Improve your home’s curb appeal

The curb appeal of your home not only attracts high numbers of potential buyers but also increases the home’s value. According to an experienced real estate agent, curb appeal makes your home sell faster. Once the home is visually appealing, you can easily achieve your selling price.

The property should be well maintained, with an attractive and welcoming entrance and compound. To improve the curb appeal, you can give the property a fresh coat of paint and upgrade the landscaping by planting lawns or maintaining the existing one.

That aside, you should clean the exterior features of the home, add outdoor lights for a beautiful night view, pressure wash the driveway, and remodel some of the outdoor features.

Extensive cleaning and decluttering 

Cleaning and decluttering are one of the cheapest ways to improve your home. You can have this as a DIY home improvement project without hiring extra hands. Clear your home of all stuff you aren’t using anymore. You can start from the living room by discarding old or damaged gadgets, furniture, and deco materials. Do the same in the kitchen, then in the various bedrooms and bathrooms. You can also donate things that work perfectly but are of no use to you.

Afterward, clean your home thoroughly off spills and dirt with much focus on high-traffic areas. Dust the windows, light fixtures, and everything that attracts dirt.

Make your home energy efficient

With the current high cost of energy, people are finding ways to reduce bills. Therefore, making your home energy efficient will not only save you future energy costs but also add value to your home. Start this by upgrading your doors and windows to make air escape difficult. You can also ensure insulating measures. This reduces the amount of heat or cools your home.

Now install a smart thermostat to help adjust your cooling and heating needs on specific schedules. You should also replace your incandescent light bulbs with smart LED bulbs to use less energy.

Also, pay attention to the plumbing system and fix all leaking fixtures that are making you pay for unused water.

Upgrade your home’s front elevation 

Your home’s front elevation should be artistic, visually appealing, and enhance the style of the house. If you live in an old home, your building may be of an old architectural design. Improve this by remodeling or upgrading it to a modern design. This can be a costly project and may involve break and make. But it is worth every penny you spend on it.

Homeowners in Phoenix and many other cities will need a permit to undertake a home remodeling or addition project. According to a Phoenix planning and development plan, “residential construction permits are needed when existing homes are remodeled, or additions are made.” After securing a permit, demolishing contractors like Van’s Hauling cater for all the demolitions. The break and make will also require debris removal, which Vans company can handle perfectly.

Add modern features 

If breaking and remaking portions of your old home sounds extreme to you, you can add modern features to the interior and exterior to achieve the same objectives. For the exterior, you can have concrete designs, sculptures, murals, outdoor living spaces, flower gardens, artificial grass, and other landscaping features to enhance the house’s curb appeal.

For the interior, you can add deco materials and wallpapers on specific walls. You can also use empty spaces or space under the staircase for storage facilities.

Change your flooring 

If you live in an old house, chances are that the flooring material hasn’t been changed for about a decade. If you find yourself in such a situation, it’s time to change the flooring. Choosing the right flooring material can be tricky, so speak to a contractor before making a choice. Floor material options include ceramic tiles, wood, vinyl, marble, and epoxy, among others.

Painting 

Adding a fresh coat of paint to your home makes it look fresh and new. You may have to choose the right paint color that complements other features in the house. Working with a painter can be a great way to choose a proper color combination.

Conclusion 

Homeowners who want to increase the value of their homes should take home maintenance and improvement seriously. As a home that look well-kept, with an attractive view and curb appeal, it automatically attracts buyers when placed on sale. Your home improvement project shouldn’t necessarily be expensive. Every little change you make counts. So, take care of your exteriors, clean and declutter, add more features, make it energy efficient, and improve the curb appeal, and you are good to go.

This is a post from Home Design Find

7 Home Improvement Projects That Can Increase Your Home’s Value

SAOTA designed this stunning home for a Johannesburg family on the coast of South Africa.

The idea was for single roof element that responded to the site’s slope, floating over a living space.

Set in The Cove development at Pezula Estate outside Knysna, the property has extensive sea views downhill to the south east.

The client’s brief was a home that could eventually be used as a family home but would initially be used for holidays.

The roof is out of one’s line of sight from the back of the double height open living space as you enter.

