If you feel like your home is outdated, or if you’ve outgrown your current living spaces, a complete home renovation could have you falling in love with your investment all over again.

For homeowners, simply giving each room a moderate renovation could add years of enjoyment and comfort. Unfortunately, many find it difficult to identify the rooms that will offer the biggest returns in value, comfort, and beauty.

If it’s time for a home renovation but you don’t know where to start, it helps to go room by room. Follow our simple guide throughout your home and you’ll be able to start planning improvements today.

Home Renovation in Your Bedrooms

A beautiful bedroom can become your own private retreat where you can relax and decompress. If you have kids at home, then bedrooms could also be play spaces or the perfect environments for study and learning.

If your bedrooms don’t inspire you, or if they feel dark and uninviting, then it’s time to make some changes. The best home renovations for bedrooms don’t need to be big or expensive. Some options that add long-term value and comfort include:

• Painting or having walls refinished with designer wallpaper. This is low cost and the results are impressive.
• Install new light fixtures to brighten the space and create ambience. Newer LED lighting can give you automated control with adjustable color and brightness.
• Replace the flooring to drastically improve the aesthetic. Engineered wood flooring is a great option for your master bedroom. Kids rooms would be well suited to new carpet, especially for toddlers and young children.

If you aren’t completely in love with your bedroom, then it’s a sign that renovation is needed. The relatively low cost of bringing your bedrooms up to date makes this a great area of focus to begin with.

Updating Your Living Room and other Shared Living Spaces

Your living room, family room, or even your den could need modernization and renovation. Take a walk through your living spaces and see what kind of feel you get from each room. If you don’t feel relaxed or if you aren’t proud of the space, then a renovation project could be well overdue.

Improvements here are similar to what you can do in your bedrooms, with small projects having the ability to create comfort and increase the appeal of your home.

• Start with a color theme in mind. Painting all walls won’t cost a lot, and you could create a feature wall with a bold color around your entertainment unit or wherever you want to draw attention to.
• Lighting is critical in your living room and other shared spaces, and you should aim for a solution that provides flexibility. You’ll need bright light for entertaining, with the ability to dim or change the hue for relaxation or a family movie night. Again, modern LED lighting can have a big impact here. Automated home lighting with individually controlled fixtures will let you customize the mood on the fly.
• Flooring in your living room needs to be both practical and beautiful. Many homeowners love the feel of carpet, but it might not be the best option if you entertain a lot. Hardwood, engineered wood, or even ceramic tiles could provide decades of durability.
• Consider the smaller improvements like crown molding. Accents can tie living spaces together while creating a premium look and feel.

Des Moines contractors can help you to plan and execute all your living room improvements.

Bringing Style to Your Home with a Kitchen Remodeling Project

Whether you renovate or perform a whole kitchen remodel, this is one of the most important rooms for improvement. You’ll usually know when you’ve outgrown your current kitchen. Hardware, fixtures, and main features like cabinets and counters will feel outdated or worn. You might lack storage space or flexibility with your current layout.

There are options to create a better kitchen no matter the floor plan you are working with. Although homeowners typically spend most of their budget in the kitchen, you could still get by with minor changes if you simply need a refresh for the next few years.

• If you’re on a tight budget, consider a kitchen home renovation with refaced cabinets and new countertops. This will make an immediate difference without having to spend a lot.
• Wooden cabinets are still the favorite of homeowners in Des Moines, but you could create more depth and space by mixing solid cabinets with windowed cabinets.
• For your countertop, quartz is a great option that can provide the luxury look and feel of stone at a lower cost.
• Flooring is critical, and you’ll need to choose a solution that is hard wearing and waterproof. Hardwood might be beautiful but it’s difficult to maintain. Consider engineered wood or luxury vinyl planks instead. For a modern or transitional kitchen, tiles could work well, and they’ll last for decades.
• Pay special attention to your kitchen hardware, including drawer pulls, cabinet handles, and basic fixtures like your sink and faucets. Spending a little more will give you a premium look and a great feel, without having a huge impact on your total budget.

