DIY: Owner’s Guide to Making An Elegant Look Without The Expensive Cost. Part 1

The nicer your property looks the better the value!  We all know this golden rule, but we also know that upgrading could be very costly.  Here are a few pointers on how to make your property apartments look much nicer without spending an arm and a leg.  In this entry, we will cover walls and accents.  In future articles we will cover other budget friendly improvements.

1.      Walls: Repaint your walls after each tenant so it can have that fresh new look.  Make sure you don’t plaster paint on your walls.  When the paint dries, check to see if there are paint drips anywhere on the wall, if there are remove them with these easy steps.

a.       Use a scraper to scrape back the paint drip

b.      Sand the area to a smooth finish

c.       Repaint the sanded area.

The best color to paint each wall is white.  White will make your rooms brighter and seem more spacious.  It’s also a more neutral color that is not as subject to the renter’s preference.  Also being that everyone one has different color furniture, any other color may clash with their designs.  More recently, owners have started to paint their apartments beige for its warm color.  I tend to disagree with this color choice as it can still be dissatisfying to potential tenants.

If it’s still important to you to add some color to the apartment, asking a prospective tenant what color they would like to have before move-in day can be a real positive!   

Here are some supplies that will help you update your walls. 

Best Quality White Interior- Satin Paint:

-           BEHR Premium Plus Ultra1-Gal. Ultra Pure White Satin Enamel Interior Paint    

o   Price: $33.98 / each

Scraper:

-          Blue Hawk 1.25-in Steel Paint Scraper with Plastic Handle

o   Price: $4.98

Sandpaper:

-          9 in. x 11 in. 220 Grit Very Fine Garnet Sand paper (5 Sheets-Pack)

o   Price: $2.70

2.      Accents: Baseboards and crown moulding can make a HUGE difference in the look of your apartments. Here is an example of a bad crown moulding. Your crown moulding should not look like these pictures above.  If they do, you’re cheapening the look of your apartment.  The easiest way to fix this problem is to replace the crown moulding all together, but this is a more expensive approach.  Another option is to fix the crown moulding already in the apartment, which although is tedious and time consuming it saves the bank.  

If you are interested in replacing the crown moulding all together I would suggest the formal ceiling moulding. It runs about 1.50-2.50 per sqft and it gives your rooms an elegant look. The link is at the bottom of this entry.

If you are interested in fixing your current crown moulding follow the steps below.

a.      If the problem with the crown moulding is removing the paint use these steps

                                                              i.      The crown moulding paint has to be removed with a paint stripping product.

                                                            ii.      First cut the paper into strips that are long enough to cover about a two-foot section of crown moulding.

                                                          iii.      Tape the paper strips to the wall, label side out, letting it hang down under the crown moulding.

                                                          iv.      Apply paint stripper using a rubber spatula over the entire area of crown moulding (Make sure to wear gloves and goggles).

                                                            v.      Apply paper strips to the paint stripper on your crown moulding by folding the paper up and pressing it firmly into the paint stripper so it adheres

                                                          vi.      Tape the top of the tape to the top of the crown moulding and let it sit for 12 hours

                                                        vii.      After 12 hours remove the paint strips (With a putty knife, scrape off excess material from the bottom and the top of the crown moulding)

                                                      viii.      Clean the moulding with soap and warm water.

                                                          ix.      Repaint with an semi- gloss finish

b.      In the case of nail holes, dents and gaps between pieces of the crown moulding.

                                                              i.      If you’re dealing with painted crown moulding, apply drywall mud to the holes and gaps

                                                            ii.      If you’re dealing with stained crown moulding, apply stainable wood putty to the holes and gaps.

                                                          iii.      Fill the holes and gaps.

                                                          iv.      Let the putty or mud dry for 24 hours.

These are some quality supplies that I recommend to help you get the job done.

Crown Moulding for Purchase

-          WM 47 0.5905 in. x 4-5/8 in. x 96 in. Wood Medium Density Fiberboard Crown Moulding

o   Price: $13.98

Paint Stripper

-          Klean-Strip1-gal. KS-3 Premium Stripper 

o   Price: $24.48

Stainable Wood Putty

-          Wood Filler Max Stainable 2 oz.

o   Price: $2.79

Drywall Mud

-          SHEETROCK Brand1 qt. Pre-Mixed Joint Compound

o   Price: $4.25

Stay tuned for part two where we talk about retouching the kitchen!