A gigantic triangular skylight in the roof reinforces a connection with the sky.

A beautiful sculptural array of operable wooden slats can be variously positioned to hide the sun when it is directly overhead.

The master bedroom has curved curtain tracks creating a very intimate sleeping space at night by contrast with the very open daytime character.

The bedroom overlooks the bath in the front.

The residence is entered from the top of the hill behind the home.

The front door opens onto a very grand staircase at the back of the site drawing the visitor down towards the generous view.

A second stairway, a dramatic sculptural spiral shape connects the living level to a private lounge and the master bedroom on a mezzanine level.

A very glamorous home for the ages.

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Luxury Residence on the South African Coast by SAOTA

Things to consider

1. Finalizing your budget: Keeping in mind that the bathroom is probably the most used room in the house, it requires regular maintenance. So when you are setting up a budget for your bathroom design, it might involve a remodel as well. A remodel coupled with interior decoration proves to be more cost effective than financing the two projects separately. It also saves on time. Bathroom remodels could range anywhere between $2500 and $10,000, depending on how much you’re willing to spend.
2. Reading blogs: There are many blogs that review bathroom designs and trends. You will get a variety of design ideas from apps like Pinterest, which you can use in your bathroom. Explore different bathroom layouts, fixture ideas, design styles, colors and themes. Blogs often recommend professional designers and remodeling companies whom you could speak with.
3. Hiring a decorator: A professional decorator would be ideal, when you’re planning to redesign your bathroom. They take care of a lot of the grunt work, managing all your ideas, requirements and inputs, and delegating tasks to their team of designers. While this may be more expensive than a DIY project, it makes sense to invest this one time in a decorator so that your bathroom remodeling design ideas are executed well.
4. Sourcing materials: You can make a list along with your decorator, or by yourself, of all the design materials you will require, right from the tools required to break down walls to the kinds of tiles you’d want on your floor. Select bathroom fixtures like showerheads and faucets, wall tiles, towels and bathroom accessories, fittings and accents. Set aside a few days to find all the items on your list. Chances are, your decorator already knows where to purchase them.

Here are some design ideas you can take inspiration from:

1. Paint: Your bathroom wall decor can create quite an impact on the room and your state of mind, so painting the wall is a great way to set the tone for the entire bathroom’s design. There are different moisture-resistant wall paints available, with both glossy and matte finishes. You can pick light pastel tones for a cool, airy feel, or bright, rich colors for a splash of drama.

2. Lighting: Changing the lighting fixtures every few years is a good idea. And if you are changing them after a long time, it’s a good idea to upgrade the style as well. You go for bright mirror lights, cooler or warmer lighting, create a diffused light setting, or perhaps use twinkle lights from some extra coziness. LED lights are the best pick for energy-efficient lighting. You can always add a color filter of your choice. LED lights also make it easy on the pocket.

3. Tiles & Flooring: Depending on your budget and style preferences, the quality and quantity of tiles you need will vary. This may also determine whether the tiles are only for the floor or if they also go on walls and other parts of the bathroom. Tiles come in different shapes, sizes, textures and colors. You could go rustic with uneven natural stone or go elegant with marble. You could even go in between with ceramic. Your flooring should be durable, skid-proof and easy to clean. So when you are picking tile designs, consider functionality as well.

4. Hardware Upgrade: Upgrading the hardware like faucets, curtain rods, door handles, showerheads, towel bars and so on instantly elevates the look and feel of your bathroom. You can buy the latest showerheads which have more than one water pressure options. Faucets that produce hot and cold water immediately make for comfortable usage. Bathroom sinks can be a part of your design, with different shapes, sizes, colors and styles to choose from.

5. Storage: Consider providing for sufficient storage space in your bathroom, like drawers, cupboards, laundry bins or shelves. Depending on the amount of space you have to work with, you can choose a storage design that is space efficient, smart and functional. This takes care of clutter and gives space to move around. You could even consider putting your washer under the sink in your bathroom, if space and budget permit.

