Improving your home is a big decision. It can increase your homes value and make it more appealing to potential buyers. You also want to balance that with making changes in a way that reflect who you are and how you live, since this is after all, your home. This article will give you some great advice on both fronts.

It may be necessary for you to give a porch a fresh coat of paint. Utilize exterior paint that is of high quality. Choose a paint similar to the old one; do not apply an oil-based paint over a water based-one or the other way around. An oil-based paint is better for trims and will last a long time but you should use a water-based paint for decks or floors since oil-based paint can become slippery in the winter.

Avoid making expensive renovations based on personal tastes. Spending $1,000 a tile on your bathroom may seem like a good plan but the odds are if you eventually sell, you will not recoup that money. If the change is not something that can be appreciated by someone other than you, consider doing something different.

When it comes to home improvement, consider adding more fans to your house to help during the warm months. This is important because running fans will cost considerably less than air conditioning, and provide a cooling benefit as well. Remember also that a fan only provides cooling benefit when you are in the room, so turn it off if the room will not be occupied.

Kitchen storage is simple when you have two-liter bottles around. They are transparent and are great for storing sugar, flour and similar staples. You can keep them in the freezer, on your shelf or in the refrigerator. You just have to open them up when you need what is in them.

Before you begin your next home improvement project, think about how long you would like to stay in your home. If you are planning to move this year, you may have a different budget for improvements than if you were staying for awhile. You would also want to focus on areas in the home, like the kitchen and bathrooms, that buyers think are most important.

Plan your next home improvement project. Without a well thought out plan of action you are more likely to make poor choices and end up with a disaster. Your project will stay on time and on budget if you plan it out in advance.

Children tend to stick their fingers where they don’t belong and touch things they shouldn’t. Leaving your outlets uncovered leaves the chance of your child getting electric shock. You can buy small plastic covers from your local store for electric outlets to keep your child from reaching in and getting shocked.

By keeping in mind money and adding in your personal touches, you can maximize your investment in your home. However, the hints and tips in the above article should provide you with enough creative fodder to devise ingenious ways of satisfying both the interior designer and the financier in you.

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