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While some home improvements can be expensive, such as adding central air conditioning or remodeling an entire room of your house, there are more affordable projects that can give you the same effect for a much lower cost.
Here are some simple, affordable home improvement projects to try this summer that won’t break the bank.
Declutter Your Home
Decluttering doesn’t cost anything, and you can earn some money by selling items you no longer use. If you really want to go all out, you can dig in and organize your entire house, or simply pick a place in your home that needs it most and get to work. You set the pace.
Because of the warm weather, summer is a good time to declutter and air out those oft-forgotten areas, like the garage, an outdoor shed, or basement, that tend to be used less during colder months.
Refresh Your House With Paint
Summer is the perfect season for bigger paint projects. If you have areas in your home that you’ve been meaning to repaint, such as entire rooms or the exterior, summer is the time to do it—and a little paint could go a long way in transforming your space. The warm weather lets the paint cure properly and ensures that it will last longer.
Expect to pay between $15 to $50 per gallon at home improvement stores or shop our local ReStores for volume-based discounted paint to save.
Check Gutters
This might not be the most fun or creative home improvement project, but it’s an important one to protect your home for the winter months ahead and against summer storms. Winter, followed by a rainy spring, can take a toll on your gutters and downspouts. If they’re ignored, you could end up needing to replace them altogether, or worse, dealing with foundation damage, interior flooding, driveway cracks, or landscape erosion. The damage would end up costing you way more than cleaning your gutters.
All you need (if you don’t have this equipment already) is a gutter cleaning attachment for your garden hose, a ladder, a bucket, a gutter scoop, and heavy-duty gloves. You could also buy a gutter guard to protect your gutters and prevent leaves from gathering in them.
Spruce Up Outdoor Areas
Give your yard some attention, too—chances are, you’re probably spending a lot more time in it to enjoy the beautiful summer weather. While the cost of renovating your outdoor space varies depending on the project, there are simple improvements you can make to elevate your backyard or front yard for a lot less.
Summertime is the perfect time to plant perennials, a variety of beautiful-looking flowers that are low maintenance. Lupines and hydrangeas as other beautiful (and low maintenance) additions to your garden.
Adding plants or flowers leading up the walkway to your front door can get you some instant curb appeal and liven up your front yard. You can do the same kind of sprucing up in your backyard to get rid of any overgrown or dead plants, trees, or shrubs, and add some patio furniture. You could also paint your patio furniture and make it look good as new. Hang some outdoor string lights to make your space a dreamy oasis perfect for hosting a backyard event.
Clean Or Replace AC Filters
Another not-so-fun but very important summer home improvement—cleaning or replacing the filters on your HVAC unit. Don’t worry: this one is quick and won’t take up as much time as cleaning your gutters. Filters get dirty, especially if they haven’t been changed in six months. Dirty filters can cause allergies by circulating dust, mold, and other allergens throughout your home when you have the AC on during the summer. All you have to do is find your AC and furnace vents, unscrew it, and clean or replace the filters. Look for filters with a MERV rating between 8 and 13 for optimal protection.