6. Art & Decor: Adorn walls with soothing pictures or paintings of your liking. You could even place small planters by the bathroom window or on the shelves, for some natural energy. Succulents are low maintenance, visually pleasing and easy to move around. Create an area for storing reading material, if reading is something you enjoy while having a warm soak in the tub.

This is a post from Home Design Find

Innovative Ways to Design Your Bathroom

Young and innovative architecture firm Tropical Space in Vietnam shake up all the assumptions about dowdy old brick.

Termitary House in Da Nang City, Vietnam revolutionises how brick is used in buildings.

On the ground floor, directly inside the street entrance is the open plan living, cooking and dining area.

Leading out to a modest back courtyard, the brick is paired with generous bamboo french doors.

Although right on the street, there is a sense of privacy.

In their imaginative rethink, the architects envision brick knitted into a cooling screen for the ground floor living room.

The bright red brick is improbably paired with bamboo bookcases – and it works.

Even constructing a second floor, the knitted brick is used to create a breezy throughway for the most private rooms.

The same bamboo screen is used to conceal the street through the front door.

The multiple junctions between various treatments of brick creates graphic interest.

A double stairway is a gallery of knitted brick textures.

Altogether a rich and fascinating series of contrasts.

Along with the knitted brick screen wall, a screen door by the day bed also facilitates air flow.

The warmth of the brick is a real surprise.

Sunlight filters in from every wall.

In the double height central space an overhead skylight brings daylight down.

The result is an innovative and utterly porous house that is also completely private.

This is a post from Home Design Find

Knitted Bricks Give New Life to a Forgotten Material

A three story home at Samosaguas on the outskirts of Madrid by A-cero Architects houses an art studio and pool on the top floor.

Who would suspect there is a reservoir-like swimming pool hiding in plain sight here at this sculptural entry suggesting natural stratified rock formation.

Yet almost the entire top floor, which also houses an art studio, is actually swimmable.

The architectural textured concrete swoop that appears to be pure art also conceals the swimmers from the street.

When lit from below, there is a hint of the very large scale of this body of water.

Housing a second children’s indoor pool inside, the exterior of the top floors is textured horizontally in the concrete formwork to appear like natural stratified rock.

The shapes of these swooping elements when reflected in the pool are pretty out there!

The shape of the house is highly unusual, but it is not quite as sci-fi looking as the reflection in the top floor pool suggests!

The home is designed to house a stunning art collection.

The beautiful swoop shape of the pool is repeated to very elegantly contain a different element – not water but fire.

Art fills the hallways and public spaces of the home.

To present the art in a gallery-like neutrality, huge white ceramic tiles are used throughout.

The sense of a gallery is reinforced by large expanses of white on the ground floor.

Even the furnishings like this dining table are conceived as art objects within the space.

When not in use, the dining room table and chairs closes up into a pure box shape.

Even the tiniest children get starter art in their own way.

The architects designed some of the exterior forms for repetition inside.

In this way, the very sculptural forms of the building exterior are continued seamlessly inside.

Custom-designed kitchen chairs slide under a cantilevered section of the kitchen prep zone.

The shape is repeated in the bedroom to create a sleeping platform.

From the stunning art collection on the lowest level, one can walk out to a nearby lake.

Looking back from here one really appreciates the choice of materials and shape which stacks naturally like a stratified rock formation, in complete harmony with the landscape.

This is a post from Home Design Find

Sculptural Home for Art Collectors Includes Rooftop Pool

Cash-out Refinance

When you have a high percentage of equity in your home, you can do a cash-out refinance to pay off your current loan and give you a lower interest rate. You get cashback from the refinance because the new loan is above that of your previous payoff amount. You can use this money to perform major home renovations or remodeling projects to increase the overall value of your home. If you prefer, you can tuck that money away for a rainy day or retirement.

Reverse Mortgage

If you’re approaching retirement age and feel that you need to put a large chunk of money in your account, a reverse mortgage could be the best choice for you. A reverse mortgage is called such because it works in nearly the exact opposite way of a traditional mortgage in that a lender pays the homeowner a dollar amounts equal to a determined percentage of the equity in their home.

