3 Quick Home Improvement Ideas for Spring
The warmer weather and longer days of spring may have you thinking about adding some new life to your home. Here are three easy home improvement ideas that can give your home and your spirits a quick lift.
Spruce up your kitchen: You spend a good part of your life in the kitchen, and after a year of use, it may be crying for a quick and easy makeover. Although a complete kitchen renovation can cost you big dollars, there are a few inexpensive ways to give yours a lift.
Start with the cabinets. A year’s worth of dust, grease and oils from handling can dull your kitchen cabinets bring down the overall look of the room. Use a cleaner with orange oil to break down the grime and let your cabinets shine again. Be sure to test the cleaner in an inconspicuous place first to be sure that it will not harm the wood finish. If you want to change your cabinets without the big investment, try adding some molding to your flat panel cabinet doors to give them some depth. You can match the finish to your cabinets, or go bold with an accent color.
Add a new backsplash. If you are looking for a different fun project, buy some ceramic tiles, grout, a trowel and a tile cutter and brighten your kitchen with a new backsplash. Whether you are a seasoned DIY-er, or a beginner, there are many resources online that can help you with this venture. Check out Lowe’s home improvement’s article for a detailed step-by-step instruction.
Get the garden ready: Landscaping projects easily add aesthetic value to your home, and can add dollar value to your selling price if your house is on the market. Your garden may have been hiding under mulch this winter. Now is the time to bring it back to life and get it ready to shine this summer. Remove the remains of winter from your flowerbeds, trim back plants, remove old mulch and let the warmth get to the soil. Adding some inexpensive bedding plants will add some new life to your exterior without breaking your wallet.
Secure your dryer from fires: Ok, this is not so much a beautification project, as a safety project to protect your home investment and your family’s lives. The main cause of dryer fires is not a wiring problem, but an over accumulation of lint that combusts. A few preventative measures this spring can make all of the difference.
Always clean the lint screen in your dryer after every use. Vacuum behind your dryer on a regular basis to remove excess lint. And at least once per year, use a dryer hose lint brush, like the Brushtech B68C 10-Feet Long Dryer Vent Duct Cleaning Brush, to completely empty your connector hose. Also, it is best to use an aluminum hose instead of a plastic one, as plastic heats up easily and can catch fire.
I hope that these three quick ideas can help you bring new life to your home this spring without the time or money of a major improvement. Contact me if you are interested in more ways to enhance your real estate and get it ready to sell.
Continue Reading > Add a Comment |Great Steps for Preparing Your Yardley Home to Sell
Every Yardley seller wants their home to sell fast and bring top dollar. It’s not luck that makes that happen. It’s careful planning, and knowing how to professionally spruce up your home that will send home buyers scurrying for their checkbooks. Here is how to prep your house and turn it into an irresistible and marketable property.
Disassociate Yourself From Your Home.
Say to yourself, “This is not my home; it is a house — a product to be sold just like a box of cereal at the grocery store.” Make the mental decision to “let go” of your emotions and focus on the fact that soon this house will no longer be yours. Picture yourself handing over the keys and envelopes containing appliance warranties to the new owners.
De-Personalize It.
Pack up your personal photographs and family heirlooms. You want buyers to imagine their own photos on the walls, and they can’t do that if yours are there. You don’t want to make any buyer ask, “I wonder what kind of people live in this home?” You want buyers to say, “I can see myself living here.”
De-Clutter!
People collect an amazing amount of junk. Consider this: If you haven’t used it in over a year, you probably don’t need it.
- If you don’t need it, why not donate it or throw it away?
- Remove all books from bookcases.
- Pack up those knickknacks.
- Clean off everything on kitchen counters.
- Put essential items used daily in a small box that can be stored in a closet when not in use.
Rearrange Bedroom Closets and Kitchen Cabinets.
Buyers love to snoop, and will open closet and cabinet doors. Think of the message it sends if items fall out! Now imagine what a buyer believes about you if they sees everything organized. It says you probably take good care of the rest of the house as well.
