Top 7 Home Improvements You Can Do Yourself with a Little Help from Pen Air FCU

Stop and take a look around your house. Are you delighted with everything in it? This is where you spend a good portion of your day, and where you and your family build happy memories. There’s no reason why it should be anything less than your dream home. 

It can be expensive to hire a professional to redo some parts of your home, and choosing a contractor can be a stressful process. Instead of shelling out tens of thousands for a contractor, why not consider these great home improvement ideas that you can do yourself!

1) The deck of your dreams

With warmer spring weather on the way, you might be thinking about turning your boring outside space into an outdoor living room! Whether you’d like a raised wood deck to give your guests someplace to sit or a classy brick patio for lounging by the grill, a usable outside space can make a big difference in how you enjoy your home. The charming visual addition to the outside of your home is a great way to add value, too.

While this is a big project, it’s big on rewards, too. Start by drawing up some plans – remembering that you’re basically building a series of wood boxes that are bolted together. Draw up a shopping list of things you need, and head over to Pen Air FCU to get the financing in place. Then, head to your local home improvement store for lumber, bolts and a few new power tools.

2) Paint a room … or a whole house

If you’re not feeling up to building much, you can make your house feel new again with a fresh coat of paint on the interior. Choose colors that complement your furniture and flooring, but choose slightly different shades for different parts of the house. Maybe you want to paint your kitchen and dining room in mellow earth shades to give it a sense of coziness, but you want to paint your bedroom a calming blue to help you sleep.

This can be a great project to get the kids involved in, too. Wall paint, sponges, and scissors can let children paint fun and imaginative shapes on their walls. A sense of ownership over the design might encourage them to help keep it a little cleaner as well. You can get creative in main spaces, too! Try painting an accent wall to change the light effects in your living room! Aside from paint, brushes, and rollers, make sure you get covers for furniture and floors and painters’ tape.

3) Spruce up an entryway

Your front door is the first thing people see when they come into your home. You want to make sure it says great things about you and your family. A little bit of time and effort can make this part of your house feel more welcoming while also saving you time and effort.

You can make relatively minor changes here. Metal house numbers, trim paint and a few planters can make your front stoop look much nicer. You can also make some serious investments. A new door can really liven up the front of your house. New weather stripping can make your front door more energy efficient to save on winter heating costs. Nice light fixtures can take a little time to install, but they can make your house both more charming and a little safer. Sketch out some ideas and head to your home improvement store to figure out what you need to make your front door the talk of the neighborhood.

4) Add a touch of class with a tasteful backsplash

The section of wall above the sink can see a lot of water damage. Left uncovered, this can lead to mildew and even mold behind the sink. A backsplash is an attractive option for preventing that damage.

While these are typically done in tile, there’s nothing stopping you from looking at wood bead board, ceiling tile or wallpaper. You could even turn them into a functional addition to your organization system with chalkboard, whiteboard or magnetic film! Write up a recipe or meal plan to help keep your prep work organized in the kitchen, or pen a fun morning greeting to your kids in the bathroom! There’s no limit to what a backsplash can do for your home.

5) Create a new outlook with new windows

Installing new windows can seem like a daunting task, but they’ll pay for themselves. Energy efficient windows with new molding and stripping can significantly reduce your energy bills. Plus, having new windows and screens will make your home look well-cared-for when it comes time to sell.

Do some research on energy efficient two- and three-ply windows. Figure out which will both fit your budget and hold long-term value. Remember, though, that the general rule is you get what you pay for. Cheap windows won’t conserve much energy.

6) Refresh a tired kitchen or bathroom with new fixtures

Your faucets and knobs see a lot of abuse. They get touched by grimy hands, splashed by soapy water and can build up calcium and rust even if you’re careful about washing them. Because they’re usually metallic, they tend to draw a lot of eyes. Dull, streaky fixtures can suck all the energy out of a kitchen or bathroom.

However, replacing them is pretty easy. In the bathroom, you can get sleek, modern fixtures that will save you sink space for storage. In the kitchen, consider getting a detachable head with a vegetable sprayer to make cleanups easier. Whatever you do here, you’ll end up with a nicer looking kitchen or bathroom.

7) Get organized with built-in storage!

If your house looks like most others, it’s chock-full on the inside with memorabilia and keepsakes. Tossed about the room, this can look cluttered and dingy. It makes it hard to clean and dust. Adding more furniture, though, can make a space feel cramped and tiny.

Instead, think about adding more built-in storage. Whether you’d just like to hang a shelf over an entryway, put some coat hooks by the door, or build a bookshelf into a living room wall, built-in storage is a great way to display your treasured memories without shrinking a room. Installing it requires lumber, mounting tools and a few other gadgets that DIY experts should have no trouble identifying.

When it comes to improving your home, Pen Air FCU is ready to be a partner every step of the way. You may have heard about home equity loans and lines of credit, but did you know that you can use it for small remodeling projects? It is actually one of the most common uses for those accounts.

Let’s talk. You supply the ideas, and let Pen Air FCU can supply the home equity loan or line of credit to make your dreams a reality. Call 1-877-4PENAIR and speak with a representative or visit online at www.penair.org and start enjoying the equity in your home today.

Pen Air FCU is an Equal Housing Lender. MLS# 413053. Rates, terms and conditions are subject to change and may vary based on creditworthiness, qualifications and collateral conditions. All loans subject to approval.