iNCREASING VALUE OF YOUR HOME

Increasing The Value Of Your Home

 

Increasing The Value Of Your Home

In prior posts, we discussed how to get a higher appraisal value, and home improvement projects that have the best return on your investment.
In today’s post, we’ll talk about home improvements that save you money and some old trends that are making a big comeback.

Five “Passé” Home Trends Make a Major Comeback

Yahoo! Finance assures us that avocado appliances and orange shag carpet won’t come back, but here’s five trends that you may want to incorporate if you’re remodeling. And if you have them, play them up as it could be a big selling point if you’re intending to sell your home:

1. Old stuff…but with a twist. The look is mixing old with new. Everyone wants vintage and reclaimed wood mixed with new and retro looking items.
2. Industrial fixtures and sinks.
3. Shaker-style cabinets.
4. Subway tile.
5. Wallpaper. Wallpaper can bring a completely different look to a room. This isn’t your grandma’s wall covering. We’re talking faux brick veneers and wood wallpaper that looks like the real thing. They’ve even created temporary wallpaper for renters or if you don’t want the look to last that long.

4 Home Improvements That Will Save You Money

Yahoo! Finance has a great article on the four home improvements that will save you money. Read the article for the specifics on money invested and money saved.

• If you have a basement, install a dehumidifier. It may not sound like much of an improvement at first, especially if your family and visitors aren’t complaining about the humidity in your home, but if the humidity is removed, the house will feel cooler, which may mean you use the air conditioning less.
• Seal areas between your ceiling and the attic such as spaces where pipes go up. The expert also recommended adding spray foam insulation to the rim joists in their basements or crawl spaces. This allows the heat and ac in your home to stay in your home and not heat or cool down an attic where you’re not hanging out.
• Seal off the cracks underneath your doors, around your windows, and the cracks in the foundation. One of the biggest wasters of energy are these little cracks that let out hot or cold air and let in the opposite depending upon the season. A quick amount of sealing will go a long way.
• Finally, re-stain and seal your wooden deck at least every three years. It will keep it looking fantastic as well as protecting the wood from rotting out.