What is home improvement?
Home improvement is a term that encompasses the entire process of remodeling, renovating, changing and modifying existing elements of the home as well as adding new elements that will improve the functionality and design of the entire facility.
Many define the value of a home in terms of its financial value when selling, but for many the value of a home also means the overall lifestyle within their own home, its usefulness, design, multifunctionality and increased comfort, safety and energy and cost savings.
Whether it is a personal or financial increase in the value of the home, most often we talk about works on the interior of the house, the exterior of the house as well as general works on the land belonging to the building itself.
In the case of improving a home for sale, it is necessary to take into account local and regional needs, demand and opportunities, as well as the real estate market and legal aspects of the sale. It is also reasonable to realize that some improvements do not have a full direct cash return on sales, but rather increase success and the chance of a sale.
10 ideas for home improvement
You can improve your home in various ways, and sometimes the cheapest and simplest are the most effective solutions. For example, a simple change of color or finding specific content that completes and gives meaning to a room inside or outside the home can contribute to creating a better context of the entire space, and thus increase the value of the home.
Below we present, among others, some of such ideas:
Garage door replacement
If you have an old garage door, either technically or stylistically, you will achieve a major improvement and increase in the value of your home by purchasing a newer model with additional functions, an elegant modern design and increased operating comfort. If you are thinking of selling the building, a new garage door increases the chance of sale, and can achieve a full return of the invested money.
If you are thinking about new garage doors, our partner Istraplast will offer you a professional and affordable solution.
Wall painting
An often neglected, but very simple, efficient and effective way of improving the home is painting the walls. The new wall color will bring freshness to every home, and by choosing the right contrast, it can visually make the rooms larger, more spacious and create a story for different segments and rooms of the entire house.
If you are thinking of selling your house, you will achieve greater value by choosing neutral colors for the interior, while renewing the color of the exterior facade of the house improves the first impression of the entire building, and accordingly, the chance of a successful sale.
Construction of a new or extension of an existing terrace
For owners who have a house on their own land, building a terrace is a unique solution that increases the value of the home. The covered terrace is an additional living space where you can spend time, and its functionality can be subsequently increased through the implementation of a grill, benches, tables and lighting.
The terrace is an element that you can’t go wrong with if you want to improve your home, and it gives an additional quality of life because of the activities that can be carried out on it, as well as because of the connection of the interior of the home with the environment.
Landscaping
Landscaping has a great positive effect on the value of the home and improves the general impression as well as the elegance of the driveway and entrance to the building. Planting new plants, flowers, and even trees brings a positive green color. A well-arranged and decorated access road brings an elegant combination of modern rustic style with nature.
For home improvement, it is also recommended to get or rent a high-pressure cleaner for easier and simpler cleaning of existing access roads, stones, the exterior of the building and its surroundings. The difference you will achieve with a pressure washer is priceless!
If you live in an apartment, you can bring in nature and the environment by adding plants in different locations inside of it – in addition to its decorative character, color and aesthetics, greenery in the apartment has a positive effect on people’s mood.
Refresh your kitchen
The kitchen can be a very expensive segment of home renovation, especially if it is necessary to change all the kitchen appliances, elements and devices inside of it. You can always implement new technology in the kitchen and of course it will have a positive effect on the comfort of the home, but if you plan to sell the property, then it is often not necessary to make an excessive investment in appliances and devices, but pay more attention to the spatial functionality and design of the kitchen.
The kitchen does not have a full return on investment, and for this reason it is better to make it beautiful, elegant and simple for subsequent personal or individual customization.
Accordingly, painting cabinets and shelves, installing new handles on cabinets and tiles on the wall, decorating kitchen surfaces, improving lighting and installing new lighting fixtures, installing elegant faucets, as well as creating intelligent storage space inside the kitchen can be done in a modern and simple way allowing for a way more spacious, luxurious and multifunctional kitchen.
More extensive methods that create exclusivity and premium elegance include connecting the kitchen with the living room, installing new floor coverings, and often creating a so-called kitchen island, which can also include a seating area.
Installing a new front door
The first impression plays a big role during a tour or visit of the facility, and it also raises the personal feeling of comfort and beautifies the impression of one’s own home. New front doors represent one of the best ways to improve your home, and they also achieve an almost complete return on invested money.
It is also possible to renew or upgrade the elements related to the door itself: a new access road, installation of greenery, integration of effective entrance lighting as well as an anti-burglary system with optional security cameras can greatly improve the aesthetics and security of the home, and at the same time become one of the leading selling points of the entire building.
If you are thinking about getting a new entrance door, our partner Istraplast will offer you diverse and aesthetically unique solutions that will surely satisfy all your specific needs.
Modernize the bathroom
Modern bathrooms often lean towards the idea of creating a spa atmosphere within your own home. To achieve such an atmosphere, it is often enough to introduce strong contrasting colors such as dark gray and white, with isolated accents of wood and some green plants.