This does not mean that the lender then owns the home. The homeowner continues living in the home until it is sold when they either pass away or move to a long-term care facility. At which time, the loan will come due and either the homeowner or their heirs will repay the loan.

Because of the unique nature of a reverse mortgage, there are strict requirements that must be met for a homeowner to qualify. Requirements include but are not limited to:

• The borrower must be at least 62 years old.
• The borrower must own at least 40% equity in the home.
• The home must be the primary residence (vacation homes and rental properties aren’t eligible).
• The borrower must meet with a Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-approved reverse mortgage counselor.

You can get an estimate of interest rates and dollar amounts by using a reverse mortgage calculator by All Reverse Mortgage.

Rent Out a Room

It’s not uncommon to end up with more homes than we need as we get older. You can put that room to work for you by renting it out to a tenant. This is a great way to bring in extra money as you can often charge a few hundred dollars for someone to rent a room by including utilities on top of the initial rent charges.

The room you rent can be as small as a single room on one side of your home or as large as your basement. Assess what you have available and get it ready to rent. Often people who rent out rooms or basements in homes understand the unique situation in which they live and are courteous to you as the landlord and fellow resident.

Allow Crews to Film at Your Home

If you’ve ever noticed that commercials, TV shows, and movies are often filmed at some of the same locations, it’s because these homes have been registered as a filming location. You can get your home on a list to be paid to allow filming by registering with advertising agencies and film studios. Share with them what makes your home unique and why they would want to film there. It might not be the next popular location to shoot, but it could bring in a nice check for a single use.

Grow a Garden

If you’ve ever been to a farmer’s market, it doesn’t take long to realize that many of the people there aren’t actual farmers. They’re average people who grow fruits and vegetables in their yard and are looking to make some money off their harvest. You can do the same thing. Turn a corner of your yard into a vegetable garden that you can harvest throughout the year and take to a farmer’s market.

Should you decide that the farmer’s market route isn’t for you, a garden can still be beneficial. By growing and picking your own vegetables, you can save hundreds of dollars each year on buying produce at the grocery store. Not only is this an excellent way to cut your grocery bill, but you also know exactly where your fresh vegetables come from before they make it to your kitchen table each day.

Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC)

When you take out a home equity line of credit (HELOC), it’s much like opening a credit card that has a credit line equal to a determined amount from the equity of your home. A lender will make those funds available to you to use. Rather than paying off a loan, you can continue to use the HELOC as you repay the debt. This means that the line of credit functions more like a credit card than a loan as the money will continue to be available.

This is a post from Home Design Find

6 Ways a Get Money from Your Home Without Selling

The Brown Residence designed by Lake|Flato Architects, in Scottsdale, Arizona has a mathematical rightness to it.

Precise proportions prevail throughout, from the perfect firepit to the terraced levels up to the modular glazing.

Elegant vertical hinging allows the slimmest of steel doors to swing wide.

The glazing is designed to bring the winter desert sun far in to the interior.

Every room gazes far out over the dry desert landscape of Arizona.

A corten steel screen is like a work of art, perfectly offset by quirky cactus-like outdoor seating.

The quietest beiges lap the sleeper in luxurious repose.

This is a home for a client who finds comfort and a quiet pleasure in the most scrupulously perfect proportions.

This is a post from Home Design Find

Perfect Proportions Define a Pleasing Desert Home

Architecture firm ihrmk created this intriguingly transparent view-through home in the Japanese countryside after a summertime visit to the site.

The house is made transparent from south to north on the first floor – but from east to west on the second floor.

The east west windows bring in the beginning and the end of the day to meet the client’s brief  “we want to awake in the morning sunlight”, “we want to doze in the comfortable breeze”

Sited right at the edge of the suburbs of Toyota, it maximises the connection with the paddy fields to the south and the west.

To participate in the flow of the surrounding natural environment, windows pop up in surprising places.

An induction cooktop is suspend right in the window of the kitchen.

The suburb-facing side is translucent.

“Bright green and reflection of water of the rice field just after the rice-planting, natural sounds of breeze rusting the leaves of lemon trees and Magnolia figo slightly and sound of running water from the waterway had created comfortable scenery there,” says the architect of his first site visit.

