What Home Improvements Will Pay Off Big?

Many projects do add value to your home and improve your family’s quality of life.  By doing these projects now, before you move, your family can really enjoy them.  Here are a few ways to increase the value of your home.

Remodeling the Kitchen- The kitchen is usually considered the heart of the home because it is the general gathering place when you are entertaining.  By updating your kitchen, you can recoup 60-120% of your investment as long as you don’t go overboard.

Bathroom Addition- If your home only has one bathroom, consider adding an additional one.  Adding an additional bathroom, you can recoup 80-130% of whatever you spend.

Reinventing a Room- Adding more square footage to your home with a new room can be an incredibly expensive project but you can recoup 50-83% of what you spent.  However, if you reinvent an existing space in your home you can save money.  Consider finishing your basement or turning your attic space into a bedroom.

Add Energy Efficient Windows- Old drafty single pane windows are a major turn off when your home is on the market.  Energy Star can save you up to $500 a year in heating and cooling costs.  You can also expect to recoup 60-90% of your costs.

Deck Addition-Adding a deck to your home increases the value of your home.  Outdoor living spaces have become more desirable, especially when people stay home for vacation.  If you decide to add a deck addition you can recoup about 65-90% of your investment.

How to Fix Squeaky Floors?

If you’ve ever heard a floorboard squeak and creak when people walk across it even if they try to be quiet, you know how annoying it can be.  A squeaky floor is not a big deal and will not harm your home if it is not fixed.  Fixing it will only give you a sense of relief and quiet.

Fixing the squeak is a two-person job.  One person must walk around the floor to create the squeak again while the other person is under the house pinpointing where the sound is coming from.  If the floor is above unfinished or crawl space, the easiest fix is to smear some carpenter’s glue on a thin wood shim and gently tap it between the joists and subfloor or between two floorboards.  Try not to pound so hard that you raise or buckle the floor.

If you can’t easily access the noisy floor, you will have to work from above.  Drive ring-shark flooring name or cement-covered flooring nails into the steams between rubbing parts or if separating floor from subfloor is causing the creak, drive two nails at opposite 45-degree angles into joists.  The joists can be easily located with a stud finder.  Once you have found the holes, fill them with wood filler.