homeowners | Yakima Furniture

Home Remodeling – Construction Brings Happiness to Homeowners

August 1, 2022 Comments Off

Many homeowners shy away from home remodeling because of the expense and the difficulty in getting a project done. Others jump right in with no clear idea of how they are going to pay for it or even how they will accomplish the job. Between these two extremes is a healthy attitude towards upgrading the rooms in your house, doing something positive for your life, and incorporating the proper planning to accomplish your goals. When done this way, changing things up can impart a number of benefits. Here are some of the ways a little construction can bring a lot of happiness to homeowners.
Realizing a Dream House
More often than not, a compromise or two has to be made when buying a house. It could be due to finances, or it could simply be because of availability. After all, are you going to turn down that lovely house on the lake with everything you wanted just because you don’t like the way the kitchen looks? Of course not. But once you are settled in, you can turn your attention towards improving what you have. This is one of the joys of owning a house in the first place. Once it’s yours, it’s yours. You can do with it what you like, and for many, this includes quite a bit of home remodeling.
Fixing Damage
Over time, a house is going to start to fall apart. Whether it comes from storms, flooding, a raucous party, or just time, you’re going to take on damage at some point. When this happens, you can either hide that damage with creative furniture placement or you can start fixing the problem. Few people want to live in a house where a hole in the wall is behind every painting, so they use repairs as an opportunity to do some home remodeling at the same time. Sometimes that wall doesn’t want to be patched up. Sometimes it just wants to be knocked down.
Resale Value
Even if you are going forward with the idea that you will stay in your house forever, it’s always wise to think about your house in investment terms. Anything can happen, and you may find yourself wanting to sell at some point in the future. When that say comes, you want to be able to get as much out of it as possible. This can be done through home remodeling. For best results, unless you’re flipping the house immediately, try not to follow trends. Stick with timeless (or as close to it as you can find) adjustments and upgrades and you can be sure that it will have a positive impact on your resale value.

Four Cost-Saving Green Ideas For Homeowners

July 30, 2022 Comments Off

There is much discussion today on going “green” and saving the environment. Many businesses, both commercial and industrial, are adopting systems and policies in order to comply with the demands of the government and the overall world community to create “green” buildings and environmentally friendly processes. Many of the things that are being done in the business world can also be adopted very easily to residential properties as well. I am always watching for ways to apply these technologies simply and cost effectively as a means of not only helping our environment, but also as a way to save some money. Here are a few ideas of simple ways that we can do our part:

If you live in an area with modest rainfall, devise a means for collecting the rainwater that normally comes off the roof and down the gutter by installing a water storage tank. This water can be used for cleaning around the outside of the home and also for watering the lawn, flowers and garden.

Install solar panels for collecting the sun’s energy and use it to power your home. This can be done very efficiently and relatively easily with the right tools and does not have to cost a lot of money. This can be a huge money saver.

Insulate your hot water heater. There are insulating jackets on the market which will allow you to “wrap” the hot water heater and prevent heat loss thereby saving the energy needed to maintain the hot water temperature.

If you have plans to do any kind of bathroom remodeling that involves getting into the walls and/or floor as well as piping changes, consider a heat exchanger for collecting wasted heat from the shower. There are simple heat exchangers designed exclusively for this purpose in residential bathrooms. The heat collected can be used to return heat to the hot water heater and reduce the energy needed to provide hot water in the home.

These are just four ways that you can do your part to help the environment and at the same time reduce your household utility costs. With the right research, you can easily come up with many other ways as well. Follow the lead of big business and find out the ways that they are accomplishing these goals and then scale it down to see if it makes sense both economically as well as efficiently. I will do my part to share techniques as I am able to uncover them.

