Keeping your remodel or addition consistent with the theme of your home
One of the biggest challenges facing homeowners today is whether to sell their home and purchase the home of their dreams or remodel their existing home to fit their needs. Depending on the real estate conditions where you live it may be more prudent, less expensive and frankly easier to remodel or add on to your home. Once you have made the decision to do a remodel or add on to your home you are then faced with a myriad of decisions as to what you will do. One of the most important is how to remodel or add on to your home while keeping consistent with the theme you have already established. There are several reasons for this:
Staying with a theme will make your home more aesthetically pleasing. Very few people want a home with a disjointed theme where each room reflects a different style or time period of decorating and architecture.
Staying with a theme will give your home a higher resale value. While you may love your home and think you will stay there forever circumstances change and you may have to sell your home when you least expect it. Prospective buyers will be looking for a home that reflects one theme throughout and presents a cohesive picture of what your home is really all about.
Staying with a theme will make future additions and remodels a lot easier. If you already have a well established theme you can add on or refresh in the future without having to clear everything out and start over. This is both time and cost efficient.
Here are some guidelines to consider before going ahead with those new remodel plans.
1. Figure out your theme. It may sound overly simple but many homeowners would be hard pressed to tell you exactly what the theme of their home is. Take some time and look around your home. If you have lived there for any length of time chances are that you have begun to develop a theme in your home without even noticing. Do you prefer bright, bold colors or are you using a subtle and subdued palate? Is your furniture from a particular time period or style? Do the architectural details in your home lend to a certain time period or style? All of these things contribute to the overall theme of your home.
2. Decide what you really need. While many home remodel and additions look exciting and fun they may not be what your home really needs. Ask yourself are you looking for more space or do you just need a refresh for your home? Do you need a big ticket add-on like a new kitchen or bathroom? Will your remodel affect the way the outside of your home looks (structural changes to outside walls or windows)? Once you have decided what you really need you can proceed with the planning.
3. Find out if there are restrictions on what you can do. If you live in a historic home you may be limited by community statues on what you can do to your home (even on the inside). Be sure to check out if there are any limitations imposed by your neighborhood bylaws on what can and cannot be done to your home.
4. Make the plan concrete. Now that you know what the theme of your home is and what you really need now is the time to draw up plans. Consulting a home building professional at this point can be extremely helpful. Make sure that your contractor or architecture understands that you want to stay within the theme of your home and not merely redesign your home to reflect the latest trends. By staying consistent with your remodel or addition and the theme of your home you will be much happier with the finished product.
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Tags: home home_ remodeling home_ theme remodeling_ with_ a_ theme home_ decorating
