upgrade your home

Add value to your home with cosmetic fixes, revamps, and tech that makes your house appealing to buyers

Regardless of whether you’re looking to turn a profit when you sell, or you’re planning to live in your home forever, it’s worth learning the different types of improvements that can add value to your property. These range from cosmetic changes like converting the attic or redesigning your kitchen, through to structural repairs such as fixing rising damp.

According to some property developers, one of the easiest ways to add value without draining your bank account is to ensure the central heating is in good working order. Updating your heating adds more value to your home than it costs, helping to improve the energy efficiency rating of your property.

This type of work could include installing a new boiler, sealing drafts around doors and windows, insulating the attic, and replacing ‘blown’ double-glazing. New windows alone can add considerable value to your home, as long as they meet building regulations.

If your boiler is new and not in need of replacing, consider adding radiators to rooms that don’t currently have them, or perhaps underfloor heating in the kitchen or bathroom, or even a heated towel rail.

Tackling superficial flaws are an easy win too, and by that we mean repainting walls, oiling squeaky doors and cabinets, and replacing broken tiles. You could also add value by changing your home’s flooring from soft to hard (ie, to wood, slate or tile) and introducing statement light fittings. These things may seem small at the time, but together they help create the sense of a polished space, and that boosts your home’s perceived value on multiple levels.

rethinking your space

The kitchen is a prime room for reinvention and adding further value to your home – a stylish, well-fitted kitchen is attractive to surveyors as well as to potential buyers. Your existing kitchen could add more value if you move some cupboards around, or add in a breakfast bar or kitchen island.

The bathroom and garden are other areas to focus on. By making these as inviting as possible, you can boost your home’s appeal and subsequently its value. For example, a conservatory, powered outhouse or a fully-fledged garden pod that doubles as a creative studio space or home office adds extra living dimensions to your home, and therefore increases its value.

If your home doesn’t currently benefit from off-street parking, and you own land to convert at the front of your property, – and you’re willing to sacrifice that potential garden space – look into installing a driveway (you’ll have to adhere to local authority highway regulations when

Sticking to bigname smart home tech adds value as buyers know the benefits at a glance

building a drop kerb). This will undoubtedly add value to your home.

addING value with tech

While the majority of smart home tech might not increase the monetary value of your home per se, it could increase its perceived value to buyers... And therefore help your home stand out. How so? Smart home tech aims to make living easier, so with the right gadgets installed you’re actually selling an elegantly automated home vibe; one that gives you more time to chill (via tech that can be scheduled to do chores), enjoy lower energy bills (smart heating), and feel secure (smart security).

According to some estate agents, the trick is sticking to big-name smart home brands that prospective buyers know at a glance. That said, there are some ace smart home gadgets from smaller brands. Whatever tech you install with a view to adding value to your home, explain the benefits of that tech to the agent selling your house, as they can pass this on to prospective buyers.

Installing gadgets that ensure your home’s health for the long-haul are another good investment. The Grohe Sense Guard, a device that sits on your main water pipe to monitor for leaks, is great. Easy to use whole-home systems, like the Wondrwall (£499, wondrwall.co.uk) for cultivating intelligent living spaces, are also worth exploring for adding value to your home.