Home renovations on your list of New Year's resolutions? Here are some of the best for ROI...

Top 4 Home Renovations for Maximum ROI [INFOGRAPHIC]

Some Highlights:

• Whether you are selling your home, just purchased your first home, or are a homeowner planning to stay put for a while, there is value in knowing which home improvement projects will net you the most “Return On Investment” (ROI).
• While big projects like adding a bathroom or a complete remodel of a kitchen are popular ways to increase a home’s value, something as simple as updating landscaping and curb appeal can have a quick impact on a home’s value.

101 ways to make doing the laundry more fun...

Wow! Never have I thought that the prospect of laundry could be a wonderful thing. I think I would do tons of it just to spend time in these rooms!

Check out our pinterest link by clicking on the picture below.  There are over 100 great ideas for jazzing up your laundry room - no matter the size!  Creative decorating examples: from lighting to paint colors, wall decor to flooring type, window treatments to counter tops - there are so ways to turn a laundry room into a pleasant hub of your home!  Now comes the hard part - deciding where to start!

Want the ultimate kitchen? Try these tips...

Ahhhhh...the holiday season is quickly approaching.  For some people, that means spending extra time in the kitchen - or worse yet, having lots of guests spend extra time in your kitchen.

In the world of real estate, the kitchen is generally the center of the home.  It tends to be a major focal point of buyers, and it usually is the most expensive room in the house.  And the room that we spend the most time in.  Not only to prepare and eat meals, it also serves as a homework space, hobby nook, home office and entertainment hub.  Have you ever noticed how many people congregate in the kitchen, whenever you invite a group to your home?

Better Homes & Garden put together 25 Tips to Get the Ultimate Kitchen.  While some are a bit more extensive (& expensive) to pull off, there are also some simple ideas that can easily be completed in time for the holidays.  Love your kitchen, it is such an important part of your home!

What one change could you make today?

Are you on Pinterest?

So are we! Stop by and follow our home-related boards!

www.pinterest.com/terriandkieron

Which renovation is your favorite?

I have always loved the architecture of older homes.  When Steve and I were buying our first home, it was between a 1915 cape cod that needed a ton of work, and a 1960's ranch that only needed an updated kitchen.  My head won over my heart, and we bought the ranch.  I still think about that cape cod, and what we could have turned it into.  I loved looking at these renovated transformations.  Who knows?  Maybe someday I will get the chance to do the same thing, to an older home that is in desperate need of some labor and some love.

Which one is your favorite? http://ow.ly/zIQw0

Looking for a change at home? Try this...

The best part about paint?  It's easy to change if you don't like the end product!


http://www.houzz.com/ideabooks/29576535/list/11-Reasons-to-Paint-Your-Interior-Doors-Black

1751 White Fence Lane, Green Oaks IL

Fabulously updated Saddle Hill colonial only blocks from Oak Grove K-8 school.  Spacious lot is just over an acre!

To see photos click here

41% of Americans would prefer to build...

According to KCM's findings, 41% of Americans would prefer to build their home, as opposed to buy an existing property.  Those are terrific numbers, if you are selling a plot of land, or are a homebuilder looking for business.

However, if you are trying to sell an existing home, how can you use this information to help sell your home? Take a look at the graph.  Give your attention to the reasons that home buyers prefer to build, and make some changes to increase your home's appeal.  Pay heed - cost savings is the number one driving force for purchasing a resale over a new build.  If you are going to update your current home, to enhance its' desirability - make sure your costs are reasonable. 

41% of Americans would prefer to build.

Oh how I hate to pick out paint colors!

We always tell a buyer to never let paint color interfere with their home buying process.  Truth is, some paint colors really aid the selling of a home, while others can be major turn-offs.  Part of the problem is that so many people struggle with the ability to look beyond what is right in front of them.  They have blinders on, and cannot see what that navy blue bedroom with the black ceiling & stick-on glow-in-the-dark stars has the potential to become.  Yet paint remains one of the most cost effective changes that a seller can make when they are putting the home on the market, and that a buyer can make once they close on a home.

