I'm currently living in a similiar style of house, brand new but low quality, and find the biggest issue is the poor quality of the lighting, particulary in the kitchen. If your going to be living in the house for a couple of years as you say then I'd consider it a worthwhile investment. Whether it would increase the value or not I don't know, I personally would perceive it as being of a higher value but then I may not represent the average buyer.

The most useful tip I've had is to record every cent you spend into a spreadsheet divided into a dozen or so major catergories like food, petrol, rent + bills etc. Before doing this I had no idea where all my money was going and struggled to save even $50 a week. Once I had it all down on paper I was shocked to see how much I was wasting, mostly on takeaway food, restaurants and alcohol. I didn't completely stop any of these but cut them back to a level I was happy with. Now I average 45% of my income as savings.

I've picked up a few other savings strategies along the way which could be of use to someone, I'm still quite young so some of these might be more suited to others of a similiar age.
Furniture and appliances are hugely expensive, living in shared accomodation that's already furnished saves a huge amount. I have a rule that I only own what I can fit into a standard sized car. Good furniture bargains can be found at garage sales but there's also a huge amount of crap you have to wade through before you find them. 
Find some like minded friends that are in a similiar stage of life. If all your friends want to go out drinking at bars and eating at resturants every night then your gonna find it really hard to save. I've had way more fun nights hanging out with a few friends at home than going out to bars blowing $100+ on drinks.
Likewise I think it's very important that your partner shares the same values as you. If your saving hard and your partner has a shopping addiction or wants to go out partying all the time then it's going to be a lot harder to reach your goals.
Learn to cook. Preprepared food is expensive and in my experience very low quality. Over the weekend I'll make two large batches of something like spag bol or curry and freeze 10 meals for that week, they work out to about $3 per serve. Rice and pasta are the backbones of almost everything I make, vegetables take up most of the rest and meat is only a minor proportion.
Grow some food yourself. It's easy, satisfying and a very relaxing hobby. You don't even need a garden, some pots on an apartment balcony will work.
I buy most of my clothes second hand or at somewhere like target or kmart.
Electronics are almost always cheaper when bought online.
Never buy a new car.
Learn to do basic car servicing and diagnostics yourself. Even if you still get a mechanic to do the work knowing what they're talking about will help stop you from getting quite so badly ripped off.
Gyms are one of the biggest scams around. A small investment in some basic equipment will last you many many years and give the same results.