If you are selling a petite house, don’t automatically fall into the mindset of “buyers won’t be interested in my property because it’s too small.” While it is true that a large number of potential buyers will be turned off by the size of your home, there is a specific type of home buyer that is attracted to small properties; a first time home buyer. First time home buyers are a niche market that you need to target in order to sell your tiny home, and you should plan for customized home improvement projects to benefit this target market.

According to a survey conducted by the U.S Census Bureau, “The average first time home buyer is 33 years old and has a household income of $64,100 per year.” What do these stats tell us? They tell us that we will need to cater to a market of young and hip professionals, and we will have to carry out our home improvement projects accordingly.

What does a young, hip and professional first time home buyer want in their starter home? Modern accents. Therefore, our goal is to transform the bathroom from cramped, busy and messy to modern, simple and streamlined. The good news is that this goal can be attained with just a small investment of $500 and a weekend of your time. What will you need? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Below is a chart of the items you will need to purchase and their average cost.

According to HGTV (Home and Garden Television), “You will recoup a rate of 102% on a minor bathroom renovation. Since this small-scale, yet highly effective home improvement project will cost you just under $500, this project falls into the “minor bathroom renovation” category. Ok, it’s time to get the ball rolling. When choosing your wall color, stay as neutral as possible.

While it is true that colors that are associated with modernism tend to be on the bright and bold side of the spectrum, sticking to a modern paint palette that falls on the “safe side” is ideal for a minor bathroom renovation. After all, you are trying to sell a house here, right? A safe and modern color palette will appeal to the masses, in turn pulling in a wider range of interest from the first time home buyer set.

The next most important factor of your bathroom makeover is to build cohesiveness. In order for the bathroom to appeal to buyers, the eye needs to flow throughout the room without obstruction. The easiest way to build a visual obstruction is to place a black finish wrought iron towel rail into a bathroom with nothing but stainless steel finishes. The towel rail will stick out like a sore thumb, consequently breaking up the flow provided by the stainless steel finishes. Choose hardware and accents in the same finish. If your faucet has a stainless steel finish, make it a point to purchase matching hardware and accents.

Another thing to remember when transforming your bathroom is to choose a vanity that blends in with your modern theme. Nothing will turn off a buyer (especially a choosy first time home buyer) like a bulky vanity that looks as if it were catapulted from the late 70’s. Remember, modern is synonymous with up-to-the-minute and antonymous with ancient.

Jazmin Espinal is a professional freelance writer and the owner of Capital Web Writing, a web content solution for businesses and webmasters. To contact Jazmin or to see samples of her writing, please visit CapitalWebWriting.com.

Privacy fences are cropping up around homes everywhere.  Homeowners interested in improving the security and value of their homes are installing a privacy fence to keep important stuff in and bad guys out.  While privacy fences are not cheap, most would agree their cost is worth the benefits.

Four Benefits of Privacy Fence Installation

Added security.  When casing houses for easy access to out-of-sight doors and windows, privacy fences present an obstacle most burglars would rather not deal with.  They would have to find a way to either scale the fence, or remove a section of it, and both options would increase their chances of being detected. Privacy fences also prevent someone from pilfering your collection of yard equipment in the backyard and walking off with it.

Keep pets (and kids) in.  Fencing is a must if you are a pet owner, or have small kids, and deciding what type of fence you need depends on a number of factors.  If you have a large dog, it is possible they will be able to jump over shorter picket or chain link fencing.  Larger dogs may also have an easier time burrowing under flexible fencing.  Another concern is the curious fingers of a neighborhood child reaching through a fence to pet Fido, who is having none of it and tries to take off a child’s finger.  If you share these same concerns, consider a privacy fence.  They are taller, more structurally sound, and have no openings for Fido’s snout.

Increased privacy.  As the name suggests, privacy fences improve privacy around your lot.  For more homeowners, that alone is worth the installation costs.  No more kids peeking through the chain link when you’re out sunbathing.  No more neighbor’s dogs chasing you back inside your house.  Like the saying goes, “Good fences make good neighbors.”

Add value to your home.  Privacy fences are one of the few upgrades you can make to the exterior of your home that actually hold some value should you decide to sell.  Other projects are often not worth the added cost.  Privacy fences are aesthetically pleasing, create separation from neighbors and protection from would-be burglars, while providing a safe surrounding for children and pets.

Whether preparing to sell a home, or just making some needed upgrades, one of the most efficient ways to add value is by painting your house, inside and out.  Fortunately, paint supplies and paint itself are not that expensive, and can it is a task that can be accomplished by the average homeowner.  Here are six house painting tips that will help add value to your home while saving a little money in the process.

Not long ago I painted the entire interior of a house we were planning to sell.  It took a few weekends to work my way around the whole house, but I did it, and picked up a few tips along the way. (I also picked up a case of carpal tunnel syndrome, so it might pay to get painting estimates.

Six Tips For Painting Your House

1. Scrape loose exterior paint thoroughly. Exterior paint that is loose needs to be scraped from wood surfaces before painting over.  If left on the house, it will prevent the new paint from properly bonding to the wood and the new paint will eventually peel away prematurely.  Look for a paint scraper in your local hardware store.

2. When painting inside, painter’s tape is your best friend. I went through a lot of painter’s tape!  I used it to tape trim around doors and windows, and to cover baseboards and paneling that I did not want to get wall-color paint on.  Be sure to peel away the tape before latex paint completely dries, else it will peel away the paint bonded to the tape and leave an uneven edge next to trim.

3. Move furniture to the center of the room.  My basic strategy was to pile as much furniture onto the beds and move them to the center of the room.  Sometimes I had to move everything to the left side of the room and paint, and then move everything to the right side and paint.  This depends largely on the room size, and whether or not you have storage space to hold furniture over the weekend.

4. Cover remaining furniture with a drop cloth.  Drop cloths, plastic tarps, and even newspaper will do in a pinch. The point it to cover all remaining furniture so paint does not splatter or drip when rolling ceiling and walls.

5. Open windows and run ceiling fans to improve ventilation.  Today’s latex-based paints do not come with the same ventilation concerns as their oil-based counterparts, but I have found paint fumes can eventually lead to a bad headache.  I like to open windows and turn on ceiling fans while painting rooms to improve ventilation.  Don’t forgot to lock windows back when you are finished.

6. Cleanup, cleanup, cleanup.  My least favorite part of painting is cleaning up after.  I generally drop all brushes, edgers and rollers in a rolling pan and head outside.  Do not clean brushes with latex paint in your kitchen sink as the paint can dry and clog drains downstream.  Once in the backyard I fill a small bucket with water and a little dish washing soap.  You can use a paint thinner or cleaner if you want, but I’ve found a little soap does the trick.  Thoroughly wash and rinse all brushes, rollers and pans to remove as much paint as possible.  Really work the soap and water down into the paint brushes to prevent hardening around the roots of the bristles.