Signs You Should Renovate the Interior of Your Home
Your home is your space for everything from entertaining to eating and re-energizing. It’s vital that it works for every purpose you have for it. If you often find yourself taking a step back, scrutinizing your home’s interior, and feeling that it lacks something, it may be time for a renovation project. With some exceptions, it doesn’t matter whether it’s out of necessity or because you don’t like your current setup—renovations improve your life in your home. If you’re curious about making a change, we go through some signs you should renovate the interior of your home.
Why You Should Wait on Renovating
Before discussing reasons to renovate, it would help to dispel some too-common bad reasons for beginning a renovation.
You’re Embracing a Trend
First, if you’re jealous of your neighbor’s bare, modern-style family room and try to copy them, you may want to hold off. This, and any other imitation of someone else’s style, likely won’t hold up years from now when you forget why you wanted the style you copied in the first place. In general, attempting to join in on an interior design trend means you’ll want to change everything when another newer style becomes popular. Rely on a classic staple to ensure that your interior stands the test of time.
You Can’t Go Anywhere
If you don’t have the means to go somewhere as you gut and redo your kitchen or bedroom, delay your renovation. There’s no sense in uncomfortably displacing yourself as you also spearhead an interior renovation unless the renovation is absolutely necessary.
It’s Not the Best Season
Certain times of the year are better than others for fixing up your interior. Outdoor renovations are common in the summer. Meanwhile, many choose to redo their interiors in the winter. Contractors’ prices are sometimes higher in the summer, so choosing to do a renovation in the winter could save you money. Also, certain projects are best to do in specific kinds of weather. For example, painting your walls in the winter is a better option than painting in the humid summer, as you’ll have to wait longer for your paint to dry.
The Return on Investment Isn’t There
You likely won’t live in your current home forever. For that reason, you should have your return on investment for projects in mind. If your renovation will not appreciably increase your home’s value, ensure you know this beforehand. A renovation may still be worth it for other reasons, but it could dissuade you to learn that your planned project isn’t an investment in the sense that you recover the money later.
Why You Should Renovate
Those warnings aside, there are plenty of reasons to dive into an interior renovation.
You Don’t Invite People Over Anymore
If you don’t feel proud of how your home looks, that’s reason enough to change things around. Part of your home’s function is helping you entertain. If you would like to renew your home’s interior look, consider intentionally adding some detail. One good way to do this is by using decorative wooden mouldings that make your boring living spaces more intriguing to the eye. You can also change your color scheme by painting your existing furniture and walls, or you can adjust the look of your kitchen by redoing your cabinets’ wood trim.
You Need More Space
Another sign you should renovate the interior of your home is to make it more functional—the way it is now doesn’t fit you and your family. Whether it was small to begin with or your family grew, it may be time to make big interior changes. If you have experience with construction or have professional advice to do so, knocking down a non-loadbearing wall is a great way to open things up and combine rooms.
Additionally, you can seek out ways to incorporate light to make your space seem bigger. Think about adding a skylight and avoid large dark curtains and walls. This is particularly applicable if your rooms appear dark during the day and you’d like to brighten them up regardless.
You may also need more storage to make your existing spaces seem larger and to better organize your things. This is especially true of a growing family. To improve storage, install shelves and cabinets that take advantage of all your upper wall space—you miss out on storage if they don’t reach the ceiling.
Your Flooring is Showing Wear
One of the surest indications you need a renovation Is damaged or worn flooring. The way your floor wears depends on the material. Carpets see a lot of spills and messes, and they’re difficult to clean thoroughly. Depending on how much traffic a carpeted area experiences, carpet typically lasts 10 to 15 years. If your carpet is old and showing signs of old stains, it’s time to replace it.
Meanwhile, tile shows wear through cracks and grout deterioration. If tiles are loose or chipped, this presents a hazard to yourself and small animals or children in the home. It’s also not a good sign when grout between tiles starts to significantly darken and crack. For these reasons, you should repair or replace your tile when you see an issue pop up.
If you want to go away from carpet or tile, investing in a hardwood floor is a quality option. It lends warmth, goes well with many kinds of furniture, is easy to clean, and improves your home’s overall acoustics. Perhaps more important is the fact hardwood lasts for decades and adds value to your home.
Nature is Invading
When mold, bugs, or animals invade your home, you should look to renovate. Mold is a common phenomenon, especially in humid areas. It’s important to find the source of the mold first—there could be water damage somewhere that you must address first. After that, if mold is present on your walls you must thoroughly (maybe professionally) clean it. To address hard-to-reach mold, you should consider a bigger renovation that completely rids you of mold and allows you to start over. Afterward, you’ll need to repaint—use this as your chance to explore a different color scheme. If you have pests in your home, that’s a sign you have poor quality materials in your home. If you have termites, inspect your wood furniture and replace it if you find signs of infestation. On the positive side, this is a good opportunity to restyle your spaces.
