Even if you’re in your forever home and you plan to stay there for the rest of your life, it’s still important to continually be adding equity into your property. This is especially true if you intend to sell any time down the road. Like any major asset, a home depreciates over time. This means that the brand-new two-story you bought in 1995 is likely not worth as much as you sunk into it back then unless you’ve made some improvements and upgrades along the way.

While there are a few surefire ways to improve your home’s resale value, including adding bathrooms and extensions, those can be complicated, costly and time-consuming to implement. To that end, today we’re discussing four simple changes you can make today to reverse the trend of depreciation and amplify your home’s worth, whether you want to cash in on that worth or not.

1. Replace your garage doors.

When you’re thinking of ways to add value to your house, the garage doors might not be the first things to spring to mind. Yet, this is a simple way to instantly improve your curb appeal, especially if your garage door faces the road.

While you’re planting shrubbery, pulling weeds and fixing broken sidewalks to attract as many passersby as possible, don’t leave your chipped, cracked and faded garage door in place. Go ahead and spring for a new, fresh replacement. Doing so makes your home look more polished and modern. It’s also a great complement to those new pansies in the window box!

2. Update your interior colors.

Are you still living in a home that was painted in the late 1980s? What about outdated floral wallpaper? Does that still cover a majority of the walls? If so, you can improve your home’s value and boost its aesthetic appeal by simply changing up your color scheme!

If you’re working with paint, you can usually just go right over the existing layer with a new, fresh look. Wallpaper might need to be sponged and removed before painting, though you can often paint on top of it, as well. Try to incorporate modern and clean tones in these spaces to refresh them and bring them into the 21st century. One color that is uber popular in today’s design sphere is greige. This is a neutral combination of gray and beige that is versatile enough to work well in every room of your home!

3. Fix any energy issues.

Is your home difficult to keep warm in the winter? Do you have a hard time staying cool in the summer? If so, you’re likely losing heat. There are two culprits in this scenario: your windows and your doors. Make sure they’re properly insulated and caulked around to prevent air from seeping out of them. You may also need to blow new insulation into your attic or crawlspace to keep your home better protected from the elements.

If your budget allows, consider taking this step further and investing in renewable energy sources to heat, cool and power your home. Today’s homebuyer is looking for energy-efficient upgrades to lower his utility bill and reduce his carbon footprint. As such, switching to LED light bulbs, Energy Star-approved windows or even a solar power system can go a long way in improving your property’s resale value. If this interests you, you can research your options and learn more about how solar panels add value to your home and why.

4. Add a hardwood floor.

Sure, wall-to-wall carpeting is comfortable. Yet, it can also harbor a host of bacteria and moisture underneath. Especially if you or someone in your family suffers from allergies, you’ll want to keep the carpeting to as little as possible. To improve your home’s sanitation and add a ton of character and design appeal, consider replacing it with new hardwood floors instead.

Though they will cost more to install than carpet, hardwood floors are one of those home investments that pays for itself in the long run. They’ll last more than two decades if installed and sourced correctly, while carpet begins to wear down after about 10 years. To keep them in top condition, be sure to sweep and vacuum daily and mop on a regular basis, as well.

Upgrading for Tomorrow: Small Changes with Big Impact

The above four steps might not take too long to accomplish, but their effects can be felt for years. So often, homeowners think that to get their maximum asking price, they have to make a major overhaul on their property and change every little thing. Yet, keep in mind why you bought the house in the first place. If it has great bones, a good location and isn’t too old, you likely won’t have to do a total makeover.

Instead, focus on the areas that need a little TLC and start there first. You’ll be surprised at how even the smallest changes, like a new coat of paint, can transform your space for the better.