The younger generation of homeowners buy old homes for a reasonable price and then remodel them into what they want. Because the fact remains that remodels, although costly, are still cheaper than buying a new home.
Homes can feel old and monotonous after a few years. Remodeling offers you a change of view and gives your home much-needed love. Another plus side of house remodels is that you continue to live in the same neighborhood and have a whole new design and feel for your space.
Since we work in the California area a lot, we’ve done many entire-home-remodels in houses affected by Malibu fires, along with other smaller renovation projects.
Here are five home remodel ideas that you can do on a tight budget. These will work, whether you want to remodel yourself or hire a contractor for the job.
1. Adding a Grid
Whether it’s your kids’ nursery or the living room accent wall, aligning things according to a grid adds a sense of calm to your home.
Gridlines are where everything runs off straight horizontal and vertical planes. You can make adjustments like aligning your flat screen symmetrically between the paintings on your wall or having your light fixtures fall just above the kitchen island.
Here’s an example. You’ll see in this picture that aligning the cabinet with the wall-mounted mirror and the couch with the tiger painting makes the room look visually appealing.
As seasoned contractors, we say that this category of home remodel is best for people who’re on a budget because you rarely have to break down walls or add new construction. Some drill holes, a few new pieces of furniture, and fresh paint will do the job.
2. Open Floor Plans
If you’re going for a complete home makeover, then opening up your rooms is a fantastic idea. You can add floating shelves instead of closed cabinets or remove the separation between the dining room and the kitchen. So that all spaces seamlessly merge into one another.
The image above shows a home we worked on, where removing the separation between the dining and living rooms added new life and space to the area.
You can make the space even more inviting by having your backyard or pool area just one sliding door away from your living room. That way, your home will feel more spacious. Open spaces are especially great for smaller homes.
3. The Outside
While we’re talking about home remodels, we don’t want to forget the outside. Patios and yards are some of the most neglected areas of the house, second only to the basements.
But there’re some great remodel ideas that you can use to transform your patio, front walkway to the house entirely, or even the driveway.
You can add a coat of fresh paint and siding to the house’s exterior for smaller projects, maybe redo the mailbox and the railing to the front door stairs. All these modifications will make your home look fresh.
If you’re a fan of the summer BBQ season, then you can remodel the backyard to create a burger station and a bar. How fun would it be to host when you’ve got a designated space for relaxing?
Portland has excellent weather, and kids love to play outside. So remodeling your backyard will add more value to your home and your kids’ lives.
4. Utilize the Small Spaces
Home remodels don’t always have to include new rooms and add-ons. Sometimes you can create a world of difference by utilizing the space you already have.
Some great ideas for this can be adding a home office, a linen closet, or a supply closet in the space under the stairs. You can put a small dog house under there as well for your fur baby.
Powder rooms are small and can be somewhat claustrophobic for some people. Give it a makeover by removing unnecessary framing, adding more mirrors, and modifying the colors of the cabinets to make the area feel more significant.
You can add a reading corner for the kids under the slanting roof of the attic. And encase that area with shelves and drawers for storage of toys or video games and make your home the best house for a sleepover.
5. Eco-Friendly Renovations
From digitized thermostats to self-controlled lights, there’re many eco-friendly home renovations you can do. These not only save your power bill but are better for the environment as well.
You can remodel your fireplace with reclaimed wood. And use old floorboards as a backdrop for your master bedroom accent wall.
Some stores even have salvageable cabinets that can last a lifetime with good care. So while you’re remodeling your home, think of all the ways you can reuse and reduce while adding character to your home.
Conclusion
Since we’ve been doing home remodels for over 20 years, we’ve got many past projects you can take inspiration from to remodel your home. The ones mentioned above are only five of them.
You can either remodel your home yourself or hire a professional team to do it.
Doing it yourself is a good option, but anyone who has DIYed their way through a home remodel will tell you that many issues will pop up out of nowhere. All the minor issues can suddenly become major ones.
You’ll start with wanting to fix that one squeaky floorboard, and the next thing you know, you’re changing the kitchen cabinets and adding new tiles to the bathroom.
That’s why it’s best to hire a professional team who can help talk you through your vision.
Home remodeling can be overwhelming. We ensure that you get the home you want with the least hassle. That’s why we have a 5-star rating on Yelp and many satisfied customers.
Contact us for a free consultation in Southern California and Portland areas for all your home remodels.