However big or small you want your project to be, it’s important to work with a kitchen remodeling contractor that can provide 3D renderings before you sign-off on the plans. Computer aided design means you can get an accurate representation of the final project before you commit to a budget.

Creating Comfort with a Bathroom Remodeling Plan

The kitchen is often considered the most important room in any home, but your bathroom comes close. You start and end every day in the bathroom. It should be a space where you can get inspired and invigorated, or relaxed and refreshed, depending on the time of the day. There are special considerations to be made in the bathroom, especially when it comes to moisture-resistant surfaces and ventilation.

It’s easy to tell if your bathroom needs improvement. If you simply don’t like it, or if it doesn’t meet the needs of your family, then it’s time for remodeling or renovation.

• If your bathroom isn’t practical for your growing family, consider installing a double sink vanity during home renovation.
• Add storage to your bathroom in the form of bathroom cabinets or a moveable armoire.
• Choose low maintenance materials. Tiles are ideal for bathroom flooring and walls because they are durable and impervious to moisture. You can even heat a tile floor with a cost-effective underlay.
• Use glass as much as possible to improve the perception of size while creating a modern aesthetic. Glass shower and bath enclosures look great when they’re frameless.
• Consider investing in efficient toilets, faucets, and showerheads. These use less water and can cut down your utility costs while protecting the environment.
• Light and bright is the way to go with a bathroom remodel, but this doesn’t mean that white must be your shade of choice. Pastel colors work great, especially when combined with neutral tiles.
• Just like in the kitchen, hardware can make a big difference. Stainless steel hardware is cost effective and long lasting. You’ll have options like highly polished, matte, or brushed for an understated look. If you want a bathroom that feels more luxurious, try gold or brass hardware on white cabinets and fixtures.

Don’t hesitate if you think your bathroom needs a refresh. Investing in a renovation or complete bathroom remodeling will make your home more practical and valuable.

Miscellaneous Areas of Your Home That Can Be Improved with Home Renovation and Remodeling

The perfect whole home renovation goes beyond your main rooms and living spaces. Hallways, closets, and even outdoor spaces all deserve some attention.

Consider how you use your home to give you an idea of where your budget should be spent. If you entertain often, then you could focus outdoors to create more space for dining and recreation. If you have a young family with kids (or if you are planning a family), then you could focus more on interior spaces.

• Hallways and entryways are critically important yet are sometimes overlooked when planning home renovation. Your entryway is the first thing you see when you enter your home, and for guests this space will leave a lasting impression. If you love hardwood, you could use it in your halls and entryway because moisture won’t be a problem.
• Use functional light fixtures for hallways, but don’t worry about extensive customization or automation. You can always add occasional tables and lamps if you want to switch up the look later.
• Choose a color palette that blends well with the rest of your home. If your entryway leads right into your living room and kitchen, then colors should either match or make a natural transition.
• Make better use of your hallway closet spaces by having custom shelves and hanging rods installed. You’ll be able to optimize your storage and keep your home more organized.
• If you plan to improve your outdoor areas, it’s recommended you create an entertainment space with decking or a patio. Ideally, your living or dining areas should lead right to your outdoor cooking and entertainment. Improved indoor/outdoor flow will make your home feel larger.

Finding a Team of Des Moines Contractors to Bring it All Together

Keeping all this advice in mind, you’ll be able to look at your home and determine which areas need renovation or remodeling the most. Once you’ve decided what to improve, you’ll need a team of the best contractors in Des Moines.

HomeWorx Iowa can perform your whole home renovation, remodeling, and handyman jobs of all shapes and sizes. We’re in the business of making homes that matter and will work with you to create improvements that meet your needs and complement your sense of style.

Whether you want some affordable improvements to modernize and beautify, or if you’re ready to improve your whole home, it’s time to give us a call. From design to completion, we’ll leave you with a house that you will be proud to call home.