Home and Kitchen Renovation

Home renovation and restoration is a popular route for homeowners to take, especially when they move into an older home and don’t like the decor or the age of the features inside. The kitchen is one particular area where homeowners may focus their efforts, since the kitchen is a place where food is prepared, and no one would like the idea of food being handled in a grimy, shabby, or poorly lit area. A homeowner’s tastes may simply change over time, and he or she may hire contractors to get to work on the kitchen. A dazzling variety of features and surfaces are available, from granite countertops to chic cabinet design to new wallpaper to new hardwood floors and even quarts countertops. What can granite countertops do for a kitchen’s look? How and why should a person replace their cabinets? And how is maintenance of the new kitchen affected? There are many things for a homeowner to consider during a renovation project if they want granite countertops or cabinet paint.

renovation as a Business

Americans love to redecorate their homes and update its hardware for a more pleasant and useful interior, and in fact this can pay for itself due to a better interior making the home more attractive on the real estate market. Just as one example, a minor kitchen remodel job may yield an 82.7% return on investment, and similar numbers may be available for other parts of the home too, even the floor. The bathroom may also be a popular target for renovation; four out of five homeowners will replace major bathroom features including its flooring, countertops, the shower, sinks, and more. Even the home’s floor is a big deal; some 90% of homeowners say that they prefer hardwood or tile for their kitchen, and the National Association of Realtors released data showing that 54% of all home buyers would pay more for a home that has hardwood flooring in it. Similar trends may be true for updated and more secure windows, good quality window blinds, or even the landscaping outside. What should a homeowner consider for his or her kitchen renovation job, especially if that homeowner plans to sell their house sometime?

The Remodel Job

Granite countertops or a new set of floor tiles or vinyl is just the start. According to The Balance, one possible step for renovation, if needed, is to replace and update the kitchen’s plumbing, and that means hiring specialized plumbing crews who can take care of this difficult work, and although it can be expensive, such work may be impossible for a homeowner to undertake alone. Such a crew should have permits and qualifications in place, and have proper insurance and licenses.

Other steps may also include painting the kitchen, either DIY or hiring crews. Painting should be done before working on cabinets, and for DIY, buying high quality paint and painter’s tape is necessary for a good job. Sanding down parts of the wall or filling in holes may be necessary, and two layers of paint are recommended.

The flooring may also be redone, and the amount of traffic and spills in the kitchen should be taken into account. Eco-friendly options like cork and bamboo are possible, though the former yellows in sunlight and the latter can warp if exposed to water. Vinyl floors are also an option for those interested. Also, cabinet installation is something best left to contractors, as cabinets must be secured to each other and must be properly leveled. A company that sells cabinets to a homeowner should also provided crews to install them in a single-day operation, although simpler alternatives such as only replacing cabinet doors or repainting them are also possible if a full overhaul of the cabinets is not necessary.

A granite countertop or quartz can make a kitchen look sleek, chic, and elegant, and can be very attractive to look at as long it is maintained correctly, as such materials may have their own upkeep needs. Such countertops can come in a variety of eye-catching patterns or colors, ranging from white to black to gray, to swirls and repeating patterns based on the homeowner’s personal taste. A local hardware store may have samples of each color and pattern for a homeowner to look over.