much it is going to cost. Last, but not least, take before and after pics! I am the terrible at taking before pics. I never remember until I'm halfway through a project. Below are some pics of projects we've been working on. Let me know what you want to work on or if you have questions about a certain project.