Any renovation project should start by answering this key question: Are you remodeling so you can sell the house, or so you can stay in it for years to come? In this issue of CityScene Magazine, we’ll explore remodeling to stay. Visit www.cityscenecolumbus.com to learn about remodeling to sell!
When you’re planning a remodel for a home you intend to stay in for the foreseeable future, instead of return on investment, you need to prioritize your feelings, as well as the feelings of everyone living in the house.
Which changes will save you the most time and trouble later? Which changes will be needed to accommodate your evolving needs? And which changes will make the home as comfortable as possible for everyone who lives there?
Longevity
If you’re planning to stay in the home, it makes sense to make renovations that will last a long time. You don’t want to have to come back 10 years later and make a bunch of additional updates, right?
In kitchens, some of the most commonly targeted areas for renovations, it’s possible to make some minor changes to the layout that will keep the space looking great for years. New cabinets, appliances, backsplashes and even flooring can be put in without entirely redesigning the space.
More comprehensive kitchen remodels are some of the most common first steps in large renovation projects, says Clint Rex, owner of Upper Arlington-based Rex General Contracting. It’s no secret that many homeowners prefer to make the kitchen part of the larger family or living room area, and sometimes that means taking out interior walls.
“Everybody’s trying to get to that open floor plan, where you’re not in the kitchen by yourself in the back corner of the house,” Rex says.
Flooring is another area to look at with an eye to lasting change. Luxury vinyl tile is particularly resilient as a flooring material, generally lasting from 20 to 30 years. Natural stone, though potentially expensive, may last even longer.
A roof replacement is also worth considering. Even a cheap new roof can be expected to stand for 20 years or so, and those made with higher-quality materials – metal, concrete, fiber cement – can last more than 50.
Many of the materials people use for the exteriors of their homes are cheap and don’t last more than a decade, says Rex, so your best bet is to pursue the more resilient materials. PVC and Hardie siding are good, long-lasting options, he says, and real stone and brick are preferable to stick-on stone, which can look cheap if not finished properly. Stucco is another good option for exteriors, he says: It’s durable, long-lasting and low-maintenance.
“You put that on, and you don’t have to touch it for 50 years,” Rex says.
Accessibility
If your goal is to remain in your home for years, or even decades, it’s well worth your time to consider accessibility needs that you may have in the future. Wider hallways and doorways are much easier to navigate for older adults or people with mobility concerns, and the primary bath and kitchen are far more hospitable when tight spaces are kept to a minimum, says David Stock, an architect with Clintonville-based Stock & Stone Architects LLC.
“We always try to keep everything as open as possible,” Stock says.
If you’re changing the footprint of the house, you might consider moving the primary suite to the first floor. If you’re not ready to do that, you can, at the very least, lay the groundwork for it, so a first-floor space such as a family room can become a primary suite in the future.
“If you plan to change it from a certain function to another, then you need to think about plumbing and stub it in now,” says Stock.
Smart lighting is a viable option here, too, even if accessibility isn’t a top-of-mind concern for you. Smart lighting technology is evolving rapidly, offering full control of the house’s lights from an app. You can even schedule the lights to turn on or off, or to get dimmer or brighter, based on your daily routine.
Those with ambitious accessibility plans can retain the services of a Certified Aging-in-Place Specialist as part of a program coordinated by the National Association of Home Builders. These specialists are trained to assess home safety for older adults and advise on home modifications to ensure those adults can remain in their homes as long as possible.
Accessible design features added to homes to make them more hospitable for those who are aging in place include:
- Zero-threshold doorways and showers
- Bathroom grab bars
- Adjustable shelves and closet rods
- Widened doorways and hallways
- Hand-held showerheads and shower wands
- Floating vanities
- Lowered closet rods and shelving
Comfort
Though comfort is very much in the eye of the beholder, there are some changes that are likely to make a difference to everybody, and temperature control is a big one.
Good insulation is one change that can have a positive impact. Look for insulation with a high R-Value, which measures how well the material resists heat transmission. If the remodel involves removal of walls and/or addition of new rooms, it presents a great opportunity to up your insulation game. The attic is another good place to look for insulation improvements, as a lot of attics are under-insulated.
Window replacement can have a comparable effect, and may already be a consideration as part of a larger renovation. Double-glazed windows, designed with two layers of glass and a gap in the middle, are particularly good for temperature control. New windows also block more UV rays, slowing down the sun-fading that can affect furniture and décor in areas with lots of natural light.
A new high-efficiency HVAC system will last at least a decade, if not significantly longer, and it will eventually pay for itself in lower heating and cooling bills. And HVAC systems are much more accessible than usual during large-scale renovations, so an unrelated remodel may be the perfect time to replace an aging system, says Stock.
Another option for improving comfort and convenience: built-in storage solutions. The better your storage situation, the less clutter you have to worry about, and built-in storage can be part of just about any part of the house: under-stair storage, garage shelving, custom cabinetry in the kitchen, bedrooms and living areas.
Aesthetic changes are commonplace in renovations by people looking to stay in their homes for the long haul, Rex says, and clean lines in bathrooms – linear drains, for example – are among the more popular trends.
“People used to do tile with borders and accent tiles and all this stuff, and now people just want nice, clean showers with frameless shower doors and, sometimes, zero-entry shower floors,” he says.
Photos courtesy of Zach Gibson, Bill Maibach, Danielle Kravec, Jeff Johnson/JL Johnson Photography, henrY Leiter foto, Dave Osmond Builders, Marshal Evan Photogrpahy, The Cleary Company
Garth Bishop is a contributing editor at CityScene Media Group. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
