When the housing market is in a slump like it is now, it can be difficult to find ways to make your house work for you when it comes to putting it on the market and selling it. Whether the home owner chooses to use a fresh coat of paint, some new flowers or shrubs outside, a new mailbox, or even some new outdoor lights, there are several ways to raise the value of a house while doing very little damage to the house owner’s wallet.

The television show called, “Curb Appeal” from HGTV has it right when they spend all their time on the outside of the house. It is that first glance, when someone pulls into the driveway and sees the house for a first time, that tells them whether they should just just pull back out and keep driving or take down the phone number of the realtor so that they can ask to look at the house on the inside as well. Besides just an array of flowers and shrubs to make the beds look neat, adding a gazebo to the side yard or to the end of a deck in a small pond is a great way to add value to the house without spending much money.

One family had a gazebo that they loved in the side yard near a flower garden. They decided to move it and added it to end of the deck in their back yard. By cleaning up both areas of the yard this way, they were able to add a couple thousand dollars onto their asking price. A gazebo can stand alone as a quiet place to sit and enjoy a garden, or the home owner can place a hot tub or jacuzzi inside the gazebo to add even more value to the property.