With one more day left in September, we’re quickly winding down 2019 and moving on to 2020 this is why in this blog post we’re going to analyze the best home renovations for this year and give you some ideas for the renovations that you should focus on next year if you plan on updating your home.

1. Kitchen

So, the No. 1 thing we want to spend the majority of our money in our budget on is our kitchen—not surprising. That’s the hub of the home. That’s where most people spend most of their time, which is why we really want to make it nice.

What you want to do is use a light-colored kitchen (at least right now in 2019). That’s kind of what’s happening. We use white cabinets with a light countertop, as well. It’s very modern, very sleek.

If you’re doing a flip, you want to use a stone countertop. We’re also using white quartz—again, super light, super bright. That’s what’s in right now. That’s what the people want.

It’s also a neutral tone, so it’s not going to offend anybody or turn people off. Everybody kind of likes it, and everybody can design their kitchen around a neutral white kitchen. So, that’s a recommendation I have for you, and spending all of your money here is a great way to really jack up the value.

For example, our average kitchen for a rental property (brand new cabinets, countertops, sink, taps, appliances, etc.) is around $8K to $10K on average. If we’re doing a flip, you know it’s probably about $12K to $15K, because we’re getting better quality appliances—fridge and stove and stuff. We’re spending a little more there, but that’s where the returns are really going to come.

Spending 10 grand in our kitchen, it’s going to add like $20-$25,000 to the value of the property. So, it’s very, very smart to put a lot of money here.

2. Bathrooms

The second place you want to spend it is—again—not really surprising.

The second place a lot of people spend a lot of time in homes is the bathroom. I recommend using double sinks. You’ve heard of his and her sinks—or his and his or hers and hers. Right?

We want to use double sinks. This is what really attracts the buyers and the renters. And again, make that color palette very light.

We typically use a white hexagon floor with black grout. We’re using white subway tiles around the tub. We’re using a cool IKEA floating vanity in our properties—very trendy, very cool.

That’s the palette we use across all properties (even flips). You can see how important to me it is to have a really nice home.

3. Flooring

Tangent over. Let’s get back to the third thing you want to spend your money on flooring. This is also the order of importance, OK?

So, for flooring, I really like seamless floors. Something that’s a huge pet peeve of mine is when there is one type of flooring in the kitchen, another type of flooring in the living room, another type of flooring in the bedrooms, upstairs, etc. I hate that! I like one flooring throughout the whole house. It makes it seamless.

The house has a flow. It seems bigger, it seems brighter, and that’s what you want when trying to sell a property or find a tenant. You want to make things look bigger, look better than they are. So, we use a light-colored floor.

Renovations to Focus on in 2020

As we get closer to 2020 the biggest thing to focus on when it comes to renovations is to stick with timeless renovations that will continue to add value to your homes like renovating the kitchens and bathrooms.

As you knock out the timeless renovations you should also focus on improving other areas of your home like renovating closets, adding more lighting and making your home more tech-friendly like adding a NEST Thermostat, smart doorbell or other high-tech features that make life easier.

Contact Me

To learn more about the renovations that you should make to your home, or to search for properties in the area, contact me today by calling 512-944-7378 or connect with me online by clicking here.