Hellobee Boards

Swapping switch plates and outlet covers from beige to white made a huge difference in our home. Painting the trim did as well.

So far all we have done is some painting, nursery and the living room. Next big thing is replacing the front door and lock. I think the orginial lock is past it's time, 60 years, had a good run. Then touch up painting everywhere else. I think once we get the marks on the walls covered I will feel better till we figure out exactly what colors we want in each room. The first big upgrade will be granite counter tops and replacing knobs in the kitchen. All the doorknobs in the house need replacing, but we are going to do one at a time till all the ugly gold is gone!

Changing the ceiling light fixtures, adding high hats, window coverings.

flooring can be expensive but adding area rugs to not so great hardwood floors hides alot

Paint and changing out hardware can make a huge difference. We also painted kitchen and bathroom cabinets until we can afford a renovation.

i agree with paint and changing out hardware (in the kitchen and the bathrooms). we changed the knobs recently on all our built ins and closets and stuff, it made a HUGE difference (for almost no $). also changing the lights is great - finding light fixtures that enhance the room, make it brighter, etc. and maybe window treatments that allow for the most natural light and a nice flow to the house?

We painted, then changed lighting fixtures. Next up is painting the bathroom cabinets and changing the tops.

@Bao: We paid a painter to paint them... I didn't want to deal with it. We painted the kitchen cabinets white and the bathroom cabinets a dark brown. I think it was around $800 to have them painted.

PAINT absolutely. Makes a huge difference and it's cheap to do. Don't forget the ceilings. They get dirty/yellowed. Fresh ceiling white is a big room-lightener.

If you have hardwood floor in poor/questionable shape, and have the money for it, have them refinished BEFORE you move in. Also makes a huge difference.

i agree, paint on the walls and fresh paint on the trim really make a huge difference. also hardware can really update things, but when you have a ton on knobs/handles/light fixtures etc to do, they add up, so if you just want to repaint them all with a metal spray paint, you can make them look much better and will have spent less then $10 on it =) painting cabinets makes a HUGE difference, i pinned a great tutorial for doing a 'pro' job, it's a lot of work, but if you have the time, totally worth it! my mom repainted her's (not with this method), and it made the kitchen so much brighter!
http://www.allthingsthrifty.com/2012/08/how-to-paint-your-kitchen-cabinets.html

Another vote for painting the trim! Our house had the trim painted white and it looks so much better than the same house with the original medium brown trim.

I'd also look at replacing the doorknobs, doors (6 panel looks so much better than flat), light fixtures.

If you have the time/money I'd remove the popcorn ceiling if you have that. If its old, it probably has yellowed over time and a new coat of white paint on a flat ceiling looks so much better!