Planning to Sell Your Home? Here’s How to Protect and Increase Home Value on a Budget

Dusty Rhodes • May 10, 2022

1) Declutter to increase home value


It happens to all of us – the storage closet that was once empty, is now overflowing; and belongings that should be stored away have found new homes elsewhere. If this sounds familiar, now is a great time to begin eliminating things you no longer need.


Decluttering is one of the most inexpensive ways to increase home value. Pay particular attention to your kitchen and bathrooms, as well as your living room, as these are most often a home’s best selling points. Tackle this project room-by-room, and don’t move on until the room is finished so you can avoid creating an endless pile of stuff. You can begin by categorizing your items using three different piles. One for belongings you’d like to keep, one for “maybe’s,” and one for donation items. In a few days, come back to the “maybe” pile and make the final cuts.


Follow these tips as you begin decluttering:


  • Prioritize organizing your bathroom. Start with your countertops and work your way to your linen closet and medicine cabinets. Try to remove personal items like your toothbrush, hairbrush, and mouthwash so buyers can imagine their own space.
  • Tidy up your home office. be sure to file away or shred old papers, clear off your desk, and hide any unsightly cords using zip ties or cords.
  • Throw out any expired items throughout your home. This includes items in the kitchen, pantry, bathroom, and medicine cabinet.
  • Sort through your closet and remove extra hangers, and donate or toss out clothes or shoes you no longer need. This will help your closet space appear more spacious and organized.
  • Remember, your entryway sets the first impression. Be sure to declutter it of personal items and create an entrance that draws buyers in.
  • Clear your kitchen countertops. Avoid using this space for random objects, and try to hide all countertop appliances, such as your blender, toaster, and crockpot. 
  • Depersonalize your home. Remove items that are too personal, like family photos. It will help if potential buyers imagine themselves in the space.
  • Try to remove visual clutter from hallways, such as hooks, artwork, and photographs. Cramped hallways can be a deal breaker.
  • Pare down throw pillows, blankets, and decor in the living room to make the space feel larger. 
  • Organize bookshelves and display cabinets. Strip the layer of dust, remove trinkets, personal items, storage bins, and arrange and style books.
  • Don’t forget to clear out your refrigerator, freezer, and under the sinks. Potential buyers will surely be curious about storage space.
  • Be sure to stash away any children’s toys and pet toys. While your home is on the market, try to limit the number of toys available to play with.
  • Create a laundry space where potential buyers will be able to imagine themselves almost enjoying the chore. Be sure to clear countertops and organize your cleaning products.


Decluttering can be a huge task for just one person to complete. Working with a professional organizer may be the best choice, and can even increase a home’s asking price by up to 5%.


2) Deep clean your home


After you’ve decluttered, the next step is to deep clean your home. That means it’s time to wipe and dust every surface, mop, and vacuum carpets and floors. Dig deep into the kitchen, make your bathroom shine, and tidy up your living room. Odor can also make a lasting impression, especially a bad-smelling one. Pets, kids, food, and other conditions can make your home smell and discourage potential homebuyers. 


Keeping your house clean can be a time-consuming task, and let’s face it – sometimes it’s hard to find the time to clean your home from top to bottom. Consider hiring a professional cleaning service; they’re less likely to overlook something that may not be on your cleaning checklist. They’ll also be able to reach every nook and cranny of your home to leave it shining so you can increase home value, sell your house quickly, and for more money. In fact, according to a 2019 survey by HomeLight, deep cleaning can add as much as $4,000 to your home’s resale value. 


3) Paint your home, inside and out


When selling your home, it’s important for potential homebuyers to picture themselves living there. Dull, dingy, chipped, or low-quality paint may discourage buyers and hurt your property value. Avoid busy and bright colors as these shades tend to turn attention away from the home itself. Painting the interior of your home in a neutral color requires a relatively small investment for what you’ll get in return, which is usually increased home value, more interested homebuyers, and hopefully more competing offers.


Painting the exterior of your home may cost a bit more, but the increase in curb appeal could sell your home faster. Does it need it? Take a walk outside and look around. Do you see any cracks or peeling? Has the color faded? If the answer is yes, the time to repaint is now.


Consider hiring a professional painting company so they can eliminate the risk of using the wrong brush, buying low-quality paint, or using too much or too little. 


4) Replace the garage door


Your garage door has likely experienced a lot of wear and tear over the years. How did it sound the last time you opened and closed it? You may have forgotten about dents from bike wrecks or flying balls after a while, but buyer’s will definitely notice. Check the sweep, too. If blowing rains come under the door, chances are critters do too and the sweep needs replacing. For less than $5,000, on average, you can increase home value and reap an ROI of almost 94 percent when you replace it. 


