Renovation trends to increase the value of your home

If you’ve been thinking of refreshing your home, maybe sprucing up the aesthetics or adding some functional features, now is as good a time as any to do it.

Wondering where to start with your renovation project? Here’s a list of trendy and timeless home renovation ideas you can try out this year:

The smart home

You’ll find intelligent technologies everywhere you look, from cars to the most basic home appliances. And unsurprisingly, the idea of smart homes is quickly catching on.

What’s a smart home anyway? Simply put, a smart home is an ecosystem of connected household devices enabling home automation. Top smart home ideas include:

• Smart lighting

• Smart heating and cooling

• Smart kitchen appliances

• Home Artifical Intelligence (A.I) assistants

• Voice control

• Automated window treatment

• Smart home security

Smart home devices are more than just gimmicks. They are functional additions to any home that make for easy, convenient, and healthy living.

Green spaces

This is a good one for the nature lovers. Incorporating some greenery into your home renovation can completely redefine your house’s interior and exterior. Let nature in and around your home—but think of something bolder than just having a few potted plants here and there. Let’s look at a few bold ideas:

• Green roof. A roof made of living plants is an excellent insulator that also removes heat from the surrounding air. Interestingly, green roofing is not a new trend; it dates back to the Middle Ages when most Scandinavian houses had sod roofs.

• Green wall. A green wall is basically what it sounds like - a wall made of greenery. There’s no shortage of imaginative ways to turn ordinary walls (even load-bearing walls) into green walls.

• Balcony and patio green makeover. The railings on a balcony or terrace are prime real estate for growing a lush hedge. And the patio can get extensive green varnishing, starting with the pillars and walls to the ceiling.

Home greenery is not only aesthetically pleasing but also presents a host of proven health and wellness benefits, including reducing stress levels and boosting immunity.

Natural lighting

No bulb illuminates a room quite like natural light. It bathes the interior in a rich spectrum of hues that brings out the floors’, walls’, and furniture’s true blend of textures and colours. Natural light also makes a room look and feel spacious, luxe, and comfortable. To top it all off, natural light is good for your health and well-being and doesn’t come with an electric bill at the end of the month.

Besides installing large windows and skylights, here are some clever, relatively low-cost ways you can welcome natural light into your home:

• Add reflective surfaces on the walls, such as gleaming tiles and mirrors.

• Paint the interior with highly glossy, light-coloured paint.

• Install sun tubes instead of skylights.

• Work on the exterior to let in more light.

• Renovate your rooms so that fixtures and furniture do not obscure windows.

Solar roof

Get off the grid and step up your sustainability game with a solar roof. This is one of the best ways homeowners can contribute to the ongoing global effort to conserve energy and cut emissions.

Over 3 million Australian households are already taking advantage of the free sunlight that bathes the continent all year round.

With the current government incentives for renewable energy generation, now is the best time to go green with solar energy. Get in on the action by fitting solar panels on your roof. Nowadays, you can even install solar roofing shingles that turn your entire roof surface into one giant solar panel array.

Eco-friendly home upgrades

Sticking with the subject of green living, there are many ways you can renovate your home to make it more energy- and resource-efficient. Here are some of the eco-conscious upgrades you can make to your home:

• Upgrade or reseal your doors and windows. Windows alone can lose up to 40% of indoor heat during cold weather and warm up the interior by up to 87% during hot days.

• Update your plumbing by fitting low-flow faucets, toilets, and showers to save water.

• Install a tankless water heater and insulate all the hot water pipes.

• Insulate the floor, ceiling, and walls to reduce unwanted heat loss and heat gain.

• Upgrade your electrical system with energy-efficient components and devices.

Warmwood finishes

Do something about those grey walls and ceilings with strategically placed wood panelling. Wood finishes with rich gold or orange undertones create a luxe, natural, cozy ambience. Also, the warm, smooth texture of the wood should contrast nicely with the room’s plain background.

If wood is out of the question, you can get the same results with tiles. Modern decorative tiles can mimic the feel and texture of just about any building material. In fact, you’ll have more style options with tiles. For instance, you can have natural stone, smooth, mosaic, or rustic finishes on your walls, ceilings, or floors.

Funding your home renovation project

Home renovations are exciting; they can also be a great way to cut living costs and make your home more comfortable and valuable. They also require thorough planning and the finance to be able to cover costs.

Refinancing your home loan can free up funds and also provide you with better value over the remaining term of your loan.

Contact us to learn more about our flexible home loans and your refinancing options.