When renovating your home, you have to consider a few factors. First, you need to be able to afford the renovations in the first place. While you can take out a loan, it’s best not to stretch your finances too far.
You should also consider how the renovations will look and how they will practically affect your property. Function is arguably the most important factor here, as there’s not much point in having a beautiful feature that makes your home more annoying to live in.
This applies to the interior and the exterior of your home. Here are some renovations that should improve the form and function of your house.
Roof Repair and Replacement
It can be oddly easy to forget about your roof, but this part of your house literally protects everything you own. It keeps the wind and rain out of your property and stops them from potentially damaging your belongings. Your roof is an important structural component of your property as well, as a missing or damaged roof makes the house far less steady.
Your roof also affects the appearance of your home. The roof shape has an obvious effect on the overall shape of your property, but your roof can also make your property look shabby, neat, more traditional, or more modern, depending on the design and how well you look after it.
Understandably, your roof is going to take some battering over time. This is especially true during the winter months or any storms. The harsh weather takes its toll on your roof, as does wear and tear over time. It’s a good idea to regularly check your roof for damage, especially if you’ve just been through a storm.
You can visually check your roof for damage yourself, just by looking at it from the ground. Look for damaged or missing tiles or other issues. If you see a problem, call a roofing company like Convert Roofing and get them to repair your roof.
You might also need to call a roofing company for a roof replacement. Roofs can last for a couple of decades, but eventually, they won’t be as effective at insulating and protecting your home. A replacement roof is a big investment, but it’s one that should last a long time.
Your Backyard
The winter isn’t typically the time that people think about their backyard, but it doesn’t stop being part of your home just because you aren’t outside as much. In fact, many people see this time of year as the perfect time to work in their backyard without worrying about ruining any plants that are thriving.
You can take this time to clear out your backyard of any debris or trash that has built up over the past few months. This is also the ideal opportunity to prune and trim back any trees or other woody plants. They are best pruned during their dormant season, and it’s also easier for you to work without having to fight with leaves and other growth.
There are still jobs to be done in the backyard to get it ready for spring. Some plants are dormant but alive at this time, and you may need to protect them from frost using leaf mulch or other materials to insulate them. This is also true for any plants that grow during the winter, especially if you have a vegetable garden.
While there aren’t many plants that are harvested during this time of year and it can be difficult to dig in the hard ground, you may well have some plants that grow from fall until spring, which means you should still keep an eye on them. You can also consider setting up more plots ready for the spring.
This is a great time for any landscaping projects or other large backyard changes that you want to make. You can get everything ready for the spring and summer, including some early planting.
Garden Structures
Speaking of your backyard, most people have more than just some extra land outside their homes. They might have garden sheds or another structure in their backyard or garden.
These structures shouldn’t just go to waste, and you should take the opportunity to make the most of the space. For example, a garden shed is mostly used to store your garden tools and equipment. If you have a hobby or a job that involves messy work, you might also use it as a workshop, but other structures like garages can work just as well.
Speaking of working in the garden, some people who work from home have built garden rooms that they can use as a home office. This allows them to have some of the benefits of both working in an office and working from home. They have a non-existent commute, but also a building dedicated to work that gives them space from distractions.
Install Off-Road Parking
Finally, one of the best things you can do to both improve the value and functionality of your home is to install off-road parking. If you have street parking only, you know just how inconvenient this can be. If someone else parks outside your home, you have to find somewhere else to park and this might mean walking for a while with children and shopping.
You also have to think about safety, both for your family and your car. Cars that are parked on the street are more likely to be stolen or damaged, especially if you’re on a busy road.
If you have small children, it’s safer for them to get into a car that’s on a driveway or in a garage than on the street where cars might be driving past. All of this means that it’s a good idea to get a driveway or garage installed.
This is especially true if you have a front garden that you rarely use. That space can be put to much better use.
