You don't have to spend a ton of money to level-up the look of your home. Here are a few upgrades to fix-up your place without breaking the bank.

Light-up your landscape 

Consider enhancing the look of your landscape with LED solar lights. You can use torch-style lights to illuminate a sidewalk leading to your front door, or to outline a flower bed. There are disc-shaped solar lights available on the market that are designed to project light upward, which can allow you to uplight features of your landscape, like trees and bushes—or highlight portions of your home.

There are many brands and varieties of solar lights available on the market, which can make them very affordable.

The magic of mulch

Mulch is a simple and inexpensive way to step-up the look of your landscape. A fresh covering of black, brown, or red mulch can create a crisp contrast between your lawn and plantings for a polished appearance.

Think about mulching beneath mature trees where grass is patchy and has difficulty growing because of the tree's shade and shallow roots. Before mulching, lay landscape fabric to create a barrier between the soil and mulch to hinder the growth of weeds.

Mulch can typically cost between $3 and $4 per bag, but you may be able to benefit from bulk pricing at big-box stores.

Freshen your front door

Your front door speaks volumes about your home. A well-kept door leads passersby to think that the interior of your home is also well-maintained. A door with faded or chipped paint, however, may send the message that upkeep on the inside of your house leaves something to be desired.

A front door refresh can be as easy as a new coat of paint. Depending on your exterior color scheme you may choose a hue that's on the darker side, or cover your door with a lighter pigment. Either way, a fresh paint job—and maybe some new hardware, if it's needed—can give your front door new life.