How To Avoid These Top 10 Mistakes Homeowners Typically Make In Home Remodeling

May 16, 2022 Comments Off

1. Don’t Hire the Wrong Guy.
The number one home remodeling mistake people make while remodeling their home’s is hiring the wrong contractors. Hiring the wrong guy can make your life miserable and make you regret ever trying to improve your home in the first place. Make sure you investigate a proposed contractors credentials and get referrals. When considering a home remodeling contractor a good place to start is your local BBB. From there use common sense and ask questions. If something doesn’t feel or sound right move on to the next guy until you are comfortable. Lastly, get Everything in writing, you’ll be glad you did.
2. Do Your Research.
Being well informed about not only your home but the options you have and housing trends will prevent you from making big mistakes down the road. For instance even if you love pink walls and paneling its probably not a good idea to install them in your house. You may love it and if you never plan on selling or having company then great go for it, make yourself happy. But resale should always be kept in mind since you never truly know what the future will bring.
3. Honey Do, Doesn’t Always Mean Honey Can.
Keep your own abilities in mind. It is better to hire a professional for a task that you are sure you do not know how to do. By the time you figure it out, you will have more money and time involved than hiring a professional from the start. Save money and build sweat equity by accomplishing tasks you are comfortable with. You will not be doing yourself any favors by doing shoddy work on your home. Poor workmanship stands out and never adds value to your home.
4. Plan for the Future.
When Home Remodeling consider how changing life styles will be accommodated by your home. If you finish your basement for a play area for your kids it would be a good idea to run wiring for media areas, or pool table lighting so that when the kids out grow the play room you can easily covert the function of the space without elaborate remodeling costs.
5. Don’t Throw Good Money at Bad Money.
Make sure you take into account long term home remodeling goals. It doesn’t make sense to install new flooring this spring if you plan to build a room addition in the fall. Make long term goals and follow them. Make sure that you tackle tasks in the right order to prevent double paying or getting stuck short of your goals.
6. Don’t Band-Aid a Mistake.
If you put a Band-Aid on a mistake it’s a mistake with a Band-Aid on it. Make sure you are not covering up problems but instead addressing them properly. For instance, if you open up a bathroom wall and you see mold and structural water damage address the new found issues before covering them up. Putting a Band-Aid on it, or covering up the issue will only prolong your problems.
7. Allocate Enough Money.
Due to the common occurrence of unforeseen issues it is always a good Idea to allocate 10–15% in addition to your proposed budget. Having the extra money available will make life a lot easier if problems occur. Not much could be worse than running out of money before completion.
8. PPPPPP.
The old six P’s from college also applies to your home remodeling projects. Proper prior planning prevents poor performance. Make sure the plan is clear and your budget allocated before beginning. Making changes in the middle can jack the price through he roof. Re-designing your original plans mid-way through the remodeling phase always affects construction schedules and always increases the cost of your original plan.
9. See it Through.
When getting involved in any home remodeling project be prepared to go the distance with it. Often times unforeseen issues arise and need to be addressed accordingly. Stopping short will leave you with a half finished look.
10. Selecting the Wrong Materials.
It is a common mistake to select materials that by themselves look great, but when combined with other selections just do not work. Common examples are flooring, paint color, wall and floor tile, countertop selections and even lighting and fixtures. A good tip is when planning your project attain samples of each product so that the items can be physically placed together providing you an actual visualization of the final result. There’s nothing worse than realizing after your home remodeling project is done that, the colors and designs you have chosen clash or just don’t compliment each other well. Do not forget this important step.

Homeowners Should Take Advantage of This Recession by Doing Home Remodeling Projects

March 18, 2022 Comments Off

Homeowners in this economy have seemed to put the brakes on doing any remodeling growth to their home. But in all essence, this is the time for homeowner’s should take charge and take advantage of the recession by implementing home improvement jobs to their home, therefore getting a substantial return on their investment, which is a sure thing.
Since World War II, the United States has never seen such a down market in the real estate business. All the while, homeowner’s are waiting patiently for some kind of sign for our economy to move upward again. Homeowner’s are scared to enter the market place and suffer a big loss. But while waiting for the economy to improve, homeowner’s should definitely take advantage of this slow time. To increase the appeal of their home, home remodeling historically guarantee’s a definite return on investment on their home. For those homeowner’s who want to eventually sell their home, there are some things that they can get done on their home now and be a step ahead of the game later.
On the Exterior of the Home: A neat and nice landscape most always is the first thing that a potential buyer will see when they come to look at your home. Why not invest in your yard? Design your landscape early and plant accordingly, this ensures your yard will be ready. This also gives the plants time to mature and establish themselves to look their best next year and every year after that. Painting the exterior of the home and painting the trim gives the home a new, polished look. New paint is a great return on your investment. Replace the siding if painting is not an option for you. Rotten siding is a noticeable eyesore to potential buyers and also welcomes into your home a number of different rodents and insects just waiting to take refuge in your home. Replace the roof with a top-quality shingle. Broken shingles, missing shingles, and miss-matched shingles take away the beauty of your home. If the roof is fairly new, but is leaking in sots, fix the roof leaks as soon as possible.
As for the Interior of you home: Painting the inside of your home will there again gives your home a brand new, fresh look and also gives you a secure continuation of return on investment. Remodeling the kitchen and bathroom(s) are essential in bringing your home’s value and beauty up to speed. Updating these most important rooms is important because these rooms are the most used by almost everyone who visits or lives in the home. Depending on the style you choose to remodel and decorate them, it will bring certain flair and add contrast to your home. Take advantage of your attic space. Many people have a lot of clutter and like to hoard items that are either out of date or things that they really do not need anymore. Clearing out rooms with clutter will give your home more space and will give your home a more impressive and roomier atmosphere. Repair and/or replace all the plumbing and electrical outlets and, if need be, wire or re-wire your home to be more energy efficient. To update your most prized investment, replace your windows with beautiful Sheffield Windows.
Now is the perfect time to do this. Hire a professional carpet cleaner to come in and clean all your carpets, or if you want to mix things up a bit, replace all carpet with hardwood floors. Hardwood flooring is beautiful, lasts a very long time, and is simple and easy to clean and take care of. Replace your light fixtures. This is a very small change, but a very positive change it is! Changing light fixtures puts a whole new spin on the room, makes light hit in all the right places, giving the room a beautiful, dimensional spectrum effect. All of these possible home remodeling jobs can add years to your home, not to mention adding incredible value to the home and giving you, the homeowner, and a substantial return on your investment. Your home is your biggest investment you will probably make in your life, make it one that not only you will love and be proud of, but for others as well to love and to call home.

