Before starting any home improvement project it is good to weigh your plans with the benefits that it will provide. After all, your budget sets the tone on what you can spend and who doesn’t want to get the best bang for their buck?

If adding a room, expanding an attic, or increasing a kitchen’s size is beneficial to your personal enjoyment, then that is reason enough to expand. Of course, if you’re looking to add value to your home, then choosing the right home renovation project can increase your home’s worth and make it easier for you to sell it later on.

Adding A Half Bathroom

One project that offers excellent benefits is the addition of a half bathroom, particularly in a home with only one full bath present. Many of the pre-war (WWII) homes that were built, including stately colonials, have only one bathroom — homes which can be found in older communities throughout the northeast and midwest. Today, we’re so used to having almost as many bathrooms as bedrooms that it may come as a surprise that some homes have only one bathroom and that one is located upstairs.

What Is A Half Bath?

A half bath (or half bathroom) is a room with a toilet and a sink, but no shower or tub. Many half baths are placed under the stairwell, as that area affords just enough room for the placement of a toilet along with a sink and mirror. If you can convert a closet to a bathroom, you’ll have some extra room, but as long as the bathroom is at least 3×6 mostly everyone will find the area comfortable.

What You Must Consider

The biggest challenge after available space is plumbing, particularly connecting to existing water and sewer lines. New lines can be run underneath the floor especially if your bathroom is on the first floor and you have a basement below it. The easiest job is one where the new bathroom backs up to another bathroom, which usually isn’t the case for aged colonials.

If space is at a premium, a pedestal sink will work better than a sink cabinet. A mirrored cabinet can be used instead, the perfect place to put extra rolls of toilet paper, towels, and supplies.

Every bathroom needs to be adequately vented and insulated. Local building codes may determine some of the materials to be used while older homes may need significant rewiring and the running of a new ventilation system. Excellent insulation is needed to absorb interior sound so that people can go about their business in privacy. You’ll need at least one electrical outlet which can be used for an automatic air freshener device.

More or Less?

Will your new half bath add value to your home? Personal value and satisfaction — absolutely, if done right. Financial value — yes, especially if your home only had one full bathroom previously.

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Adv. – If you need ideas for your next home renovation project, visit LetsRenovate.com to find helpful tips and budget information to help bring your plans to fruition. Your home is your most valuable asset — let us help you protect and enhance your home!

Tags: bathroom, half bath, half bathroom, Home Improvement, home renovation, powder room

Professionals who understand home values will often say that there are two areas in a home which are most important to people: kitchens and bathrooms. This is made known when a home is being put up for sale as these rooms in the house are often the deciding factor whether someone will purchase a home or not.

That is also why when you consider making any kind of home renovation, you take a hard look at your kitchens and baths to see if these areas could use a complete overhaul or a minor refreshening. If you are looking specifically at your bathrooms for what you can do there.

When considering a bathroom renovation, you’ll need to keep the following in mind:

How extensive of a project are you looking at? Do you want to do a complete gutting down to the studs and floorboards or are you looking at replacing a counter top, a light fixture, and an exhaust fan? Of course, the more complicated the job, the more time it will take and the more money you will have to expend.

DIY or contractor? Will it be a do-it-yourself project or will you need to hire a contractor? Assess your skills, the time needed to complete the work, and your willingness to tackle the project. You may be able to handle replacing a vanity, toilet, or a shower stall, but making structural changes involving electricity, plumbing, and moving walls could be beyond your skill sets.

Out of pocket or bank financing? Do you have the funds available to do the work or will you need to take out an equity loan or secure a line of credit to finance the renovation. With the latter, you could gain an important tax deduction and a low rate on funds borrowed. You will, however, take on some debt. Fortunately, bathroom (and kitchen) renovations usually allow you to recoup your investment. Work on a budget to see what you can afford.

If you’re looking simple for a fresh look consider putting in a bath/shower liner, swapping out the wall paper, replacing a mirror, and changing a closet door. These can be especially good things to do if you plan on selling your new home in the future — you’ve brightened up the bathroom without expending a whole lot of money.

Tags: bathroom, counter tops, electrician, equity loan, flooring, home exhaust, Home Improvement, home renovation, joists, kitchen, line of credit, mirrors, plumbing, sconces, shower, sink, tile, toilet, tub, vanity, walls

Homeowners who are preparing to put their houses on the market are understandably nervous these days. Will a buyer be found? Will they be approved for a mortgage?

This sort of uncertainty has some owners thinking about spending extra money to make repairs in a bid to improve the marketability of their homes. While major repairs should be handled before the home is offered for sale, most sellers can make minor repairs and still sell their homes.

Before you sell, you need to assess how your home looks to potential buyers. A skilled real estate agent can suggest what repairs you should make before marketing your home; those tips are likely to include the following:

Clean up your landscaping — your front lawn could make or break a sale; if your home doesn’t have curb appeal, then buyers may not be able to “look past” the front door. Trim bushes, put grass seed down to fill in patches, plant flowers, and lay down mulch. Trim trees which are obviously diseased too.

Refreshen your front door — does the entranceway to your home “wow” your visitors? If not, consider applying a new coat of stain to the front door, fix broken glass, clean the light fixture, lay down a new welcome mat, apply a fresh cost of paint around the frame of the door.

Interior walls — short of painting your home’s interior, touching up walls by removing smudges and repairing cracks could be all that is needed. If wallpaper has obviously aged and looks dated, remove same and repaint the walls with a soft color.

Too much furniture — remove extra furniture as too much furniture can make a room look smaller than it should. If a chair or sofa is worn, put a new slip cover over same or remove that piece.

Carpeting, flooring — ripped carpeting should be fixed. If old, replace it or if there are wood floors underneath, have the floors refinished — you’ll save money over buying a new carpet.

Bathrooms — replace that old toilet seat with a new one, fix dripping faucets, caulk the shower/tub, clean the tile, replace the shower curtain and rug.

Kitchen — keep all appliances even if they are old as long as they work. Your next buyer will probably replace these items anyway. Re-stain or repaint cabinetry and fix counters that are cracked, worn, or otherwise needing a makeover. Remove excess small appliances when showing the home to create a more spacious appearance.

Closets, nooks, and crannies — sticking everything in closets or other out of the way places is a no-no. Organize these areas to “show” exactly how they are to be used; avoid filling up your attic, basement, garage, and shed with stuff you really don’t need and won’t ever use again.

HVAC — an old furnace, air conditioning unit, or hot water heater could be a sale stopper. Replace these appliances before putting the home on the market.

Instead of spending tens of thousands of dollars readying your home for sale, you could spend just a few hundred to a couple of thousands of dollars and have a home that will sell quickly. The key, of course, is to do the minimum repairs in advance of marketing your home, to help you maximize your profit and move on with your life.

Resources

Doors and Windows

Garden Maintenance

Home Projects

Upstairs/Master Bathroom

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