5) Add manufactured stone veneer


To really spruce things up and increase home value, consider giving your home a stone veneer facelift. Manufactured stone pairs well with many house styles and gives it a rich feel. Why would you want to spend money on an upgrade like stone veneer if you’re just selling your home anyways? If your home is competing with several others in your area that are similar in appearance, a stone veneer is a great way to draw attention to your listing and could help you sell your home quicker and for more money.


If you have vinyl siding, incorporating manufactured stone veneer is a great way to enhance your curb appeal and increase home value. On average, you can cover 300-square-feet of the bottom third of your home’s street-facing facade for about $10,000 and reap a whopping 92 percent ROI, according to Remodeling magazine’s 2021 Cost vs. Value Report.


6) Increase home value by upgrading your kitchen


It’s easy to understand why the kitchen is a huge selling point for buyers, they often imagine preparing meals and socializing with family and friends in the new space. Budget-friendly and simple improvements include repainting cabinets, adding a backsplash, and replacing the sink. You can also opt for eco-friendly options and upgrade to a low-energy microwave, select water-efficient features, and energy-efficient lighting. No matter which project you choose to do in the heart of your home – it should increase your enjoyment of the space. In fact, the National Association of the Remodeling Industry gives upgrading your kitchen a “joy score” of 10 in their annual Remodeling Impact Report.


7) Pay attention to your yard


First impressions make a difference when selling a home, and sprucing up the exterior of your home is just as important as the interior. Put yourself in the buyer’s shoes. Would you feel compelled to tour a home if it didn’t look well kept on the outside? 

Curb appeal helps to bring buyers through the door, sell your home quickly, and can increase the value of your home up to 11%.


Here are some easy, budget-friendly curb appeal ideas improvements you can try today.


  • Repaint or replace your front door. Front doors quickly begin to look worn and tired with daily use and extreme weather. Repainting or replacing your door is a quick and cost-effective way to add curb appeal. 
  • Update the exterior lighting. If your walkway up to your front door is poorly lit or your fixtures are outdated, consider updating your exterior lighting to create a more inviting entryway. You can also illuminate some of your landscaping work, trees, and shrubs. From post lights, LED lights, solar lights, and wall mounts, the options are endless.
  • Switch out your old fence. Worn fences can take the attention away from your home and hurt your property value. Replacing your existing fence for a new one can give your yard the boost it needs by enhancing the greenery, ensuring privacy and security, and increasing home value. You can choose between several different materials, including wood, vinyl, aluminum, wrought iron, and composite.
  • Hire a professional landscaper. Opt for a low-maintenance and clean-cut landscape design to appeal to buyers, and increase how much your property is worth. Even edging the beds, mulching the garden, and pruning the trees and hedges can enhance any landscape. Consider working with a professional landscaper to maximize your curb appeal and create a front yard that buyers will love the moment they arrive.
  • Wash the windows and the siding. It doesn’t take long for your house and windows to form a layer of dust, dirt, fingerprints, or even algae, leaving your home looking dull and grimy. Hire a professional for regular cleaning to avoid paint stripping, splinters, and mold and mildew problems.


8) Let the light in


More lighting can bring life into a room. While a poorly lit room can feel small, dark, and cramped, a brightly lit space does just the opposite. The proper lighting can make your home look cleaner, more spacious, and increase home value. Try to schedule open houses and home tours during the brightest time of the day, and be sure to open window blinds to increase natural light. Replace dim bulbs with bright, warm-spectrum bulbs. Consider incorporating recessed lighting into your home, the number one most valuable home trend today. You can even incorporate an eye-catching light fixture, perhaps in the entryway, to improve the perceived value of your home and add a bit of character.


9) Focus on the bathroom


The bathroom is one of the most important rooms to prospective buyers, and a few budget-friendly updates can take it to the next level. Consider replacing the sink faucet with a stylish alternative, switching out your showerhead, adding granite or marble countertops to your bath vanity, or upgrading the lighting. 


10) Pay attention to the details


Even the smallest updates have the ability to dramatically improve the appearance of your home. Check out these quick and budget-friendly improvements that can increase home value:


  • Updating knobs on kitchen cabinets and doors
  • Fix loose wires and leaky faucets
  • Add attic insulation
  • Wrap up home projects and little repairs
  • Replace faceplates and wall switches
  • Refinish your hardwood floors
  • Regrout floor and shower tile


11) Hire a home inspector


If you’re preparing to sell your home, it’s a good idea to schedule a pre-listing home inspection to check out the areas of your home that you don’t normally see and identify any problems in advance. Home inspectors look for underlying safety issues on the home’s structural, electrical, and mechanical systems that could severely impact a buyer’s resources to make necessary or needed repairs. Roof damage, a termite infestation, a water leak, or outdated electrical wiring will surely decrease property value. If you’re aware of the issues, you’ll be able to get them repaired before listing your home all while increasing the value of your home.

