best way to increase home value?

First-time buyer is a good stage to think about this, but honestly the biggest gains are boring. Fix anything a survey would flag - damp, roof, wiring, boiler - before you spend on anything pretty. After that, kitchen and bathroom tend to matter most to buyers, but you rarely get back more than you spend on a full refit. Paint, decent lighting, a tidy front garden and sorting the small broken stuff cost little and make the place look cared for. Big money projects that might pay off are extra bedrooms or usable space, not upgrades.