Things That Make a Home Look Expensive, According to Real Estate Agents

I was probably eleven or twelve when I painted my bedroom wall gold. Gold metallic paint — and finding gold metallic paint in the fifties was no small thing. There was no Amazon, no internet to search. I really had to hunt, and I had to get somebody to drive me to a hardware store, where everyone thought I was a very strange child. Then I painted that wall a little bit at a time.

Let me tell you what I learned: gold metallic paint does not cover easily. Whoever moves in after you will discover that. I will tell you that much.

The itch never left. I walk into somebody’s home and sit there thinking of ways to change it. A hotel room — I want to change that too. It is something in my mind, and I cannot stop it.

So first of all, I do not follow the rules. But I do know what reads expensive, and most of it is not about spending more.

1. Light, and lots of it

I like bright. Natural light is a must for me — my whole mood changes in a dark space. Now, a cute little quaint pub, or a restaurant with wonderful chandeliers and candlelight? That kind of dark I am fine with. But in a home I want windows and light everywhere, not a space that never feels bright.

Next up on my list of zero-cost home improvement tips: natural light. I’m always looking for sun-drenched spaces when I walk into someone’s home. Fill those rooms up with daylight. Take privacy into consideration before leaving your curtains closed all the time. You may be happier opening them all the way. I promise that you’ll like the way your home looks (and photographs) better with daylight pouring into each room. You can even give your windows a good cleaning, and make sure there’s not a piece of furniture in front of them. Sun-filled rooms just feel staged and ready to entertain. Natural light changes the mood of a home, and mine, and you won’t even have to pick up new lamps, or paint a wall a brighter color.

2. Beige only works with amazing artwork

I am not a beige girl. But beige with fantastic artwork and fantastic accessories? That is a whole different thing — a clean look. I am talking amazing artwork here, a major theme, some black and whites brought in, fresh flowers with real color in them. Done the right way, I am fine with it.

Because here is the thing about staying too neutral: boring. Neutral is okay if it is done high-end and classy, and most people can enhance neutral — they can add colorful paintings and everything else. So keep the quiet walls if you love them. Just do not let them be the whole story.

3. One conversation piece beats the matching set

My own style I would call eclectic — a mix. Right now I am hunting for a cool vintage piece from the sixties or seventies: a living-room table to sit between my two blue chairs. It has to be a conversation piece, something that brings warmth into that little corner.

That is the whole trick: one piece with a past, in a room where everything else matches. A room that came off one showroom truck never looks expensive, no matter what it cost.

4. Floors that look intentional — porcelain counts

You can buy less expensive items that look more expensive. Flooring makes the biggest statement in your home, and there are fabulous porcelain floors that look like wood.

Nobody kneels down to check. What they see is a floor that runs clean and consistent through the space. Spend on the installation being done well, not on the name of the material.

5. Lighting is the ambience

Lighting is so key to any successful ambience of a place. Electrical is expensive, but I do not care what your budget is — put in LED, and put in Lutron if you can. Yes, it is more expensive, but you know what? It is worth it. People notice when you have the higher-end little things.

A dimmer changes a room from lit to designed. Of everything on this list, this is the one people feel without being able to say why.

6. Finishes that match the price of the home

The Wolf and the Sub-Zeros are great. But if you are selling a five-hundred-thousand-dollar house, no one is expecting any of this stuff. If you are at a million and a half, at two million and over, you had better have some of it, because that is what people expect.

Expensive-looking means the finishes make sense together and make sense for the property. A restaurant range in an otherwise modest kitchen does not read as luxury. It reads as one confused purchase.

7. Color that moves out with you

Do not paint walls a dominant color. You love that charcoal-gray wall — the next person does not. They are either going to love it or hate it, and there are some people that walk in and go, oh my God, I have got to paint the walls.

I painted my wall gold, so I understand the urge, believe me. Put the bold color in the artwork, the flowers, the pillows — the things that move out with you — and let the walls stay on the side of the room.

8. Small homes need flow; big homes can afford doors

You have got two groups of people walking into homes right now. The first group wants clean — clean, simple, but still luxury. Clean, simple, luxurious. And they still go for open. If you have two thousand square feet or under, you are going to capture more space visually if it is open. Walls shut off space.

Now, the second group likes the kitchen closed off, and that is great — because probably the next person who buys that place is going to tear the kitchen open anyway. If you are in a five-thousand-square-foot home, or thirty-five hundred and up, you can do the closed kitchen, the pantries, the butler’s pantry. The judgment call is knowing which home you are in. Small homes look expensive when they flow; big homes can afford their doors.

9. The little touches

When people come to my home, I want everything in its place. Fresh flowers. Candles going, with a scent that is genuinely nice. Good serving glasses, good serving pieces. You are bringing somebody into your home, and you want them feeling the way they would in a lovely restaurant or some cozy little club. The little touches are what people remember.

Minor touches take your living spaces to the next level making them seem far more high end than what they cost you. In my forty years as a real estate agent in Florida I’ve seen how these small touches make a big impact. And the best part is, these ideas will still have an effect on a random Tuesday when you aren’t planning on having anyone over. For instance fresh flowers and a candle don’t cost much, but they take a room from being furnished to being finished. Adding these simple items changes the feel of a room and says this home was given some thought. Guests will sense and appreciate the care taken in your home. Attention to detail is what sells a house someday, and it costs almost nothing now.

10. Be happy in your space

You have to be happy in your space. I do not think there are mistakes when you are doing it for yourself, because you are living there, not staging a photograph. When it comes time to sell and you want the best price — then you might have to start thinking about tweaking a few things.