Source: RedFin


Dusty Rhodes Properties is the Best Realtor in Myrtle Beach! We do everything in our power to help you find the home of your dreams. With experience, expertise, and passion, we are the perfect partner for you in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. We love what we do and it shows. With more than 22 years of experience in the field, we know our industry like the back of our hands. There’s no challenge too big or too small, and we dedicate our utmost energy to every project we take on. We search thousands of the active and new listings from Aynor, Carolina Forest, Conway, Garden City Beach, Longs, Loris, Murrells Inlet, Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, Pawleys Island, and Surfside Beach real estate listings to find the hottest deals just for you!

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How To Make Sure Your Sale Crosses the Finish Line

By Dusty Rhodes • November 10, 2025
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Planning To Sell in 2026? Start the Prep Now

By Dusty Rhodes • November 3, 2025
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How to Move Out After Selling a House

By Dusty Rhodes • October 13, 2025
From the first coat of paint you used to freshen up your house’s trim to the stress of wrangling your way to a deal, you’ve been through a lot in that place. Now you’ve made it to the final hurdle of selling a home: moving out! Don’t worry, this is the easy part… but you want to do it right. Here’s how to get through the last leg of your journey without any bumps along the way. How to move out on time Once the paperwork is signed at closing, the buyers will officially own the house—and you won’t. That means that, technically, if you or your stuff is still there after the close, “the buyer could evict you,” says Joshua Jarvis , founder of Jarvis Team Realty in Duluth, GA. So make sure to have your exit strategy in place! Still, most buyers will understand if you need a bit more time and have a legitimate reason—like if you can’t move until the weekend due to your work schedule. Just be sure to discuss these issues as soon as possible before the close, so your buyers can plan accordingly. Decide what to leave behind To make sure you’re leaving behind everything the buyer wanted—and that you agreed to—double-check the closing documents . There should be an itemized list of what comes with the house . And even if the buyers didn’t formally request them, it’s just good form to leave certain types of things behind. Such as? “Generally speaking, you should leave anything that’s bolted to the wall,” says Jarvis. “Some homeowners want to take their fans and blinds to the next home, but generally if it’s screwed in, it stays.” Also, if you and the buyers agreed to transfer any services—such as alarm monitoring or pest control —be sure to set that up before you go. Leave the buyers a detailed note in the house, or ask your agent to get in touch with theirs to make sure the transfer goes smoothly. If you do inadvertently take an item that the buyers had requested, they have the right to ask for it back—and they could potentially sue you in civil court for the cost of a replacement. So, when in doubt, feel free to check with the buyers before you grab and go. But don’t leave anything else behind Just as important as what you leave behind is what you don’t. Your buyers have a right to move into a home that’s been cleared of furniture and other movable items they didn’t expressly request. “Some folks leave all kinds of unwanted clothes, furniture, paint cans, and other items, thinking they are helping the buyers,” Jarvis says. If you truly think your buyers might love to have your old planting pots or kiddie equipment, go ahead and ask—but please don’t assume they’ll welcome your leftovers. Even if you’re careful, you might forget something—at which point the buyers may contact their agent to get it back to you, but they also have the legal right to just keep or get rid of it. So double-check areas (e.g., the attic, garage, basement, storage shed, kitchen, and bathroom drawers) where people commonly overlook items. Clean up It’s common courtesy to leave the place not only clear of your possessions but also clean. However, that doesn’t mean you have to leave it immaculate. “Generally, you shouldn’t have to pay to have it deep cleaned,” Jarvis says. In most cases, a simple broom-clean will do. That means wiping down the countertops, cleaning out drawers, sweeping or vacuuming all the floors, and giving the bathroom and kitchen appliances a once-over so the new owners aren’t grossed out when they arrive. Are you forgetting anything? Before you close the door for the last time, run through a quick checklist. Did you eyeball every room for stray items? Have you forwarded your mail and turned off the utilities? Is the water running in the jacuzzi? We all get in a bit of a rush even in the best planned moves, but you won’t be able to get back in, so it can’t hurt to do a final run-through before you move out. Once you’re ready, it’s time to leave. You can drop a line to your real estate agent to let them know you’re out, although it’s usually a courtesy more than a necessity. If you’re feeling truly gracious, feel free to leave a note, card, or bottle of bubbly congratulating the people who’ve inherited your former home. Given all the fond memories you’ve built between those walls, wouldn’t it be nice to start the home’s new owners off on the right foot? And buy yourself some Champagne, too. Make it the good stuff—you’ve earned it.