Many older homes often show the wear and tear of decades of maintenance avoidance or neglect of past owners. When you make the decision to purchase an older home there are a number of ways to improve the efficiency and appearance without a great deal of expense. Making a home improvement in Greece NY will increase the value of an older, poorly maintained home.
The exterior:
Curb appeal is important for any home, older homes are no exception. This can be achieved quite easily when you have a keen eye for detail. The garden is the first thing; chemically treat the weeds that have taken root in cracks in the driveway and sidewalks, pull the weeds that have taken over flower beds and taken root at the base of the foundation. A good home improvement in Greece NY is simply to keep the grass mowed to a nice height and the application of grass seed in all the bare spots.
Many older homes have had the garden left to nature. If there is evidence of unused flower gardens, these can be filled with self propagating plants that form a ground cover. If you want to remove them all together, fill them with grass seed or sod that can be purchased by the square foot at any garden center. Once the exterior of the old place is surrounded by greenery, it will look much better.
A lot of older homes have siding which will probably be dirty from accumulated dust and grime. Painting is the obvious Home Improvement Greece NY to make but if all you want to do at this time is spruce the place up, then a good exterior washing will help. If the surface dirt has really ground in, it is possible to rent a high pressure washer for the day from any tool rental or home improvement store. While you have the high pressure washer at your home, use it to clean walks, patios, and decks and clean the gutters and downspouts.
The inside:
Regardless of whether you plan to live in the old house or perhaps you are planning to rent it, the interior must be cleaned and updated as necessary to make it livable.
One of the first things to do is rent a carpet cleaner and shampoo the carpet. This will usually remove a lot of the stains and any pet odor that may linger. If the carpet is beyond saving, older homes usually have hardwood floors. Even if the floors are worn, a good Home Improvement Greece NY is to have them sanded and refinished.
Older homes will also usually have all wood baseboards. Over the years these have probably been painted over many times. Stripping the baseboards back to raw wood and then a natural finish will add consider value to the home.
The windows can also be stripped of old paint to free them in the frames. Caulk around the windows to deter any drafts and make sure all locks and latches are working.
