Home Renovation Doesn’t Have to Cost an Arm and a Leg

Due to today's tight financial conditions, many families have decided not to rejuvenate their dated home because they cannot afford to. If you're in that same financial state, you can take solace from the fact that that you can give your house an overhaul with some key improvements and not having to spend an arm and a leg in the process. Make a Dramatic Change and Spend LessStart with fundamentals when contemplating a remodel. Start from the top of the room and work your way down. This is the foundation for your remodel. If you have bumpy and texturized, consider either repainting it a bright white or hiring someone to remove and replace it it with a even pattern. Don't forget to apply a thick primer before your paint coat! Next, look at the walls and consider a neutral color that will go with a brighter and more natural mood and will go with any décor. Make repairs to walls that have dents, nicks, or holes so they look like new again. Next, move on to the floor areas: are the baseboards and flooring in good condition? If so, re-paint the baseboards a nice white color to make the home look modern and attractive. If you plan to rip out and re-cover the floors, consider porcelain tiles, because they are affordable per square foot and look great much longer than carpet does. If you will be installing carpeting, choose a dense pile that is somewhere between brown and beige so that marks from food and drinks won't show much and the carpet will resist crushing for years to come.Kitchens and Bathrooms are KeyRenovating your kitchen and bathrooms are the wisest fixes you can put into your house. If the cabinetry is in good structural shape, consider either repainting the existing cabinets or re-facing them. If you will be re-facing them, get a good Bosch drill and detach the hinges and handles from the cabinet doors to loosen them. If needed, you can purchase new cabinet facing from your local do-it-yourself store. For bigger savings, re-stain your own doors. Again, remove the doors from the cabinets and then apply a paint stripper to the existing finish and scrape it off with a special scraper made from hard plastic just for this purpose. Once all trace of the old finish has been removed, sand the cabinets the beginning time with a sander using medium-grade sandpaper. A last sanding should be performed last with a fine-grade sandpaper after that. Rub the cabinets with a cloth to remove the dust and then spread a wood conditioner to the cabinets. Finally, stain or paint the wood and complete it with two or three clear coats to protect the wood from water exposure.Upgrade to Get the GradeImproving your furniture and home décor is an uncomplicated, but significant way to make your home look like new. There are great deals at garage sales, thrift stores and on the Internet which will save money. For even better savings, make furniture pieces by hand. You can make a gorgeous headboard, for example, with nothing more than two over-sized splindles or posts of wood, a wood lathe (you can borrow this from someone), and a large rectangle of board made of wood. Cover the wood in the center area with some batting, fabric, and modern upholstery nails for a new headboard that is sure to impress!Maybe you have just purchased a fixer-upper or are looking for ways to upgrade your existing home with as little cost as possible. Either way, these helpful hints for getting the best-looking house will help your house look like it's a new place without spending a ton of dough in the process.