Believe it or not, you CAN transform your home to sell without spending a fortune or too much time. This family of five proves that budget-friendly updates are possible and make a significant difference when selling your home. Meet the Todds...

The Todd Family, recent clients of Nail & Key Real Estate Group co-founder Davis Scott, bought a home in Bedford, TX and shortly after Jeff unexpectedly got a new job in Tyler, TX.

The Todds purchased the Bedford home for $200,000 (and Davis helped them win the home against 13 other offers!). After making a few inexpensive and feasible updates, they were able to sell the same home for $223,500. In only 7 short months between buying and selling, the Todds made a profit on their home!

Even old homes don't necessarily need tens of thousands of dollars in updates. The Todd's home was an outdated canvas but their simple changes resulted in an inviting space. They repainted the walls and cabinetry, switched the flooring, installed new baseboards and door frames, installed bead boarding in their bathroom, and added new lighting for a total of about $12,000 in updates.

Much of the updates were simple enough to do themselves! Flooring was the only work that the Todds chose to hire someone else to do for them. The kids even had fun jumping in.

Here is a breakdown of costs:

Check out the before-and-after pictures in between our list of budget-friendly updates!

1. Fresh Coat of Paint

By re-painting with an off-white color, the Todds were able to help the house appear larger, brighter, newer, and more inviting. It cost approximately $400 for paint for all the walls of their 1,800 sq. ft. house. The affect was night-and-day in the master bedroom...

They spent about $75 on paint for the kitchen cabinets. You can see the drastic difference this made in the kitchen...

They also painted the fireplace, ceilings, doors, mantles, and hardware for approximately $300.

Left: painted fireplace with mantle, Right: Krista and kids

2. Updated Flooring

The only update the Todds hired out was the flooring. Tiling was replaced by laminate for a beautiful hardwood-look. This was the most pricey (yet still reasonable) of the updates at $2,000 for materials and approximately $6,000 in labor costs. The results proved to be well worth it!

3. New Baseboards and Door Frames

Installing new door frames and baseboards is not costly and provides a much more polished, finished look to your home.

4. Add Beadboarding or Shiplap

If you are not familiar with beadboarding, a good way to explain it is "sideways shiplap." It only cost the Todds about $100 to add beadboarding to the bathrooms. This inexpensive update creates a nice feel and is very on-trend right now. (Thanks, Joanna Gaines!)

5. Light Fixtures

Good lighting is a game-changer. No one wants to live in a dimly lit cave. New lights and ceiling fans are affordable and create a warm and welcoming space.

We were so excited to not only be able to sell the Todds' home quickly, but help them make money on the sale. Our team has extensive experience in helping our clients know what updates are worth doing when preparing your home to sell. It's our goal to maximize the selling price of your home at as little cost to you as possible.

Check out more selling advice from us here and feel free to reach out to us any time to set up a free consultation.

This Family Accidentally Made a Profit With Five Budget-Friendly Updates