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Homeowners often mistakenly believe that when it comes to home remodeling, quality and expensive are synonymous with each other but that isn’t always true. There are plenty of home improvement projects, upgrades, and tips that will allow you to remodel and redecorate beautifully without breaking the bank. Here are just a few. First, set a budget Arguably the most important step to a budget-friendly remodel is setting a budget. It’s so important, in fact, that it should always be the first step. Even if you’re just looking at potential projects and doing some shopping around for materials, if you haven’t set a budget yet, you will end up spending more than you wanted to. So decide upfront how much you can afford to spend on your remodel and fix that number in your mind. When you move onto the next step, don’t keep upping your budget as you find projects you want to do but can’t afford. Do your research With a dollar amount in mind, you’re prepared to start doing your research. The internet is a great resource because it’s free and can give you an unlimited number of ideas. Find things you like and just make a list of everything you’d do if money wasn’t an issue. Next you can start estimating costs. If you’ve got projects that will need to be done by a contractor, you can set about getting some estimates. For DIY projects, you can go the store yourself and add up the costs for all the things you’ll need to purchase. Don’t forget to factor in the cost of any tools you’ll need to do the project. Go with a black and white palette When choosing a color palette to base your entire home off of, go with black and white. It’s a classic, timeless look and you’ll never have a problem matching furnishings and accessories to it since everything goes with black and white. You aren’t limited to the stark contrasts of black and white either since you can go with grays and all the shades or tints of white, black, or gray. Choose laminate over hardwood It seems most every homeowner wants real hardwood in their home. Laminate gets a bad reputation as a cheap knock-off for real hardwood but it’s actually a very good alternative since it’s a lot less expensive, more durable, and harder to dent or scratch. The processes used to manufacture laminate flooring have also come a long way so you can’t even tell the difference between real wood and laminate. Baseboard radiator covers instead of new baseboard radiators Don’t assume that the only fix for old baseboard radiators is to replace them with new ones. So long as they’re working just fine, you can save a lot of money by installing baseboard radiator covers. They will give your heaters a brand new, clean look. Installing the covers is a simple job that you can do yourself to further save money on remodeling costs. Interior Decorating and Remodeling News Brought to You by ezsnapbaseboardheatercovers.com Source: entrepreneur.com/article/297458

Source: nytimes.  com/2017/05/03/business/home-equity-loans-lines-of-credit-remodeling.html?_r=0

For homeowners trying to do some remodeling, there are some tough decisions to be made. Unless your funds are unlimited--very unlikely--you’ll have to prioritize which projects get the bulk of the remodeling budget and which projects are done on the cheap. There are some projects where you really can get away with less expensive look-alike materials and there are other projects where you really should spring for something of higher quality. The following tips can help. Wood flooring: Save Wood floors is undeniably the hottest thing in flooring. But there are drawbacks. For one, they’re expensive. They’re also more susceptible to water damage which is especially problematic when wood flooring is especially popular in communal spaces like the kitchen and guest bathroom where water is likely to spill on the floor. Flooring is one area in your home that you can save some money on by going with a tile or laminate flooring product that simulates the look of real wood. Look alike wood flooring products have come a long way in recent years and it’s almost impossible to tell the difference from the real thing plus you have the benefit of longevity and lower cost. New Baseboards: Splurge Baseboards, on the other hand, is where you want to spring for real wood. The cheaper stuff, while still technically made from trees, isn’t really wood. The leftover scraps of wood are broken down into fibers then pressed tightly together to form medium-density fiberboard. It’s basically a small step up from particle board which is made from wood dust. They dent easily when bashed with a vacuum or anything else and they damage easily when exposed to water. You’re better off spending more for real wood baseboards. Cabinetry: Save All new custom cabinets are very expensive so unless you really can’t live with the layout of your existing cabinets, consider refacing them instead. There are several ways to do this. You can remove just the faces of the cupboards and drawers and replace them with something new. You can re-stain or repaint your cabinets for even less. Even installing new knobs and pulls can give old cabinets a new look. Paint: Splurge Just about every major paint company now sells all-in-one paint and primer promising to save you money. But self-priming paint isn’t as good as buying the two separate and painting two separate coats. Yes it will cost more in money and time but all-in-one paint and primer products just won’t get you the same look, especially if you’re trying to paint over a darker paint color with a lighter one, or a shinier paint with a duller one. Baseboard heaters: Save Yes, old baseboard heaters can really date your home, but it’s probably not worth the cost to tear them out especially if you don’t already have an alternate source of heat for the home and will have to install a forced air heating system. You’re better off paying for some inexpensive baseboard heater covers that install over the heaters to quickly update their look. It’s a simple and inexpensive upgrade you can do yourself in a matter of minutes. Interior Decorating and Remodeling News Brought to You by ezsnapbaseboardheatercovers.com Source:gvnews.com/get_out/rosie-on-the-house-lookalikes-that-can-save-you-money/article_fbcf37b8-6014-11e7-8596-f70fc0d34d1c.html