Rent a Storage Unit.
Almost every home shows better with less furniture. Remove items that block or hamper paths and walkways and put them in storage. Since your bookcases are now empty, store them. Remove extra leaves from your dining room table to make the room appear larger. Leave just enough furniture in each room to showcase the room’s purpose and plenty of room to move around.
Remove/Replace Favorite Items.
If you want to take window coverings, built-in appliances or fixtures with you, remove them now. If the chandelier in the dining room once belonged to your great grandmother, take it down. If a buyer never sees it, they won’t want it. Once you tell a buyer they can’t have an item, they’ll covet it, and it could blow your deal. Pack those items and replace them, if necessary.
Scrutinize.
Go outside and open your front door. Stand there. Do you want to go inside? Does the house welcome you? Linger in the doorway of every single room and imagine how your house will look to a buyer. Examine carefully how furniture is arranged and move pieces around until it makes sense. Make sure window coverings hang level. Tune in to the room’s statement and its emotional pull. Does it have impact and pizzazz? Does it look like nobody lives in this house? You’re almost finished.
Check Curb Appeal.
If a buyer won’t get out of their agent’s car because they doesn’t like the exterior of your home, you’ll never get them inside.
Continue Reading > Add a Comment |In Yardley & Lower Makefield Townsip…get Your Spring Cleaning Checklist
The calendar has turned March in Lower Makefield Township and warmer weather is around the corner. Get ready for Spring Cleaning Season.
For households in which Spring Cleaning is an annual ritual, this helpful checklist from MarthaStewart.com makes sure no job gets left behind.
From the smallest of chores to the biggest of projects, many common tasks are covered, including:
- Vacuuming and shampooing rugs
- Waxing wooden furniture and non-wood floors
- Dusting books and shelves
- Resealing grout lines in kitchens and bathrooms
- Clean and/or launder window treatments
Then, you’ll want to remember to flip your mattresses, change your air filters, and test your home’s smoke alarm batteries.
Most of the cleaning can be handled with household items like rags and cleansers, but for a few of the items, you may want to rent a machine from a local hardware store or supermarket. Carpet shampooers are a noteworthy example. Rental costs are nominal and the potential time savings are big.
For some households Spring Cleaning is a one-day affair. For others, it’s a weekend project that lasts a month. However you choose do it, keep this checklist handy and you’ll have an easier time.
If you are considering putting your house on the market, in Bucks County, these things can be even more important. In fact, I have a very detailed check list of steps to take, to help ensure that your house looks as good as it can possibly look, when it goes on the market. Given the current market enviornment in Yardley and Newtown, this is even more important than it has ever been. Recent survey’s done by Coldwell Banker show that today’s buyers are seeking homes that are as close to perfect as possible, within a buyers price range.
Take a look at the spring cleaning check list, and let me know what you think.
Continue Reading > Add a Comment |Would Your Yardley Kitchen Pass A Health Inspection?
Americans spend a lot of time cooking and eating in their kitchens. What are you doing to keep yours germ- and bacteria-free?
In this two-part, 6-minute video from NBC’s The Today Show, you’ll first ride alongside a county health inspector as he visits a home and inspects its kitchen. The tested areas include the refrigerator, the cutting boards, the sponges, the utensils, the ovens, and more. Ultimately, the home “passes”, but not before the inspector points out some problems from which we all can learn.
Then, in the video’s second part, you’ll learn how to keep your own kitchen clean and healthy.
- How much bleach to dilute to clean sinks, and how often to clean them
- Why “time-to-evaporate” is an important metric when shopping for disinfectants
- Comparing wood vs. glass vs. plastic cutting boards, and how to sanitize them, respectively
Keeping a germ-free kitchen requires constant attention and a routine cleaning schedule. Thankfully, it’s a simple process. Follow the basic steps as outlined by The Today Show, and your home would pass inspection.
Continue Reading > Add a Comment |Chat With Marty