If you’re selling your home and it needs improvements, you may be wondering whether it’s worth it to make those improvements yourself. Renovating a home right before a sale can be a risky endeavor–many homeowners who take on these projects have a hard time recouping their investment. However, you can make some small improvements that won’t break the bank. And choosing bigger projects wisely will help you sell your house faster and gain back most of the cost.

Preparing a Home for Sale: Small Improvements

The easiest way to spruce up your home without shelling out a lot of cash is to stage it properly. Staging a home is the process of depersonalizing your house and turning it into something that a buyer can imagine living in. It takes some time, patience, elbow grease and a few trips to home improvement stores to properly stage a home, but it can have a big effect on your home’s value for very little cost.

To stage the outside of the home, make sure the lawn is neatly manicured and the garden weeded. Trim back any overhanging branches and consider adding a few plants to the landscaping. Repaint the outside of your home if the current paint is faded or peeling. Make sure the doors and shutters match. Consider replacing the house numbers and mailbox if they’re old.

Inside the home, get rid of any clutter and clean every room thoroughly. Stash away any extra furniture, keeping only a few basic pieces in each room. Pull the remaining furniture away from the walls and arrange in a way that invites conversation, especially in the living room or family room. Paint the walls in a neutral color, and open all the drapes.

Preparing a Home for Sale: Bigger Projects

If time and budget allow, consider hiring a home inspector to check your house and report on any potential problems. If basic issues such as a leaking roof or faulty heating system are uncovered, address those problems first. If your house is in decent shape but some of your rooms are outdated, turn your attention to renovating these rooms. Generally, renovated kitchens and bathrooms show the greatest return on investment.

Preparing a Home for Sale: Projects to Avoid

When selling a home, it’s best to avoid some improvements entirely. Ill-advised projects don’t show any return on investment, and the worst ones actually make the house harder to sell. In particular, avoid:

• Completely changing the purpose of a room, like the kitchen or bathroom
• Expanding your home to the point where it’s much larger and more valuable than others in the neighborhood
• Installing a swimming pool.

Finally, be sure to hire a contractor to do any renovations. Since your goal is to increase the value of your home, it’s best to leave these things to the professionals. A bad DIY job could actually lower the value of your home.