The challenge so many people face?  Choosing the best color.  Like everything else in life, psychology has entered in the world of paint.  A lot of thought has been put into analyzing various colors, hues and tones - as well as the perceptions that people have developed about those colors.  CertaPro Painters has helped simplify the process by putting together this chart.  So take a look, and then grab your brush!

http://ow.ly/w35dp

  This was my view last night.  As I sat at Starbucks waiting for my son's soccer practice to end.  The spring season started a week ago.  It was 70 degrees on Saturday, in the 30's last night.  Fortunately, his soccer club has indoor training facilities, so he was not out in this mess.

I have always loved snow.  Especially fresh snowfalls that are so pretty.  The latest snow fall was light, which gave it some sparkle in the glow of the lights.  Pretty as it is today, I have had enough. and from the posts I am reading all over social media, we have all had enough.

So I have decide to look forward, to the warmer weather that really can't be that far off in the future. Planning for the brilliant colors of blooming flowers.  And, since it is hard to visualize that by looking out the window,  I found this great article on planning gardens.  I think looking ahead to gardening season gives us hope.

http://www.bhg.com/gardening/plans/seasonal/long-blooming-garden-plans/?socsrc=bhgfb0409147

5 reasons buyer do not like homes...

Trulia has put together a list of 5 things that buyers hate about a home.  Sometimes, a buyer's complaint can be overcome.  Sometimes, that is not so easy.  Sometimes, it is completely out of a seller, and their agent's, control.  Fortunately, a skilled real estate agent can help minimize the negative impact of the several of the problem items that Trulia suggests are the biggest obstacles.   Interestingly, some of these items are created by a seller's doing.  While I am always an advocate of loving your home, and living it in so that YOU are happy, there is credence to re-sale.  A dramatic design that varies significantly from current trends and the norm, may be a big turn-off.  Even if you are not thinking of selling your home in the near future, it is probably a good idea to take a minute to read through this quick article. 

5 reasons buyer do not like homes and what your agent can do... http://ow.ly/uJbxO

2013-14 Cost vs. Value: Remodeling Pays Off Big Time

Considering some home improvements projects this year?  Do you know which ones may yield a better return?  And which may be more of a financial lemon?  Check out this NAR article from REALTOR Mag.  It's pretty sound advice.

I hope that there are some good ideas for mudrooms.  My newly remodeled one needs some help after my lab chewed the built-in bench cabinet beyond repair...

2013-14 Cost vs. Value: Remodeling Pays Off Big Time

How to bust your remodeling budget unexpectedly

When my daughter graduated from middle school, our gift to her was to update her room.  To replace the sky blue ceiling with the cloud cut-outs and the bright green walls.  The room was decorated that way when we purchased our home, and she so excitedly allowed the room to stay as it was.  Until heading into high school, when we all realized she needed something a bit more mature.  Sounds easy, right?  Not really.  It took two years to chose the perfect shade of gray to compliment the perfect shade of pink.  And then it took time to coordinate the replacing of all of the switches and outlets (that had been painted bright green!).  The new painted covers finally were installed this January, and the poor windows are still waiting for curtains.  Overall, we were fortunate, the biggest obstacle we have run into is a teenagers inability to make up her mind on window treatments and lamp shades.

At least in the bedroom.  I made the decision to strip the wallpaper in my daughter's bathroom, because the custom made coordinating print shower curtain was falling apart, and paint it the same gray as the bedroom.  Seemed like a great idea, until the painter dropped the towel bar on the tile floor, cracking 3 tiles.  No replacements anywhere.  I am now looking at new flooring, which has exposed me to hundreds of bathroom pictures that I just ohhh and ahhh over.  I have an undeniable urge to replace the vanity top, frame the mirror, update the lighting and plumbing fixtures, and paint the vanity.  Thanks to Pinterest, I think I can pull it off with a reasonable budget.  And I have plenty of time to look for decor ideas.  My daughter has kindly asked me to wait until she leaves for college to redo the bathroom.