Most homeowners choose to DIY because it saves money. While this is often the case, it isn’t always. Ask anyone who’s undertaken too big a project alone if it saved them money and they’ll tell you “no.” There are certain projects that you should go straight to the pros for help. The following projects are inherently risky and are more likely to cost you even more if you try to do it yourself first. Roofing work of any kind For obvious reasons, roofing work of all kinds pose an inherent risk. Not only are they far above ground but they’re sloped. Many Americans are killed each year by falls from their roof. Whether you need a whole new roof or you just need a leak patched, you’re better off hiring a professional roofer who has the proper training and equipment. Besides, you wouldn’t want to void the warranty that came with your shingles. Electrical work Electrical work is also inherently risky for obvious reasons. Not only do you risk electrocution, you could start a fire or short out your whole system. Electrical work requires a license for a reason. If the work you envision requires rewiring or moving electrical outlets, call a professional. Plumbing work Unlike the previous two, plumbing work isn’t likely to kill you, but like the previous two, it can result in costly damages if you try to do it yourself which is why you want to leave plumbing work to the professionals as well. The average homeowners is unlikely to have all the special equipment that a licensed plumber would have and one wrong move can flood a room and cost you hundreds or thousands of dollars and you’ll end up needing to bring in a professional in the end anyways. Wood floor installation Even though wood flooring comes pre-cut, you’ll still need to do some cutting of your own to work around a kitchen island, funny angles, or all the other quirks that every home has. Using a saw has it’s own risks if you don’t know what you’re doing. Even if you do, you’re unlikely to cut everything perfectly and install it without a single gap. Gaps in flooring means your new hardwood floors won’t last long since spills will get beneath it and lead to rot. Tree removal America’s Funniest Home Videos has managed to last for 27 seasons in large part because of the number of homeowners who try to remove large trees or tree limbs on their own. If you’re tempted to save money on tree removal, go online and watch a few trees fall on homes, garages, and vehicles, then go call a professional. What can you do? Despite these and other projects that you shouldn’t do by yourself, there are still many, many projects you can do safely and successfully in order to save money. They’re the smaller-scale tasks that don’t require special training or equipment which the homeowner is unlikely to have. Instead of electrical work, install some new lighting fixtures. Instead of plumbing work, install some new sink fixtures. Other good projects include repainting, refacing cabinets, or installing baseboard heater covers. Interior Decorating and Remodeling News Brought to You by ezsnapbaseboardheatercovers.com Source:ksl.com/?sid=44885250&nid=1379