Alternatively, neutral colors increase the airiness of the bathroom as well as the feeling of cleanliness inside it. Often, the classic bathtub is upgraded with a glass wall and the creation of a partial shower cabin or is completely replaced by a shower cabin.
However, you don’t have to overdo your bathroom renovation – simply painting the bathroom elements, adding some plants, introducing better lighting or generally more light, and installing modern shower heads, storage space and new mirrors can turn your bathroom into a modern and comfortable room.
Check out Tara Dennis’ bathroom renovation example from “Great Home Ideas”!
Increasing the building’s energy efficiency
Home improvement can be achieved through better energy efficiency, which can be approached through several methods. It creates better comfort inside the home, achieves long-term savings, and is also an important point of negotiation when selling the building.
One of the best ways to achieve better energy efficiency is the introduction of better home insulation, renewal of electrical lines and plumbing, and it can also include renovation of the entire facade and roof.
Modern solutions include the installation of solar panels, usage of technological devices of an energy class value of A+++ to reduce consumption (such as washing machines, lighting and boilers), implementation of smart house elements for generally better regulation and monitoring of the overall energy consumption within the building (they also can contribute to greater home security).
Old, worn doors often have a negative effect on the energy efficiency of the home, especially if it is an old front door. Old, worn-out windows have an equally negative effect, especially if they are ordinary single-paned windows. Modern glass surfaces and their various multi-layered variants greatly help with better insulation of the building, and it is possible to upgrade them and additionally protect them with shutters.
Redesign of the interior and its functionality
Sometimes it is necessary to redesign the elements inside a room, and sometimes to change the entire purpose of the room. Better comfort and functionality are most often the motivators of such a decision, and when selling a house, an additional room can be a big plus when negotiating the purchase price and defining the final sale price.
Interior redesign is generally about introducing more light into the space, changing furniture, implementing curtains, renewing and changing colors, installing a new wood or laminate floor, and introducing decorative elements that will create a unique, elegant and endearing impression and character of the entire building.
The functionality of the interior is most often achieved by repurposing rooms, combining the kitchen and living room into one larger, more spacious segment, as well as possibly demolishing walls to repurpose the available surface and design new rooms with a different character and purpose.
The value of the home can be increased accordingly by building a special storage space, playroom, office, exercise room, additional bedroom or even a library or study room.
Check out an example of an interior redesign by Tara Dennis from “Great Home Ideas”!
Installation of aluminium shutters
Aluminium shutters are a key element in home improvement, and provide a solution for traditional and modern architecture. Especially in terms of modern architecture, due to its specific nature and style, aluminium shutters allow a great increase in the value of the home, since they bring with them color, texture, style and character to the exterior of the building that is otherwise missing in modern architecture, and thus improve the crucial first impression during the sale of the home.
Home improvement with shutters can be achieved through different models of shutters, and in addition to aesthetics, light control and shading, depending on the shutter model, they can also contribute to increased home security, protection against insects, as well as improved living comfort.
An exceptional increase in the value of the home is achieved by implementing sliding and folding shutters that enable the creation of large panoramic openings through which the interior world of the home is connected in a very elegant way with its exterior world and environment.
EUX aluminium shutters offer you a variety of models at affordable prices with unique, professional and long-lasting solutions for all types of windows and architecture. Beautify, modernize and improve your home through the implementation of shutters!
Home improvement doesn’t have to be complicated
Determine the budget that you can set aside for increasing the value of the home and start from the most basic or simplest items that you can realize. There are many so-called DIY projects (Do It Yourself) that you can implement independently and without much effort in your home in order to improve, beautify and make it more comforting and pleasant to live in.
Some of these DIY projects represent simple cleaning of the space in the home – in other words: Less is more!
The so-called decluttering of the space is based on defining the clear purposes and meaning of the rooms and using only those elements and objects that are really necessary for such a room. Introducing order accompanied by purpose can be one of the simplest and cheapest home improvement procedures.
Filling a room with unnecessary elements that suffocate its free surfaces tends to create a feeling of less ventilation and energy flow inside your home can quickly make a home that otherwise has great potential unpleasant and unattractive to live in.
Install shutters for increased home value
Sometimes changing the color or introducing more light is really a big shift for the better, but there can also be specific projet requirements which certain renovations demand.
One such need may be to increase the security of the home, which again improves the home and increases its value, but security doors, alarm systems, fire protection systems throughout the building, additional generators in the event of a power outage, etc. may represent higher financial costs.
In this regard, aluminium shutters represent a unique solution that covers a lot of points for improving the home:
- They increase home comfort due to better insulation and light regulation.
- They reduce the need for window maintenance and repair.
- They provide better energy saving and weather protection.
- They provide an additional element of home protection and security.
- They enhance the visual impression and aesthetics of the entire object.
- They increase the functionality of the home.
- They are an excellent long-term investment due to their durability, resistance and strength.
Whatever you plan on improving within your home, we believe that you will choose the type of home renovation that suits you best – we wish you success and happiness in that! And if we can help you with that, feel free to contact us.
