Anonymous wrote:Installed nice looking paper towel rack on the wall of each bathroom, near the sink.

I like this idea. Productive thread.

Replaced light fixture on the porch to very pretty craftsman one from Restoration Hardware. Bought it off Craigslist for $50.

New toilet seats
New shelving in laundry room with clothesline
Replace any type of oak bath fixture: fug!
New trashcan, large commercial size for curb.

Replaced all the ugly and old bright brass doorknobs with brushed nickel sets.

Painting rooms ($500 DIY), especially the old wood paneled rooms. They look nice now, even with the paneling.
Removing chain link and replacing with proper fence ($4,000)
Redid all my outlets myself with nice lutron flat plates ($100)
Nest thermostat ($250) ... God I love being able to change te temp from my bed, or turn it on before I get home from my iPhone.
Recessed lighting ($1000)
Replaced hideous 1960s green chandelier with something better ($300)
Radiator covers ($250 each)
Ikea outdoor furniture, surprisingly good ($200)
Flor modular carpet ($500)
New shower head ($few hundred I think)

All good stuff. Would love to replace front door, improve wether stripping and put French doors off the back, maybe throwing in a skylight or two, but that is probably all $$$$

Anonymous wrote:Put nice plantation shutters in several rooms. Wasn't exactly inexpensive, but it make my house look so much better and made me feel happier.

Painting the whole interior also made a huge improvement.

Funny, I took out the plantation shutters in the living room. There were 6 pairs in total. Now it feels much less cluttered and fussy. Also removed the doors from the living room (yes, there were doors).

Also, in the dining room I have two small lamps on a side board that I didn't want to have to switch on and off every time we used, so I plugged them into a remote light (which goes into the wall) and then using double sided tape I stuck the "switch" (it looks just like a light switch) on the wall. I also use this in my bedroom since I hate overhead lights but I wanted something I could switch on as soon as I walked in the room.

Added a wine cooler. Lots of fun evenings now!

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Updated the front door -- new paint, new lockset, new door knocker, new porch light, painted mail slot to match all the other hardware.

a new front door isn't that "inexpensive," at least the ones I have looked at. Can you tell us how much it cost?

They didn't replace the door. They repainted, bought new lock, knocker and mail slot. Not that expensive. The expensive part is the door itself.

On the other hand, the new oak floors was the one that was completely out of place. There is no way that qualifies as inexpensive.

installed a laundry utility sink. Not inexpensive but worth every penny of the $400.

I did new toilets (the old ones were originals that had been modified to do low-flow). If you get the base Kohler kind they're about $200 each. Work very well. I always replace all fixed shower heads with the detachable kind, so I can clean. I also replaced the metal pull out track closet doors with sliding door panels. I wanted to do French doors, but the door frame was too small. I also put in recessed LED lights on the main floor.

Anonymous wrote:Updated the front door -- new paint, new lockset, new door knocker, new porch light, painted mail slot to match all the other hardware.

a new front door isn't that "inexpensive," at least the ones I have looked at. Can you tell us how much it cost?

Updated the front door -- new paint, new lockset, new door knocker, new porch light, painted mail slot to match all the other hardware.

Took down a chain link fence around the front yard! Lots of manual labor, but improved our propery value immediately! plus, i love a good demolition project.

Replaced the cream wall to wall carpeting on the main floor of our townhome with prefinished oak. To me this made a huge difference in how clean, open and modern the house looks! And wood is so much easier to take care of.

Replaced the small, cheap porch light with a larger, much nicer one. Huge difference.