10 Value-Adding Home Improvements You Can Do for $1,000 or Less

A farmhouse sink. LED lighting. A pot filler. You might think these relatively low-cost home upgrades wouldn’t add much value, but our research shows that these and other home upgrades with modest price tags could pay for themselves — or even generate big returns — when you sell your home.

A Zillow analysis of more than 350 features in the listing descriptions of more than 2 million homes listed for sale in 2024 found that some home improvements are associated with higher than expected sales prices. The features analyzed won’t guarantee that your home will sell for more if you include them in a for-sale listing. But the following upgrades — gleaned from those listings — offers a good starting point for moderately priced home renovation ideas that could add value to your home while making life a little sweeter.

Under $500

1. Upgrade your kitchen features

If you’re looking for a place to start, you might want to begin with the kitchen. Sellers poured a lot of love into their kitchens, with special consideration given to cooking and eating outdoors.

Appliances and features for home cooks are among the list of features associated with a price premium in 2024. Among them: new appliances, which ranked among the top 10 improvements, with a potential price premium of 2.2% in listings that mentioned them.

Homes with pizza ovens sell for 2% more than expected. Prices vary wildly for the ovens: a commercial grade oven can run you upwards of $10,000, and a residential kit for an outdoor oven can run about $3,000. But you can find some smaller portable units you can incorporate into an outdoor kitchen for several hundred dollars. Tapping some cold beverages to go with those pizzas can also pay off: Homes with a beverage center — a designated chilling space for drinks —  sold for 1.7% more than expected while those with an ice machine brought in 2% more.

2. Entertain outdoors

Why settle for four walls when you can bring some of the comforts of home outdoors? Fire pits or outdoor fireplaces were associated with a 1.1% price premium. If s’mores aren’t your thing, try an outdoor television or sound system, each of which comes with a premium of about 1%.

3. Go with LED lighting

Switching out older light figures for more energy efficient LED fixtures can save you money on your electric bill and could help you net a higher price when you sell. Homes with listings that mentioned LED lights sold for 1.3% more than expected.

4. Paint a floor

Few things can drag down a room more than dated floor tiles or beat up wood floors. Replacing either with new versions of the same can run you thousands. That makes painting them an affordable way to freshen up a space and give it a more modern look. Doing so is associated with a 1.6% sales price premium. This option is especially cost-effective as a DIY project, but it’s important to recognize your level of skill and that paint is less durable than tile or wood and will likely require touchups. Preparing floors for paint — and choosing the right paint — is critical for a longer-lasting result that won’t start chipping or peeling. Also, it’s best done in low traffic areas of the home.

Under $1,000

5. Install radiant heat

Few things feel as glorious as stepping onto a heated floor after a shower, which may be why homes that include heated floors or radiant heat in their listings sell for a 1.9% premium. Installing radiant heat can be an expensive undertaking, but adding it as part of a bathroom remodel could bring luxurious comfort and eventually pay for itself. Kits consisting of a 120-volt mat that covers a small area of flooring are available to help make this DIY friendly. The mats, which require a thermostat, must be connected to an electric source, so you might consider bringing in an electrician to help with the wiring.

6. Try luxury vinyl floors

Plank-style vinyl flooring, which can be purchased for as little as $2 square foot, can mimic the look of wood, ceramic tile or stone. It’s become popular with homeowners because of the durability, ease of installation and the relatively inexpensive cost compared to other types of flooring. Homes that included it in their listing description sold for 0.9% more than expected. 

7. Warm up with wood

Wood is enjoying a moment, no surprise at a time when people are embracing bold, nature-inspired design choices. Wood accents appeared several times among the listing descriptions associated with higher sales premiums. Homes that included teak in their listing description commanded a 3.1% sale premium, while reclaimed wood was associated with a sales price boost of 1.8% and butcher block countertops contributed to a sales price premium of 1.2%.

8. Bring on the birds

Do you like fresh eggs and caring for animals? Then a chicken coop could be a fun option for you. Homes that included chickens in their listing description fetched 1.4% more than similar homes that did not.

9. DIY Shaker-style cabinets

Installing a whole set of new cabinets is a pricey undertaking, but you can still incorporate the popularity of Shaker-style cabinets by replacing only the cabinet doors. You can typically buy individual doors at your local hardware store or cabinet store, or even a local building salvage company. If you’re handy, you can custom create them yourself. Home listings that mentioned Shaker cabinets in the listing description fetched a 1.4% price premium.

Higher-ticket items 

Home upgrades that add value don’t have to involve costly, disruptive or time-consuming renovations. But if you’re ready to go even further, these bonus-category home upgrades could also add value to your home.

10. Update your kitchen countertops

Buyers are clearly willing to pay more for an upgraded kitchen, and that includes countertops. Soapstone topped the list of countertops with a 3.5% premium, followed by quartz (2.6%) and onyx, a soft, porous, translucent stone that fetched 2.3% more in homes that advertised them.

Touches of luxury

Buyers generally also appear willing to pay more when the listing description includes these features:

• Outdoor shower, 2.8% more
• Induction stove, 1.9% more
• Pot filler, 2.2% more
• Wet room, a type of bathroom where the shower area is not enclosed, 3.3%
• Bluestone patio, 2.2%
• “She shed,” a small escape in the yard, 1.7%

If you’re ready to sell and don’t want to make upgrades yourself, a credit at closing toward the cost may help entice buyers who value these home features.

If you’re on the fence about whether to make improvements, you might also consider this: Homes with listings that included the word “remodeled” fetched 3.7% more, the highest premium on the list of features.

If your home doesn’t have these features, you can still maximize your sales price in other ways. One main way is to get the most eyeballs on your home by ensuring your agent lists your home for sale on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS), a platform real estate agents use to share information about for-sale properties. Zillow data finds sellers typically lose 1.5% — or about $5,000 — when they don’t list their home on the MLS. You also can use these seller strategies to help boost your bottom line.