Too cold? Too hot? Too dark? Too dated? Too … something else? Try these DIY solutions that cost $500 or less.
No matter how much you love your home, there’s probably something about it you’d love to change. Fixing major flaws can prove costly, but many more affordable renovations can make your home more comfortable and convenient without breaking your budget.
These nine home renovation ideas under $500 can help fix common (and bothersome) imperfections, especially if you’re willing to consider DIY solutions. You can also save money by sourcing fixtures, décor and materials via secondhand marketplaces or consignment shops.
1. Add built-in storage
Common complaint: Inadequate storage space
Home renovation tip: To remedy this problem, you either need to use more of your space for storage or use existing storage space more efficiently. Storage hacks, like hooks, racks, shelf and drawer dividers, stackers, bins and storage boxes can help. Mount racks to store spices or stemmed glassware. Add hooks to hold dish towels, aprons and oven mitts. Install holders inside cupboard doors for aluminum foil, paper bags and cleaning supplies.
2. Plant greenery in place of a fence
Common complaint: Lack of privacy
Home renovation tip: No matter how much you like your neighbors, you may not want them waving to you through your bedroom or bathroom windows. If hiring a pro to move a badly placed window to a better location isn’t in your budget, there are more simple fixes you can try. Adding window coverings, placing colored films over the insides of your window panes and strategically planting taller bushes or leafy trees outside should make your home more private and block excessive sunlight.
3. Paint your bathroom tile
Common complaint: A dated bathroom
Home renovation tip: A full bathroom remodel can cost thousands of dollars, but you don’t need to spend that much to make simple creative renovations to the smallest rooms in your home. An $80 tub and tile refinishing kit, some elbow grease and a weekend can whisk your pastel pink shower to the current era. Other budget-friendly renovations for bathrooms include:
- hanging wallpaper
- replacing mirrors
- swapping out light fixtures
- updating door and cabinet hardware
- replacing faucets
- installing rain-style showerheads
- adding tile backsplashes
Combine multiple fixes for a truly updated look.
4. Breathe new life into your cooking space
Common complaint: A dated kitchen
Home renovation tip: Redoing a kitchen can cost even more than remodeling a bathroom, but again, you don’t need to spend thousands of dollars to make renovations. Paint is a classic budget-friendly home renovation and with good reason. A new color for your walls, cabinets, ceiling or even the floor can brighten and update your kitchen for a relatively small investment. To go further, update your kitchen’s lighting, faucet, door and cabinet hardware, and window coverings if your kitchen has a window. Adding more storage can help you declutter a dated kitchen and show off its vintage charm.
5. Get strategic with lighting
Common complaint: Dark rooms or hallways
Home renovation tip: Sometimes, brightening a dark room can be as easy as swapping out light bulbs that give off more light into your existing fixtures. Just be careful not to exceed the fixture’s wattage limits as that can cause a fire. Another low-lift way to solve the problem: hang mirrors in the room to reflect existing light sources.
Of course, you can also upgrade your fixtures or add additional lights, such as ceiling, pendant or track lighting, rope lights, and under-the-counter or cabinet lighting. Just note that these upgrades could cost more than $500 depending on the size of your room and whether you hire a pro to help. Have a particularly pesky room, like an entryway, with no pre-wired ceiling light? Consider hanging a decorative swag light via a cord and hook in the ceiling, or try wall sconces with battery-operated puck lights as a DIY-friendly hack.
6. Weatherproof your attic and garage
Common complaint: Rooms are too hot or too cold
Home renovation tip: Adding fiberglass insulation to your home’s attic or crawl space can help keep it — and you — comfortable, regardless of the weather outside. Lower heating and cooling bills may help offset the cost, but if it’s still not in your budget or doesn’t completely resolve the problem, other easier fixes can also improve heating and cooling issues. Add weather stripping and door sweeps to your windows and exterior doors, including those in your garage. Apply foam sealers to the electrical outlets and switches in your exterior walls. You can also consider swapping out a room’s central light for a ceiling fan to help better circulate the air, or adding an electric fireplace insert if you don’t have a wood-burning fireplace.
7. Give your ceilings a creative upgrade
Common complaint: Popcorn ceilings
Home renovation tip: Removing a dated popcorn ceiling from an older home can be messy and dangerous due to the fact that they may contain the harmful substance asbestos. Unless you’re doing a major remodel, it’s usually advisable to leave asbestos in place because the loose fibers can be a health hazard. That’s why many homeowners choose to hide this type of ceiling rather than rip it out. You can cover or camouflage a popcorn ceiling creatively with wood planks, faux tin tiles, fabric, shiplap and drywall boards. Popcorn can also be cleverly disguised or played down with smart paint choices or lamps that direct light away from the ceiling.
8. Make your garage door do double duty
Common complaint: No back or side door in garage
Home renovation tip: Home garages often have a side door for pedestrians in addition to the front door through which vehicles enter and exit. But suppose your garage has no second door and there’s a power outage. How will you get access to your car or emergency supplies? The expensive solutions are to add a second door or install a new garage door opener with a battery backup. A cheaper option is a $15 lock-and-key latch pull that’s drilled into your existing garage door. Open the lock, pull the chain, and the garage door latch will flip. This allows you to raise the door manually and access your garage.
9. Makeover your front porch
Common complaint: No curb appeal
Home renovation tip: If your home’s curb appeal didn’t wow you when you bought it, you may want to make some improvements for your own enjoyment. Ideas for a budget-friendly curb appeal makeover include painting your front door, replacing dated landscaping, power washing exterior walls, adding decorative plants, updating exterior lighting and refreshing your house address numbers.