Your kids have grown up and left the nest. All of a sudden your home seems HUGE and far less “busy” than it used to be. You find yourself in the living room watching HGTV and feeling inspired to make some changes around the house. Is it time to pick up the phone and call a local home renovation and remodeling expert? Have a look at the following and draw your exciting conclusion accordingly.
4 Reasons Why Empty Nesters Should Renovate and Remodel Their Home
I. Enhance the Home for Entertainment, Leisure, and Recreation
This is the opportunity you’ve been waiting for. With the kids away you have freed-up space and your budget to make your home more livable for YOU. Whether retired or nearing retirement it’s time to reward yourself by creating spaces to accommodate your entertainment, leisure, and recreational aspirations.
On the entertainment end you can remodel an unused room and turn it into a home movie theater, complete with a stepped slope floor to provide the full effect. When it comes to leisure you can add a solarium or outdoor deck to create a space for morning coffee, afternoon reading, and evening glasses of wine. Then there’s fitness and reaction. The running joke about turning your kid’s old bedroom into a home gym as soon as they head off to college can become a reality. But don’t settle for the minimal and just toss a treadmill into the same space they left. Instead, create the ultimate home fitness center by removing old closets to create more space and make room for weight racks…and that new Peloton machine that you’ve been tempted to buy. Or perhaps your very own yoga studio? These are just examples of how a renovation can enhance the entertainment, leisure, and recreation value of your newly “empty” home.
II. Create a Staycation Property
Have you always wanted a vacation home? Of course you do. But a second home may not yet be viable, especially if you’re helping out the kids who are discovering the financial challenges of living on their own for the first time. Do you have to put off this dream? Not quite. Instead, you can leverage the newly available square footage and remodel to make an oasis out of your existing property.
As mentioned above, you can knock down a wall (or roof for that matter) and build an expansive deck, complete with an outdoor kitchen and heating system that will allow you to enjoy the space through all four seasons. Alternatively, you can remodel the basement to make it feel as if it’s a cozy chalet, or convert the attic into a bungalow with luxury loungers and a skylight to gaze at the stars while sipping mai-tais.
If you can imagine it, then it can be done.
III. Create an Increase in Resale Value
By renovating your home today, you are setting the table for financial rewards tomorrow. If your retirement plans for the future include selling your home or tapping into equity you will increase both resale value and equity by investing in remodeling. This may not be the case for other real estate markets (Toronto, Calgary, etc.) where home values may fall the same relevant amount as the increase in value that accompanied a renovation. But in Winnipeg, where home values either remain steady or rise, renovations almost always create a positively disproportionate (compared to your investment) increase in property value. As you transition from empty-nester to retiree you will create wealth that will allow you to get more out of your golden years.
IV. Make it More Accessible
We know that you have a LOT of active and healthy years ahead of you (especially if you install a home gym!) but at the same time it’s a good idea to be forward thinking for all of life’s transitions. One day you’ll find that walking up the stairs or hopping in and out of the tub (etc.) will be a lot more work. That may not be today. That may not occur for another ten or fifteen years. But if you’re considering an empty nest renovation this year, it’s a good idea to at least consider aging-in-place remodeling in the process. That way you’re well-prepared and don’t have to budget for it down the road. Create that peace of mind today – click here to learn more about aging in place renovations.
No matter what your empty nest renovation dreams may be, Vulcan Construction will exceed your most ambitious expectations. It all starts with phone call and friendly noncommittal conversation. Give us a ring at 204.816.8699 to let us know what you have in mind.