If you are like most people, having a home you can call your own has probably been at the top of your list of life’s priorities for the longest time. But here you are today, in your own home, relishing that indescribable feeling of finally being able to call yourself a homeowner.

Congratulations are in order but now, what next? You have bought the house, and it is time for the next step of your homeownership journey. It is time to start making the house into your dream home and there are many changes to make to this new house.

But there is just one problem; after spending thousands of dollars on a new home, you are not yet quite in a place where you can afford to splurge on costly home renovations. Moreover, you are not even sure which projects will give you the best ROI.

What should you do?

As McCourt Real Estate advises many new homeowners, one option is to leave the house as it is and try to turn your attention away from the things you dislike about it. Or, look for a few high-impact projects that won’t cost much money. Because you should not have to go broke trying to make your home look nice, we think the second option is better.

To help you find the best ways to improve your new home without spending much money on it, this post will show you some of the most underestimated home improvement projects for transforming that new home into your dream home.

Home improvement ideas for first-time homeowners

1. Clean and de-clutter

Before you start the process of renovating the home, you need to clean it thoroughly. This is not the cursory cleaning you are used to doing every week; we are talking deep cleaning. The goal here is to peel away layers of dirt that have built up on surfaces.
It could mean giving your home a power wash (inside and outside). It should include removing everything in the house that doesn’t serve a clear purpose. You want a lot of free space by the time you finish.

2. Paint the house

This home improvement project is grossly overlooked because of how little it costs. But the paint on your walls is the canvas against which you lay out the other elements in the house. If the color is wrong, nothing else you do in that home will matter.

Also, painting your house allows you to uncover existing issues with your walls and fix them. You can also use paint to alter the impression of a room; you can make rooms feel larger, smaller, airier, and brighter by your choice of colors.

3. Reface or repaint cabinets

Cabinets take up much of the space in the kitchen and bathroom, and you can make considerable progress by updating them. But you don’t need to replace your cabinets to improve their appearance. All you need to do is reface or repaint the cabinets. If the cabinet façade is still in good shape, sand it down and repaint.

If not, you can reface the cabinets to give them a new look. While doing this, you also want to replace the cabinet pulls, handles, and knobs with something more attractive.

4. Upgrade your lighting

Improve the amount of natural light that gets into your home. In addition to improved natural lighting, you want to upgrade your artificial lighting. The goal is to banish gloom by lighting up the poorly lit corners of the home. You want to ensure each room has lighting that is suitable for what that room is used for; kitchens and bathrooms are essential in this regard.

You also want lighting that offers flexibility in how you control it. Lastly, the lighting inside and outside the home should serve two purposes; they should be functional as well as decorative.

5. Replace the hardware in your home

Doorknobs and plumbing fixtures wear out quickly because people handle them often. They also get the most attention. There is nothing like new faucets to light up a bathroom and make sinks pop.

The same applies to your doors. If you have repainted your doors already, you can complete their new look by replacing old door handles with contemporary ones. Doorknobs and handles are fairly inexpensive and it won’t cost you a lot to get a handyman to install the pieces; this project takes only a few hours.

Upgrade your front entryway

If you power-washed the exterior and repainted it, you have done most of what you need to do outside the home. You may want to pay attention to the front entryway to complete the external transformation. Being the main approach to your home, this part of the property gets a lot of attention.

Make sure visitors are seeing what you want them to see. If the front door is still sound, you may repaint it to give it a facelift and replace the old knocker with an attention-grabbing piece.

In conclusion

To wrap it all up, the truth is you do not need a lot of money to transform your new house into a warm retreat where you and your family can create happy memories. What you need is just the ability to have fun while recreating your home. Plus, the willingness to hire a professional who has experience with home improvements and listen to their advice.