“It was calm place and there was nothing to cutting off my view from the site.”

Drawing on that summertime visit, the architects have made a relaxed haven that exudes peacefulness.

This is a post from Home Design Find

Passage of Landscape creates a Transparent Connection to Fields Beyond

Swett House is a private home designed by Prado Arquitectos in Chiguayante.

The site is at the bottom of a narrow valley surrounded by hills, and gets only short periods of sun exposure.

So the conceptual idea of the project was to gain height to maximise the sun exposure into the home.

A second story allows the brief exposure to the sun to warm the home for the maximum possible hours.

The idea was to support the second story on a series of steel columns inside a glass enclosure.

The horizontal fenestration, with continuous transparent planes is framed by the steel plates.

This contains the social areas; living room, dining room, barbecue and kitchen on the first level, maintaining a close relationship between the exterior and interior space.

Outdoor living prevails on the ground under the house.

The indoor-outdoor flow is accentuated by interior treatments like the ceiling of this outdoor room panelled in wooden beams.

The steel structure supports the second floor with minimal materiality (just steel and glass) containing the upper level housing the private living room and bedrooms.

This is a post from Home Design Find

Indoor-Outdoor Living for House by Prado in Chile

Plan Out the Layout Early

First, you should start thinking about the layout. Where in your home is the bathroom going to go and what is it going to look like? For example, against which wall will you install the toilet or the sink or the shower? It’s important to think about this early on because the more plumbing and electrical work you have to do, the more expensive it will be. If you can find a layout that makes use of existing fixtures, you’ll save a lot.

Design Before You Start

Once you have the rough layout down, you should then think about the design. The design of the bathroom includes things like the paint color, the light fixtures, and the type of tile. You may think you can figure this out after the bathroom is built, but it’s better to plan it out as early as you can.

The reason why is that you may need to account for the décor you want to do. For example, if you want a certain type of showerhead, you’ll want to install the shower faucet at a certain height. Or if you want a medicine cabinet with lights on the side, you’ll need to ensure the cabinet is installed far enough away from the corner of a room. You don’t have to pick out every single little detail now – like the paint color or the doorknobs – but the more you plan, the better.

Maximize Space

A lot of homeowners don’t build an additional bathroom because they believe they don’t have space for it. However, you can fit a lot into a tiny bathroom area. In just a 5×5 room you could fit a toilet and a sink. Make it a little bigger and you can even add a shower to make it a full bathroom.

In a tiny area like this, you’ll want to maximize space. Some ways to do this are shelving along the walls, a deep medicine cabinet for storage, and getting longer pieces of furniture. If you can, also find a sleeker, smaller sink to save even more room.

Find a Good Local Plumber

Chances are you won’t be able to add this new bathroom in by yourself. Unless you are a professional contractor or very handy, you’ll need the help of some experts. One such expert you’ll definitely need is a plumber. A plumber will be able to add the lines in you need for your sink, toilet, and bath while also ensuring everything is waterproof.

There are a few things you should look for in your plumber. First, try to find someone local. Then, check online reviews to see what kind of feedback they have gotten. Finally, make sure you are hiring the right type of plumber. You’ll want one with experience in residential homes. To learn more about the benefits of working with local plumbers, check out Fix It Right Plumbing (www.fixitrightplumbing.com.au/).

Look for Ways to Reduce Costs

If you aren’t careful when adding in another bathroom the costs can quickly add up. Throughout the process, you should look for ways to save money, but without sacrificing quality. Spend plenty of time shopping around for products to ensure you are getting the best deal. For each step, you take in your bathroom development, see if there is a more affordable option that will still allow you to get a bathroom you’re happy with.

Start Planning Your New Bathroom

Once you add in a new bathroom to your home, you’ll be glad you did. Don’t put this project off anymore because you think you don’t have the room or money. An additional bathroom is a great investment for your home, and it might not cost as much as you think. It’s just a matter of taking your time through each step and conducting thorough research to ensure you’re making the best possible decision. If you can do that, your new bathroom will soon be increasing the value of your home and the happiness of everyone living in it.

This is a post from Home Design Find

5 Tips for Adding a Bathroom to Your Home