How to bust your remodeling budget unexpectedly...http://ow.ly/tNejs

An easy way to upgrade not only your kitchen, but your...

Backsplashes.  Once a staple for a kitchen, used to protect the wall behind the stove top from grease and food, backsplashes have now become a key design feature, fulfilling more of an aesthetic role in home decor.  No longer reserved for the cooking area, a backsplash often runs the full perimeter of the kitchen - filling the space between the counter top and the bottom of the upper cabinets.  The styles and products available for backsplashes are almost endless - tumbled marble has been a very popular option over the past decade, however glass, metal and granite are commonly used.  Ceramic tile can be easily painted - allowing for more customization than some of the other materials.

While still used prevalently in kitchens, backsplashes have ventured into other areas of the home.  Bathrooms are easily spiced up by adding a tile finish along the sink vanity in the bath.  Dress up your laundry room by adding tile to the wall above the counter or behind a utility in laundry room.  Be sure to scale the size of the backsplash foundation to the size of the room you are installing it in - use mosaic tiles, or smaller cuts of marble, stone or glass in the bath and laundry area.  One of the benefits to using mosaic tiles is that the design are usually pre-assembled and attached - minimizing the time required for installation.

An easy way to upgrade not only your kitchen... http://ow.ly/twnSW

who wants to win a $50,000 kitchen?

Lowes Home Improvement Stores and Houzz on-line home improvement website have paired up together to offer a great sweepstakes.  On the line - a $50,000 combo prize!  Register quickly - deadline is midnight TONIGHT!http://www.houzz.com/lowes

7 tips to help your home make it through this cold weather

Chi-seberia. The newest term used to describe the Chicagoland area as we experience the coldest temperatures since cold temperatures were recorded. We knew the cold was coming. The news outlets have told us - repeatedly - how bitter the cold would be, giving people time to prepare. The question becomes, how many people listened? And more importantly, how many people KNEW what actions to take? Here is a simple list of tips you can take to prepare your home *quickly* for the winter weather:
1) Avoid the frozen pipe catastrophe. Water lines that run along an exterior wall, or over a garage, are prone to freezing. Turning the faucet on to a fast, steady drip, or low stream of water, is enough to keep the water running through the pipes. Running water doesn't freeze. Opening sink cabinets allows the warmer air in the room to circulate, and helps keep the pipes from freezing as well.
2) Close blinds and draperies. This will minimize the window drafts and the cold of the glass from chilling the air in the room. Older windows, or poorly made ones, should be sealed. Hardware stores sell plastic that can be attached to the windows, usually with tape or a heat activated seal
3) Keep garage doors closed, especially if there is finished living space above the garage.
4) Keep exterior doors tightly closed, even if you have a storm door attached.
5) Check exterior doors for drafts. Add some weatherstripping to improve the seal. A rug, rolled towels, or even a door seal "buddy" can be placed at the bottom to stop the draft.
6) Reverse your ceiling fans. During the winter you want the hot air pushed down, reversing the switch on the motor housing creates an updraft that will do that. Just remember to switch it back for the summer months, when you want the hot air pulled up.
7) Be very careful when using space heaters. Most winter house fires are caused by careless use of these heating devices. Firefighters have a near-impossible task to fight fires in sub-zero temperatures, so the best course of action is to be sure that you minimize all risks.
These are all "quick-fixes", useful in times like this. Don't let them take the place of regular household maintenance - like servicing your furnace every fall to ensure it heats your house, having your roof routinely checked for loose shingles & worn spots, cleaning out gutters to help minimize ice damming, and keeping windows airtight.
Stay warm!
http://rrein.rismedia.com/media/news/58449/id:50781