What work adds the most value to your home?
Add or convert a basement
Basements are a great opportunity to increase practical storage in your home (imagine never looking for suitcases again, or pulling insulation fibres out of the Christmas decorations!). But how about also considering the windowless space as an amazing home cinema, kids den or gym?
If you’re in London a basement dig is around £4,000 per m2, but if your neighbours are starting to do this work give it some thought - surprise living space is high on buyers lists!
2. Convert an unused garage into living space
Get rid of all that rubbish you’ve been storing in the garage. We’re a nation of hoarders so just bite the bullet and chuck out that old pram and the broken garden furniture (let’s face it, life is too short!).
Talk to estate agents to find out what buyers in your area want most – living space, another bedroom, an office – and give them exactly that. These spaces can be really flexible depending on how you decorate them, so if you’re not moving just yet, set it up to suit your lifestyle.
See my Playroom Pinterest BoardKnocking through from an internal garage to the kitchen is the perfect place for a fun kids play room - and you can keep an eye on them whilst sipping your wine! Put a glazed door in if the noise is ruining the experience.
3. Widen your kitchen with a side return extension
Side returns are that narrow bit of land between your house and the boundary that are often unloved and wasted space. Yes, they are really useful for getting the lawn mower and bikes in and out, but don’t dismiss the option of widening the kitchen!
I recently did a single storey infill design for a client in a small Victorian terrace where we fit a pantry, downstairs shower room with a WC and a utility cupboard into the tiny side return…and gave the kitchen a bit of much needed space!
Add some roof lights and big doors to the garden and you have a bright new ground floor ready for welcoming the post lockdown guests!
4. Add a bedroom (& ensuite) in the loft
Ok so you’ve considered going down - but how about up?! Again, because I love storage, take the opportunity to make this a useable space for all your stuff. The Elf on the Shelf deserves a nice home in the summer months too.
But seriously, how nice would it be to have a master bedroom in the eaves, with an angled ceiling, lots of light (maybe a balcony?!) and a dedicated ensuite where your fancy natural soaps can live in peace.
5. Add a sun room or garden room
Orangery, conservatory, garden room - whatever you want to call it. Attached to your house or separate - whatever works people want it. Most can also be built under Permitted Development Rights which is good news as you can avoid the whole Planning saga. But do check!
Image Credit Westbury Garden RoomsIf lockdown reminded me of anything it was just how much I enjoy the outdoors. Finding life hacks to allow me to connect with the outside more during a regular week are my new top priority. I even love the rain!
If you’re still working from home more than before a space that connects with nature is also amazing for your wellbeing.
6. Extend
We’ve already covered basement/lofts, a garden room and an infill build. But if you have the space, go for it, think about the type of living and space you wish you had and see how you can make that happen on your plot. There are lots of creative ways to extend - single/double storey, flat roof/pitched, traditional or modern.
Even if it feels like a big project, spending some time and funds to get a design drawn up and securing Planning is a great investment.
Don’t worry about doing it now if you can’t afford it, the fact that you have proven it can be done is often enough for someone else to feel inspired and pay a premium for your home when you come to sell.
Tip: once you have Planning in place, do & document undertaking a small aspect of the work, like knocking down an old garage or a wall. That way you can say you started and your permission won’t expire after 3 years.
7. Tackle your curb appeal
Whether you have an old cottage, a 1960s bungalow or a narrow town house, take a step back and critique how your home comes across in the eyes of an objective buyer. The facade and entrance are the first things that people will see, so start here - but don’t forget the garden!
Basically, address anything that could leave buyers thinking they’ve got a lot of work ahead of them.
Here are some ideas;
tidy up or re-thatch/tile your roof. Remove moss and other nasties
change or refurbish doors and windows, including the garage door - make sure the hinges and locks are working properly whilst you’re at it!
mow the grass, trim any hedges and add some nice potted plants for colour and texture
repair any dodgy looking walls or fences
lay down some gravel or tarmac your drive if it is a maintenance nightmare - naturally draining materials are always a good start, I like resin gravel to avoid those pesky stones travelling inside with me!
paint woodwork - pick a welcoming colour for your front door
repair render and give the outside of your house a new lick of paint
new curtains and blinds (consider what they look like from the outside too!)
Inside do identify a star attraction. Whether it’s a new set of glazed doors that can be folded back on warm days, a working fireplace or exposing a vaulted ceiling - an unusual feature that will make buyers fall in love with your home is worth its weight in gold.
8. Open up the main family space
The kitchen is the heart of the home. It certainly is in our house. We recently lived in an open plan bungalow and absolutely loved how connected we felt as a family. Being able to enjoy each others company whilst we each did our own thing too was amazing.
One of the best things was a proper armchair in the kitchen. I just loved hanging out there in the sun puddle with a coffee and my laptop whilst I waited for the bread to rise - or reading a book with Oskar in the evening whilst Matt cooked dinner.
Do keep period features though when you open up a space, and give some thought to how to carry the feel of your house through. Sometimes it is the little gestures like a period cornice that make all the difference!
9. Upgrade your kitchen and bathroom
Ok this is one of my favourite things to do!
There is so much you can do without actually ripping it all out and starting again, so cost wise you can make the biggest difference without selling your soul…that also makes it a nice thing to do for yourself, not just as an investment.
Did you know that on average, we open and close our kitchen cupboards and drawers at least six times a day?! No wonder they tend to be the first furnishings to look a bit worse for wear!
If you leave services (water/gas/plumbing etc) in place, and reuse the carcasses then you can make such a difference to your space. You can replace handles & fittings or get the cupboard fronts and worktops changed or redecorated with relatively little hassle.
If you haven’t heard of it, door wrapping is another an easy and cost-effective way to upgrade your kitchen without replacing all the units. Vinyl wraps come in a host of different finishes;
Matte
High Gloss
Wood Effect
Patterned
Textured
Carbon Fibre
Metallic
Pearlescent
Glitter
On average, a full kitchen wrapping project can range from £1000 to £10,000. But do look around for a few quotes before agreeing to a job and check out Facebook community groups for real life experience. My last blog post covered some of my favourite groups (where you can also find me hanging out dishing out free nuggets of advice!)
Wow - you made it all the way to here!
Thank you for reading, and cheers to that! Hopefully you found this helpful!
If you did, please share on social media and shout about my blog and resources to anyone you know in need of a bit of support (or just cheering up whilst the building dust flurries around them - I get it!).