Local authority home improvement loans

A disabled facilities grant will be no more than £30,000 in England and £36,000 in Wales. However, your local authority can top up this up, as it can give you other help with home improvements . The amount of grant you get depends on your income and savings, unless the work is to meet the needs of a disabled person under 16, or in some cases, over 16 but under 19. Generally, a local authority does not have to pay a grant or loan within any particular time limit. However, if your local authority’s own rules set a time limit, it must pay you within this time limit. Local authority loans are available to owner-occupiers towards the cost of necessary works to improve, repair or extend their existing houses.

A new shower head, toilet seat and taps will spruce up your bathroom without breaking the bank. New grouting can also be relatively cheap depending on the size of your bathroom. You should also replace carpets with vinyl or tiles as they’re easier to clean. All these simple steps are attractive to home buyers and give the impression the inside of the home will be cared for as well.

• Plumbers use smooth-faced pliers and wrenches to achieve perfect results.
• Like a giant sticker, peel the decorative paper off the backing and adhere it to a primed and painted wall.
• From kitchens, bathrooms and basements to decks, driveways, and fences our top-rated pros will add value to your home improvement project without adding stress to your life.
• We also love how she upped the drama by installing a shower curtain on each side of the tub.
• The key to perfecting this DIY project is making sure that the ground is level, then follow Oregon State’s detailed tutorial on how to lay down pavers in your yard.

When you apply to refinance, your lender will require an appraisal of the property to determine property value. Adding a simple wood trim to the ceiling will draw the eye up — a classic visual trick to give the room an illusion of height. It also adds some design flair to the room; depending on your style, you can try understated plain molding or ornate three-piece molding. It’s tempting to cave to the gallery wall trend, but the more individual items you hang on walls in an already-small space, the smaller it will look. Instead, pack a powerful punch with one piece of large-scale art on a wall in your living room. Having a single dramatic piece of art of the wall will draw the eye towards it, rather than highlight the limited dimensions of the room.

Flooring

According to him, years of underbuilding following the mid-2000s housing crash have pushed up the overall age of the housing stock, along with demand for updating homes. Musselwhite says the supply of treated lumber, the kind that’s going into all those new decks and fences, shrank early in the pandemic, as stay-at-home orders slowed production. With the huge spike in demand, prices for deck boards and fence posts more than doubled — and supply dried up. Similar with framing lumber, the type used to make the skeletons of single family homes. The reclaimed yard provides a nice place to relax in a controlled outdoor environment, another factor driving the pandemic building boom. “Deck construction is up 275%,” Anderson says, quoting increases from March to July of this year.

Bring some color into your garden or window sills

The friendly hosts and genius tips will inspire you to finally tackle that DIY project you’ve been daydreaming about for months. Low maintenance, energy efficient with the best warranty in the business. With our computerized design process, you’ll be able to see the choices of siding on your home before the job starts from the comfort of your home. In fact, when it comes to the garden, adding value is often a case of simply tidying up and perhaps putting down some turf. Buyers are most inspired by a blank canvas that they can project their own ideas and lifestyle onto.

So as your incandescent bulbs burn out, you are thinking it may be a good time to switch to LED bulbs. LEDs have been around for a few years now and we all know basically 3 things about them. They are pricey, they last much longer than incandescent or CFLs and they are more energy efficient… I just purchased a granite slab off fb marketplace and would like to install it on my current kitchen island.

But the hidden elements of a renovation are well worth our attention. Stripping and staining cabinets will give your space a major facelift. Sealing cabinets with polyurethane will also increase durability. Begin by removing cabinet doors and hardware, then wipe cabinet fronts and doors with mineral spirits to remove any dirt, dust, and grease.

Equipping your fireplace with glass doors blocks heated and cooled air from escaping and amplifies the fire’s heat, which in turn reduces energy costs. Closing the damper when the fireplace is not in use will help keep cold out of your home and add to heating efficiency. Having your fireplace and chimney professionally cleaned will also improve fireplace efficiency. A cheery front-door color and a touch of landscaping can do wonders for your home’s curb appeal and make a lasting impression on guests. Dress the door with new hardware, and add potted plants near the entrance. Consider installing outdoor lighting to enhance your home’s architecture and illuminate the walkway.