You would have to be living under a rock to have not heard how hot the housing market is right now. With headlines about how competitive buyers are being, about the low housing inventory and how all of this is driving up the prices of homes in almost every location. Before making the jump into the 2021 real estate market, take a look around at the home you have and see if maybe some creative thinking can turn your home back into the dream home it was when you first moved in.
Customize Your Spaces
Just because a room is called a ‘breakfast nook’ or a ‘nursery’ doesn’t mean that is what it is destined to be in your home. Would your ‘great room’ better serve the people in your home as a gym or would that second bedroom work better as a home office with all the bells and whistles? Make your home truly yours by learning every part of your home and ensuring that it meets every need that it can for you and your family.
Begin by listing each room and its actual function in your home (i.e., if it’s called a breakfast nook but you use it as a crafting-corner, then it is a crafting-corner, period). Then choose how that room could be functioning optimally. Does it need better storage? Fatigue mats on the floor? Is it a large space that needs distinction into multiple areas? Once you have this resolved, it will be a lot easier to decide how to make the most out of every room with respect to your home and family.
Break Out the Paint
Over the last several years, researchers have found that the color of one's surroundings--walls, rugs, furniture, and more--can significantly impact productivity, restfulness, and overall happiness.
When maximizing your environment with color and you begin picking colors for each room, think about the mood you want to get out of your space. How do you want to feel in each area? Take the time to decide on the purpose of each space and then drill down into how to add color in the way that will be most beneficial. Pink is a compassionate color that is best used in communal spaces, while green enhances concentration. Maybe a red wall will be too much as it can increase heart rate, but since it does promote alertness, maybe painting your desk or a cabinet could do the trick.
Pro tip: Painting will also affect lighting. Think about how the light comes into your house throughout the year to make sure you will be happy with your choice when it is finished.
Look in the Mirror
Mirrors add light to your interior, just like windows. Whether it's a hallway or the family room, a mirror can add instant beauty to an area and can actually make it feel more spacious. A well-placed mirror gives a room a bright and open feeling as a practical helper for the optical enlargement of any space. Mirrors can be strictly functional or the focal point in a room. Whichever it is, it will provide extra light, visual interest, and convenience to your home.
Kitchen and Storage
As our households grow and change, our home’s kitchen and storage capabilities are one of those things that can be easily optimized once it is tackled. The kitchen must suit the home’s needs, and luckily it is one of those rooms that even small enhancements will make a big difference.
First, think about the purpose of your kitchen for your family and then your storage expectations. Is your home the one people flock to in the holidays, so you need storage for extra china and table setting accessories? Is it just a workspace for your family that needs additional seating and counter space? Maybe it’s just a meal-prep area, and you require a roomy refrigerator and other great food storage.
Once you have decided on the expectations of your home’s kitchen, it will be much easier to determine where to begin with your kitchen project. Keep in mind when replacing appliances to consider energy-efficient choices as well as smart, connectable devices to make sure your kitchen remains as modern as possible while saving you money in the long run.
Bathroom Updates
Not only will updates to your bathroom impact you and your family visually, but a more efficient bathroom can save significant dollars as well as reduce strain on your home and the environment. By just replacing old, inefficient pipes and fixtures, you can impact your energy and water bills pretty quickly. Combine that with how fresh, and new a bathroom can feel with a few cosmetic changes such as peel-and-stick tile, proper storage, and new art-- you could create that feeling of an entirely new space.
Get on the Floor
Because flooring takes up such a visually ample footprint, homeowners may avoid thinking about it as a viable option when renovating their homes. The truth of the matter is that new floors offer a serious return on investment and quality of life.
Like paint and other big changes to your home, it is essential to establish the overall intended purpose. Even though you may see a lush carpet and fall in love, maybe a durable, low-maintenance linoleum would be best for your small children and pets, and instead add a lush rug to your bedroom, where luxury counts.
New flooring will immediately change the appearance of a room, but it can also improve the air quality. Replacing old flooring that may contain VOCs (volatile organic compounds) that off-gasses or any carpet in moisture-rich areas that could be prone to mold and mildew growth can ensure a safer environment in your home.
Add Art & a Home Library
Adding art and a home library doesn’t only have beneficial impacts on everyone living in the home, but to the eye, these instantly add value to a room and visually complete the space.
Adding art, whether small photo prints, an interesting wall clock, or a disco ball light fixture, will create new character in your home, defining the personality of each space.
Artwork is also one of the few home improvement investments that you can relocate from room to room and even take with you if you move.
Outdoor Spaces
If you weren’t already taking advantage of any outdoor space you have, the coronavirus pandemic had us all thinking more creatively about how to use our entire property.
Like above, customizing your outdoor space to be as useful to your family as possible is the key and luckily, there are tons of creative ways to do this. Have a tiny outdoor space but would like an herb garden? Try a garden wall. Or if you want to have an outdoor home gym, games area, kitchen and bar...the possibilities are endless. It may just take some ingenuity and elbow grease to make it happen. You get a great return on your investment in the home when you utilize every part of your property.
Enjoying the home you are in is important, especially with homebuyer’s remorse at a high during this extremely competitive time in the housing market. Your current home is, without a doubt, brimming with opportunity. Our homes have to function as so many things, it’s easy to think the grass must be greener on the other side, but take a minute to re-think that and look to your current space. The grass is most likely pretty green in the first place. Also remember to update your homeowners insurance when you make any significant changes around the home, like adding smart home devices, because these upgrades may save you on your premium every month as well.
