Tag Archives: Home Renovations Minneapolis

Light Up Your World!

I was working with a client a few days ago who had just purchased a new home. The home was built in 2000 and she wanted help in making decisions for updates. When buying a new home that is older, you may want to update a lot of things but financially you cannot do them all at once.

I was asked, ” what are the 2-3 things I can do to make the biggest impact for the money.” The answer was easy, especially in this home. Paint and lighting.

The home was built in 2000 and many of the features showed exactly what decade it was built. Burgundy and yellow paint colors, lighting with amber frosted globes.

Keep this in mind when buying a home as well as taking a hard look at your current home.

When purchasing a home, are the bones of the home great and you just need to make some cosmetic changes over time? Are there big updates needed to flooring, trim, or even opening walls that can be done later? Or maybe you just don’t want to tackle them at all and you want a pure move in ready home.

In your current, home has it been a while since you have updated things? Do you need to start considering making some changes that will make your home more marketable when you are ready to sell, plus you can enjoy them now?

Even in homes I am working on to get ready to sell, paint and lighting bring the largest Return on Investment, the biggest bang for your buck. Use paint colors that are fresh and modern which right now is light paint colors. Make sure your light fixtures are current, making your home light and bright with updated light bulbs. These two things will bring an instant change!!

So light up your world by bringing in light and on trend paint colors and new light fixtures with bright bulbs and clear globes. Light up your world literally!!

Three Kitchen Trends from 2021 That May Be Sticking Around

There have been three big kitchen trends in 2021 and I believe they are going to roll right into 2022 with some added new ones. The three trends that I think you will see continue are:

Mix and Match Metals I have a lot of clients that still have a tough time with this one and I get it. Plus it isn’t the easiest thing to do and get it right. light-blue-island-kitchen-cabinets-600×493 Here are a couple pointers:

Pick a Dominant Finish
Then choose one or two accent metals but don’t overdue it. Stick to 2 or 3.
Keep Balance – use your dominant metal more than your accent metals. Use your accent metal at least twice.
You can mix up the texture of the metal as well. Use a matte or hammered metal to break up too much polished metal.
You can even use warm and cool tones. Polished brass along side Chrome. Polished copper is a great contrast to stainless steel.

Out of all the trends…..this one is my favorite. I have never been a matchy matchy person and breaking the mold on all metals matching is super exciting to me!

Smart Appliances I thought my oven was ‘smart’ when I got it seven years ago because it had a sabbath feature. I wasn’t sure what that was but it had it. Now the ‘smartness’ of appliances is out of this world. I actually remember going into the ‘Smart House’ in the futuristic section of Disney World and saw some of these things and thought…no way!!!

Samsung has many smart refrigerators and one comes equipped with Family Hub and Bixby, Samsung’s voice assistant. Family Hub is basically like having a tablet screen built into your fridge door that also works as a memo board, and you can all access it from your phones. Plus, the fridge has a built-in camera, so if you’re ever out at the grocery store wondering if you have enough eggs at home, you can just take a peek inside from your phone. That is so cool in a weird way! smart appliances

Did you know you can talk to your oven, now too? An electric convection range from GE is just one example—it connects to wifi, so you can set it up to work with your Amazon Alexa, Google Assistant, Nest, and several other apps for the easiest cooking experience ever. You can also make your range hood high tech too. One from GE features a guided cooking app built into its smart-touch screen and has dual cameras: one forward-facing to video chat with friends and family about granny’s recipe, and another located above the cooktop for you to lives tream your progress.

My Mom loved technology and I wish she was still here to see these. She would have loved them!

Quartize No…It is not the same as Quartz. Two different things!

Quartzite is a natural metamorphic stone formed when sand is heated and compressed within the earth. Quartz contains pieces of ground quartz combined with resin and polymers to create a man-made material that’s pretty and strong.

A couple facts about Quartize:

1) It is more durable than Granite

2) It can look like marble but not scratch.

3) It is less porous than granite thus it doesn’t stain or hold bacteria as easily.

I could write an entire term paper on the differences of quartz and quartzite which I won’t bore you with but do your research. There are great pluses on the Quartz side and great pluses on the Quartize side. Granite really has taken the bottom of the preference factor for most of my clients for years but the call between Quartz and Quartzite are a bit tougher to make.

I think in 2022 you will see more wood in kitchens but I do think the three trends above will be here for a while. If you love the look but you are not sure how to pull it together, look to a professional to help you with your selections.

Finishing Your Lower Level to Sell Your Home – Part 2

If you didn’t catch “Finishing Your Lower Level to Sell Your Home – Part 1″ please click the link to check that out. Along with the new bedroom and bath photos is gives an explanation as to why you may or may not want to finish off your lower level prior to selling.

This post continues to show you the before and after photos of my finished lower level. Besides the added bedroom and bath (on previous post), I was able to add 3 additional living areas. The TV area, the game/eating area, and my favorite…..the cozy fireplace sitting area.

For 20 years this lower level had been a dumping ground to put whatever we didn’t want to deal with at the time (you didn’t see the half of it!) and a place for 1-3 Saint Bernards to come in from the backyard and not have to worry about the mud and dirt.

As with the bedroom and bath, decisions were made on the fact that it is a lower level and will be sold in five years. Luxury Vinyl Planks were put on the floor for durability for us with Saint Bernards but also the the fact it is water proof for a lower level with a sump pump and walk out to a pond.

The flooring was continued throughout the entire space including the bedroom and bath making it one continuous space. The durability and look will be a selling feature as well. The goal was a budget of a lower level but a finished space that doesn’t look like a lower level. 🙂

Before and After TV Area (aka my hubby’s area):

Before and After Game/Dining Area (tough to move the big dog; her favorite spot):

The Hearth Area (my spot and personal favorite):

With the cost savings mentioned in the first post due to being my own general contractor, it has been determined that the added bedroom, bath and living areas will increase my selling price at least equal to what we spent; and hopefully it will continue to increase. Plus we get at least five years to enjoy it before we move. Win Win!!

So if you are looking to finish off your lower level to sell your home you need to:

Determine how many years until you sell.
Discuss the added value for the additional square footage with a Realtor that works in your area.
Get bids from all contractors and vendors to determine the total costs.
Research costs on ALL materials such as hardware, paint, trim, faucet, toilet etc. that may not be included in any of the contractor or vendor quotes.

At this point you can begin to make some decisions and move forward if it makes sense. My big caution to you: DO NOT OVER BUILD FOR YOUR AREA AND TIME FRAME. Meaning, there is only so much you can get for your square footage and don’t go all out and with a massive wish list. If you notice, I did not do any built-ins as I was not going to get the return on my investment within the 5 year projected sale date.

It’s a big decision but one we decided to make at this point for us. Be sure to bring in trained and certified professionals to guide you through the process.