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Property renovation can be costly and all too often enthusiastic DIY’ers overspend. But giving your house a bit of a facelift doesn’t have to break the bank and there’s plenty you can do with a small budget. Here’s some ideas from Homes under the Hammer's Martin Roberts:

Repainting walls and ceilings in neutral colours (if they aren’t already) is a quick and cheap way to instantly refresh a property. If you’re confident with colour, you can use varying hues on different walls to create depth in a room. Strong, bold colours are really fashionable - but remember the basics; dark colours make a room appear smaller and more intimate, whereas light shades give the illusion of a space.

Swap old lamp fittings for modern ones - ideally with halogen or low energy bulbs. It’s not an expensive job, and you’ll be amazed at the difference that the right lighting makes. Vary the amount of light too - downlighter are great for overall lighting, but lamps and spot lights can create a completely different mood. Search online for statement lamp bases and why not make your own shades to match perfectly with other decorations? Or go ‘Steam Punk’, recycling all manner of household objects in to funky lamps to create a conversation starting centre piece. Result: designer appearance for just a few quid.

We all know that kitchens are where it’s at when it comes to creating the ‘wow’ factor. It’s also where you’ll probably spend a lot of time, so it’s without doubt a room to use a good proportion of your budget on. But you don’t have to go to the trouble of a full kitchen refit if that’s going to cost too much. Just replacing the work surface with a new one will dramatically improve and rejuvenate a tired looking kitchen. Putting in a new sink at the same time will also work wonders. You can also just replace the cabinet fronts, rather than the whole unit to give an instant new look. Tiles can be painted with specialist paints. Even giving everything a deep clean to remove grease and ground-in dirt is worth doing.

When it comes to flooring - there’s lot of choice these days- from eco-friendly cork or bamboo to rubber as well as traditional carpet and tiles. You can also buy laminate that’s made to look like stone or floorboards and porcelain tiles made to look like wood. So if you’re renovating on a budget it’s definitely worth shopping around and being open minded. You may be able to ‘fake’ a certain look by using a clever substitute. Think about fitting electric underfloor heating while you’re doing it, especially in bathrooms, but you’ll need a qualified electrician to make the connections.

Sometimes the internal layout of a property is its main downfall. Awkward layouts in properties that are otherwise structurally sound are great projects and you can make a huge difference just by removing or moving walls. Internal stud partition walls are super easy to take out or relocate but be careful if the wall is load bearing. If in doubt, ask a builder or surveyor before wielding the sledgehammer! Costs will be higher as you’ll need to provide some structural support by other means, but you can still do this with limited budget. It’s certainly a cheaper option than building an extension or conservatory to create more space!

Stripping original floorboards is a great way to create a stunning look without forking out a lot. Hiring a floor sander and getting stuck in for a weekend, you can usually bring discoloured and stained floorboards up to being beautiful and smooth - revealing the natural features of the wood in the process. Throw in a couple of tins of hard wearing floor varnish and you could have a stunning floor that’s cost you not much more than £100. Even with the costs of hiring someone in to do the hard graft - it’s still a budget friendly option.

The more natural light you can bring into a property, the better - and installing sliding glass doors in place of an exterior wall can dramatically change the look and liveability of a home. It also allows you to bring the outdoors in without going to the trouble of building a conservatory or extending. ‘Light tubes’ which reflect light down from a prism on the roof can bring natural light in to dark rooms and corridors.

Houses have often had their best features covered up under years of paint or wallpaper. There’s a huge joy in revealing hidden features, such as old fireplaces, original wooden doors and shutters. Remove the doors and have them ‘dip stripped’ to save hours with a heat gun. Stairs have often been boxed in, so get rid of the 1960’s hardboard and reveal the concealed beauty! Highlight coving and any plaster details and with a little extra budget even think about removing modern ceilings in upstairs rooms to create lofty bedrooms with a real wow factor!

Martin Roberts is a property developer and also runs a series of Property Education courses as well as presenting Homes Under The Hammer.

Homes Under Hammer is on 麻豆社 One weekdays at 10am and on 麻豆社 iPlayer.