The credit crunch. The slowing economy. That big ol’ mortgage bill/rent check/monthly ball and chain.

All of them are putting the vise on your wallet these days. It’s a bummer, because you, too, want an HGTV-ready home just in time for the open-your-windows kind of weather.

What’s one to do with a need for a spring spruce-up and no cash? Local experts have ideas for the inside and outside of your house, condo, apartment or anywhere you call home.

Color

Cheap improvement tip numero uno: Paint. Nothing is cheaper or creates a bigger impact than a fresh coat of color, says Jack Collins, co-owner of Lawrence-based McCaffrey Collins Design.

“The cheapest thing you can do is paint. That’s it. Paint,” Collins says. “There’s nothing cheaper than buying a can of paint, opening it and putting it on the wall. That will change the entire mood for your house. It will freshen it.”

Collins says that though it’s tempting to get the most bang for your buck by taking home the cheapest can on the shelf, he advises that it’s possible to save time and money by going for a higher-end product.

“In the past, when I was without money, I used lower-quality paints, because they were cheaper, but it took more coats of paint to get the depth of color that you want, to get the coverage you want. So you end up saving money on product, but you don’t save time,” Collins says. “So it’s really better to go for a higher-quality paint. Covers better, you paint for a shorter amount of time and get a great finish.”

Other accents

Like the colors on your walls and don’t think they need a touchup? Try a new accent pillow or a vintage throw to give the room a different feel. Think the colors are fresh enough? Look to your wall hangings. If they look a bit too forced, try something different.

“There’s the picture above the couch, over by the door, there’s the picture by the door and that’s it. And it’s a big room and that’s all you’ve got,” Collins says of the typical living room. “It doesn’t have to be necessarily expensive. You can put some great stuff on the wall if you’re creative.”

Collins suggests making black-and-white or sepia copies of family photos and hanging those. He says photos can be grouped together with inexpensive frames – ones that match, slightly match or don’t match.

Still confused on what the room needs – paint, accents or a new wall hanging? Collins says your camera can see things you can’t.

“Really pay attention to all the details in the room,” he says. “One of the best ways to do that is to take a picture of the room and see if it looks bare. Is it missing something? Is it missing a lamp or pillows?”

Fixtures

Kristi Kouloukis, pro account sales associate at Home Depot, 1910 W. 31st St., says that subtle, but important, changes can be as easy as changing out knobs or an old faucet or adding a light fixture.

“Lighting is always an inexpensive way to highlight in your kitchen and your bathroom,” Kouloukis says. “Just changing out your fixtures is another area that we are seeing more and more people doing, not only the lighting, but their faucets in the bathroom, or in the kitchen. Changing out your cabinet knobs, giving it a fresh, new look.”

Kouloukis says other easy changes can also be made to kitchen cabinets without forking over thousands for a new set.

“Just changing the hardware on them can bring a fresh, new look to them, as can a nice paint job on them, too. Some people will change out the fronts of their cabinets,” she says, saying that adding glass doors to the smaller cabinets above a sink can highlight nicer dinnerware, no expensive free-standing display needed. “That’s something very simple and very inexpensive that changes the whole look of the kitchen.”

Head-to-toe sprucing

Doug Stephens, president of Stephens Real Estate Inc., 2701 W. Sixth St., sees a lot of homes. And he can tell any of his clients, or anyone who will listen, that one of the best things that can be done is a deep, deep clean.

“The cheapest thing, but probably the most difficult for the homeowner, is an absolute thorough cleaning of the property. Lawns have to be cleaned, bushes trimmed, front doors cleaned,” Stephens says. “In terms of cleaning, they can do it themselves, if they’ll do a good job of it, if they’re not or they don’t want to, then absolutely hire somebody.”

Laurie Wilson, manager of Housekeeping Unlimited, 1611 St. Andrews Drive, says though prices depend on the amount of soilage, size of rooms and things like heavy drapes and pet hair, a spring clean can cost in the ballpark of $100-$300. But, she stresses that whether it’s a homeowner or a pro who does the cleaning, it will take all day, and a lot of scrubbing.

“If somebody is going to attempt it on their own, they can plan on an eight-hour day, detailing their own house. It’s everything from the vents to the blinds to the windows to the baseboards to the woodwork as far as all the doors being cleaned. That’s why it’s so nice to have an agency come in and just knock it out,” she says. “We pull our toothbrushes out. It does make a huge difference.”

The lawn

Greg McDonald, managing partner of Sunrise Garden Center, 1501 Learnard Ave., says that a good fall fertilizing and the use of a pre-emergent in the spring can make a lawn look sharp after the gray days of winter. He also suggests potting flowers and then moving the pots to suit your needs when planning an outdoor event.

“A great thing to do is to put them in pots and then you can move them to wherever you need them,” McDonald says. “So, let’s say you’re having people over for a barbecue. You can take ones off the front porch and put them in the back and spruce up your backyard, and when you’re done, move them back to the front.”

Kouloukis says adding new mulch can create a dramatic new look on a dime.

“One (trend) that is really starting to become popular that we are seeing people use is the black mulch,” Kouloukis says. “It’s very interesting. It gives your yard a completely different look.”