It’s important that you love your home and enjoy living there. At the same time, it’s also important to consider the future resale value of your home. Go ahead and decorate your home the way you want, just be cognizant of those items that will be difficult to take out/change down the road. Think about what is permanent. The gold wall taught me that. The full list of what I would tweak before a sale is in the interior design mistakes I see most often. So the next time you’re wanting to add something new, plan ahead and you’ll quickly figure out what you can leave behind, and what will need to go when it’s time to sell.

11. Hardware, faucets and the things hands touch

People like to touch things. Prospective buyers will grab onto door handles, cabinet knobs, faucets and light switches. If the knobs or handles are dated, sticky or just plain cheap they’ll be noticed. Same with a flimsy faucet.

My rule of thumb: If the cabinet hardware is dated, replace it with something new. It need not be ornate, just something simple in a single finish throughout the room. I can always count on a homeowner telling me how tired she was of looking at those old cabinet handles. This is an easy and inexpensive update to a kitchen which suggests a remodel.

I tighten up any loose handles before I take pictures of the home. It’s one of the first things buyers touch. I hate the thought of them thinking that well, that handle is loose, what else is ready to fall apart? If a home’s handles and knobs are sturdy it lets a buyer know that the home has been well taken care of.

There are simple inexpensive faucet that make a nice update to an older kitchen. Once again it doesn’t have to be fancy, just something nice. Buyers will like the fact that it’s new and properly installed. It’ll help make the counter and sink look newer even if they aren’t, and that was accomplished without breaking the budget.

I suggest that if the switch plates are dirty, cracked or yellowed they be replaced. All that’s needed for this chore is a screw driver and a few dollars.

Homes don’t have to be updated from top to bottom before being shown but it never hurts to start updating with the hardware. Keep the finishes similar within a room. (Knobs do not have to match the finish of the faucet but they do need to match each other.) Starting in the kitchen, moving on to the bathrooms and then working the way through to the bedrooms will help you remember everything that needs replacing or tightening. It’s amazing how much trust buyers will have once they run their fingers across all of those new shiny knobs and handles, and they take it as a sign the home has been looked after.

12. Curtains hung high and wide

If you rent, there are tension curtain rods and other ways to secure rods without putting holes in your walls (important when leaving could mean losing your deposit since most landlords frown at holes/damage). Also, if you already have blinds in your home, you can add curtain panels on the sides which can add some dimension to a room. The side panels soften the blinds a bit too which is nice (just make sure you aren’t cluttering the window with too many treatments)., which nicely illustrates the next point: hang your curtain rods high and wide. Hang your curtains as near the ceiling as possible and as wide as possible (past the sides of the window trim) so your curtains stack off to the sides of your windows instead of covering up your windows.

When the curtain rod is right at the top of the window, it makes the windows seem shorter which can make the room feel like it’s sagging a bit. By extending the rod closer to the ceiling, it makes the ceilings in a room feel higher and allows for more natural lighting into a room since more of your windows are exposed. You are also able to see more outside instead of fabric which is always nice. Again, it just takes the right curtain rod placement for an inexpensive way to open up a room. Also, your curtains should go all the way to the floor (or just above the floor). Curtains that stop at the window sill don’t look as finished (especially in a living room). I usually opt for white/off white or another neutral/light colored curtains. If the budget stretches, white, sheer curtains look classy but are harder to match the length of. Otherwise, go for a linen-look fabric and keep the print/style plain. They work well in any room in the house and are much less expensive than custom window treatments (another area to save money) yet still make your windows look crisp and clean.

I see this time and time again when I go into homes here in Florida. Curtains can go a long way. And if you hang them high and wide, you can take a room to the next level. Buyers pick up on this right away too when they come through your door so it’s another detail that says this home and owner takes care of things. Again, its just a nudge higher and wider for that finished feel.

13. Edit the surfaces before you add a single thing

A bowl of lemons on a clear counter looks more expensive than six small appliances on the same counter. Expensive rooms have space around the things in them. Our brains relax in the presence of open space, which in turn means rooms with open space not only seem larger, but more expensive. And here’s the thing, making your rooms seem expensive doesn’t involve buying anything. I promise. This step is free (which is likely why most people skip it, as it involves work not shopping.): edit the items on all surfaces. When it’s time to shop for new home decor you’ll thank yourself for taking the time to edit, and it will save you time and money. How? Edit all the surfaces in your home. Empty each surface down to 3 or less items: pick 1 useful item, 1 living item (flowers, plant, etc.) and 1 item that has a good story to tell. Everything else (mail, chargers, remotes and receipts) needs to have a home in a drawer or a lidded box. – Kitchen counter: one bowl of lemons, nothing else – Bookcases, with bonus points for lining all the books up on the leading edge. Bookcases with open space rule hands-down. – Bedroom Nightstand, empty it all out and start over with just 1 lamp, 1 glass of water and 1 photo. – Workspace/desk, only leave out things you use daily, find hiding places for everything else surfaces done in ten minutes. Now when people come over and sense the calm they will be sure you must’ve called in an interior designer.

A few of the under-fifty-dollar moves

The same idea carries into every corner of the home at pocket-money prices. A few favorites:

• A bowl of lemons on a clear counter
• Fresh flowers, even from the grocery store
• Warm LED bulbs — one temperature everywhere
• A tray and a candle on the coffee table
• Matching hangers in every closet
• A mirror across from the biggest window

The full list of little fixes gets its own article: the little fixes that make a big difference.