Attn: Contractors: Create a Stress-Free Experience For Homeowners Using These Five Simple Tips

March 11, 2021 Comments Off

Building or renovating a home can be stressful for your customers. That’s because having a contractor in is just another activity happening in an already busy household. Your customer may be juggling a stressful job, nightly little league practices, a sick pet, or a score of other issues. And now that they’ve decided to have work done to their home, they’ll have to add “inaccessible home” to their itinerary of things to deal with. It all can get very overwhelming for your customer.
Whether you’re a plumber, electrician, home builder or remodeler, it’s important to keep in mind that you do this kind of stuff everyday; for your customer, this may be a once-in-a-lifetime event. And they’re going to stress out about it. Here are five ways to show your customer a little TLC during a home renovation to keep them-and you-stress-free.
1. Educate them from the start
As a contractor, you’re used to the steps involved in a home renovation. They might include things like inspecting the home, pulling a permit, contacting the local code department, and ordering supplies from vendors. You have a system in place that allows you to get jobs done on time and within budget. Your homeowner customer, however, only knows that they want their bathroom remodeled. They may not know all the steps involved or how you get from A to B, so it’s important to educate them from the start. Advice? The minute they sign on the dotted line, hand them a checklist of all the steps you’ll be taking to renovate their home with a brief description of each step. Not only will it avoid confusion later, but allowing your customer to follow along and cross completed steps off the list will let them know that progress is being made. And of course, answer any and all questions they have.
2. Avoid industry lingo
As a contractor you’re used to throwing around words like “below grade,” “back nailing,” and “blind stop.” It’s easy to forget that the homeowner may have no idea what those terms mean. The best way to confuse them and make them stress out even more is to use industry lingo when describing their project without an explanation. Try to avoid slang around your customer, unless he is educated about your line of work. Describing each step and the parts needed for each step in a way they understand (without belittling their intelligence) goes a long way in maintaining a healthy working relationship with your customer.
3. Slow down and spend the time
When it comes to remodeling a home, things can move pretty quickly. You may have to wait for a permit to be accepted, for example, but once it is, it’s off to the races! As a contractor you’ll be ready to pick up the pace and get the project on its way. But slow down a minute. Now that you’re ready to move full-steam ahead, have you informed the homeowner? If not, take a step back and remember the checklist advice we gave in Tip #1. Before moving ahead, take the time to alert the homeowner about the next couple of steps, explain what’s going to be happening, and answer any questions they may have as you prepare to move forward. This will give the homeowners time to process what will be happening and allow them to prepare for the next phase of work. Continue to do this as the project progresses through the various stages. Which leads to the next piece of advice…
4. Keep in regular contact with your customer during the project
A lot of contractors make the mistake of communicating only twice with the customer during a home remodel: in the beginning when they start the work, and at the end when they expect payment. It’s understandable why this happens: contractors get busy, they have other customers and other jobs. But it’s a habit that can-and should-be broken if you want to offer your customer a stress-free experience. If not, your customer will be left holding a checklist of steps that you provided with no idea what step you’re on. The number of times you reach out to the customer will ultimately be determined by the length of the project, and is best determined by you. If it’s a weeks-long project, for example, stay in touch with your customer, say, at least once a week. The last thing you want is the homeowner calling you, saying he was wondering what was going on because he hasn’t heard from you in awhile.
5. Stay in touch after the project is complete
Another mistake contractors make once a home remodel is done is to cash the check and move on. Again, this is understandable because contractors have other contracts and other customers. But by failing to follow up with a customer or keep in contact with them once their project is done, you’re potentially missing out on a key thing that’ll keep you in business-more work. That’s because a contractor who asks to stay in touch with a customer-and then does-will be remembered by that customer, who in turn may have another project down the road, or will refer you to a friend of neighbor. So remember to always stay in front of your customers-past and present. That might mean a monthly newsletter full of home remodeling tips, requests for referrals, friendly emails, follow up phone calls to gauge their happiness with the project, an e-zine, holiday cards, mailers with current offers, etc. It doesn’t always matter how you stay in touch, just that you do.
These are only five ways to show a little TLC to your customers and ensure that they have a stress-free experience with you. They’re simple and easy to implement. Putting them into place will mean you’ll have a long list of happy customers who’ll be happy they signed on the dotted line-and who’ll refer more and spend more on your services in the future.