The ultimate challenge for the home remodeling enthusiast is the experience of purchasing an renovating a historic home—to keep its historic charm but make it functional for a 21st century family. As fixer-uppers go, historic homes are as challenging as they come. Before such an undertaking, here are a few tips you should keep in mind. Make sure you’re ready Though remodeling can do a whole lot, it’s still going to be a very old home at the end of the day and old homes have their little quirks. They may be a little crooked, the rooms may not be evenly heated or cooled, and it’s going to need a lot more in the way of maintenance. Ask yourself if these are deal breakers for you. Some homeowners are willing to put up with an awful lot just for the charm of living in an older home. Others need all of their 21st century comforts and that isn’t always feasible with an older home even with extensive remodeling. Structural issues first When renovating a historic home, you need to start by addressing any potential structural issues. You don’t want to blow through your budget only to discover you don’t have enough left to address a problem that’s essential for the home’s structural integrity. Water damage is an indication of structural issues especially when it’s found on the ceiling or  floors, around the windows, and on the sill plate (the bottom-most horizontal part of the home’s foundation). No matter how expensive, you have to tackle these problems first even if it means sacrificing a big chunk of your renovation budget. Hire the right contractor Restoring a historic home isn’t a job for the DIYer, no matter how skilled. You’re going to need a general contractor and you’ll want to hire someone who has experience working with older homes. A local historian with insight into how the home was built may also be a good asset, especially if he/she is knowledgeable about the processes that were used to restore other historic homes in the area. Start small If this will be your first time purchasing and renovating a historic home, don’t buy a mansion. Every remodel will entail some unforeseen costs but for historic homes, the unforeseen costs can be much, much higher. So start with a smaller home and set aside more for your budget than you think you’ll need. Quality over quantity Better to spend more on quality materials and workmanship and tackle less projects than to try to renovate everything but do it poorly. If you’ve followed the previous advice, and purchased a more manageably-sized home, you may be able to restore it perfectly as opposed to patching up a few areas on a larger home. Practical upgrades over aesthetic ones Aesthetics is the more fun part of remodeling but before you get carried away with the custom cabinetry or selecting paint colors for the interior, you need to think about practical upgrades first—ones that will prevent further damage to the home. Make it watertight, replace the roof, fix the windows, make sure there’s no problems with the masonry. Embrace the quirkiness With the exception of quirks that are truly problematic, you should just learn to embrace the fact that part of having a historic home is dealing with quirks. If the floors are uneven but the structural integrity of the home is sound, don’t spend a fortune trying to level them, find a way to accommodate that feature of the home into your design. Forget about central heating and air A popular upgrade for historic homes if centralized heating and air. Since this is so foreign to the original blueprints of a historic home, there’s virtually no way to do it without spending a lot of money and drastically changing the home. You’re better off buying some fans for the summer and some baseboard heaters for the winter. If you’re not crazy about the look of baseboard heaters, you can purchase baseboard heater covers to help disguise them a bit and make it blend in better with your design scheme. Interior Decorating and Remodeling News Brought to You by ezsnapbaseboardheatercovers.com Source: curbed.com/2017/6/8/15762608/old-house-renovate-restore-tips

The kitchen is typically the first room in the home to seem dated. As a result, it’s the most frequently remodeled. If you’re one of the many thousands of Americans planning a kitchen remodel this year, following these four tips will ensure that you get the most out of your remodeling budget. Have a plan All successful remodels start on paper. Homeowners tend to get overly excited and rush through the planning stage of a remodel in order to get started as soon as possible. You have to fight that urge to start buying materials and hiring contractors and make yourself take the time to carefully plan out the project first. The internet is a good place to start since there are many different resources that will give you ideas and help you visualize them. Once you have some ideas about what you want to accomplish with your remodel, you can start researching the estimated costs for the work and materials that will be necessary. Depending on the scope of your planned remodel, you may need to bring in an architect to help you turn your vision into actual blueprints that contractors can then use to make your dream into a reality. Plan on that plan not going according to plan There will almost surely be setbacks during the course of the remodeling project and while there are a few things you can do to minimize the chances of this happening, it’s always a possibility. Contractors may uncover unforeseen problems that need to be addressed before work can continue. Materials may be late in arriving or some of the work may not be done to your satisfaction and may need to be redone. The best you can do is plan on this happening by setting aside extra money in your budget and by having realistic expectations regarding the timeframe for the project. Make do with the space you have Kitchens are often the most expensive remodels because homeowners want bigger kitchens. Knocking down a wall, rearranging the layout, and expanding the kitchen outwards is going to eat up the vast majority of the budget and these are also the kinds of projects that are most likely to result in delays and added costs. Instead of physically adding to the space, you can use your budget more wisely by spending it on creative storage solutions. Also focus on various smaller projects that get you big results for less money. Good projects to consider include tiling a backsplash, replacing cabinet hardware, repainting the kitchen, or installing baseboard heater covers. Functionality before aesthetics While your kitchen needs to look good, it’s even more important that it’s functional and meets the needs of your family. When planning a remodel, make sure all of your money isn’t going into beautification. Under-cabinet task lighting makes food preparation easier. A deeper sink is easier for washing dishes and plenty of electrical outlets ensures that you’re never hunting around for a place to plug in a small kitchen appliance. Interior Decorating and Remodeling News Brought to You by ezsnapbaseboardheatercovers.com Source:lmtonline.com/news/article/GHBA-REmodelers-council-Kitchen-remodeling-tips-11225206.php