San Marcos - Buda - Kyle Edition | July 2023

GUIDE

Local businesses oer home improvement tips

2023 HOME EDITION

HOME IMPROVEMENT AND MAINTENANCE

ASK A REALTOR

Damron Group Realtor Linda Jalua gives her advice for new and seasoned homeowners.

COMPILED BY AMIRA VAN LEEUWEN

because you need to look at your home as an investment. HOW CAN NEW AND SEASONED HOMEOWNERS FIND THEIR PURPOSE FOR WHY AND WHEN TO REMODEL? Just ask yourself, “Do I think I might move in the next ve years? Do I think I might move in a couple years?’ How stable is my job? Am I planning to build my family? Is the home going to continue to suce for you?” Those are the kind of questions you have to ask. When I talk to somebody that’s about to list their home and they [want to] know what type of projects to do, I usually suggest projects that are going to cost less than the average person walking through their house will think they are going to cost. WHAT IS ONE STAPLE HOME IMPROVEMENT PROJECT YOU WOULD RECOMMEND TO HOMEOWNERS, AND WHY? If their goal is to sell, it would be painting and ooring and consistent painting and ooring with some neutral types of paints and oor if their purpose is to resell—and maintenance items. Those are the things we usually recommend when people are looking at marketing their home and trying to get the best dollar for it. Outdoor spaces are big right now, so improving or adding an outdoor space is a big home improvement idea that I would recommend, especially if you’ll use it and if it’s well done. People are looking for outdoor living spaces.

WHAT ARE THREE AFFORDABLE WAYS HOMEOWNERS CAN IMPROVE THE VALUE OF THEIR HOMES? The best thing they can do to improve the value and keep the value is to maintain the home properly. Keep fascia boards; keep paint; keep everything well taken care of. One of the things that we commonly see is home improvement and projects that have been haphazardly done or not all at once with a complete picture of the house. WHAT MISTAKES DO YOU SEE HOMEOWNERS MAKE THAT DECREASE THE VALUE OF THEIR HOMES? Sometimes we walk into a house, and the ooring has been done multiple times, and we’ve got six dierent types of ooring in the house. So try to make sure that you’re doing your whole house when you do something. The other thing is not well-thought-out, well-designed projects. WHAT ARE IMPORTANT CONSIDERATIONS ON NEW BUILDS? If you buy a new-build home, you’ve got to keep the caulk good; you’ve got to make sure that your windows stay good; you know those kinds of things matter. A lot of it depends on what you’re improving your home for, and that’s probably the biggest thing that people lack is vision as to what [their] purpose as to why they’re improving it. Is it because they want to sell it in ve years? Is it because they just want something new and updated for their own purposes? Are they trying to add long-term value [because] they’re [going to] be there for 20 years? A lot of it stems from trying to have a purpose

ASK AN INTERIOR DESIGNER

Allyson Buck, the owner of interior design company True Design, gives her tips. WHAT ARE YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS

INTERIOR DESIGN? [When] I see new homeowners that are buying their dream home; a lot of times they do not budget for furniture, and they have no idea that furniture is very expensive. And depending on the size of their house, that can easily cost them $100,000 if they’re moving into a brand- new ve-bedroom home. When you’re [going to] work with an interior designer, the goal is to have something that’s a little bit more unique and a little bit more one of a kind, so I’m not going to be shopping at Home Depot or Lowe’s. HOW CAN HOMEOWNERS ADD CHARACTER TO THEIR SPACE? A lot of that comes down to furnishings and accessories, not all of it. And so I think for me what’s really important is making sure that you mix new with old, and so nding some new decor items that you really like but then also going and nding some really unique things at antique shops that have a lot of interest and oer something dierent. WHAT ARE YOUR TOP THREE BIGGEST INTERIOR DESIGN TIPS? Avoid trends. Tip No. 2 would be looking at a project holistically and making sure that it all ows and there’s continuity. [And] I would say be prepared to up your budget. You’re going to spend more with an interior designer than if you do it on your own, but you should be able to avoid a lot of costly mistakes by doing that.

FOR DESIGNING A SMALL SPACE? I personally love small spaces because you can spend the money on really beautiful nishes and furnishings without breaking the bank. When you have a ton of square footage and you want to put down really beautiful tile, it gets really expensive really fast. I love small spaces for that reason because I like to have big impactful spaces by spending the money on beautiful light xtures and artwork. WHAT ARE YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS FOR DESIGNING LARGER SPACES? For a larger space, I would recommend creating smaller spaces within the larger space so it doesn’t feel so grandiose, so you have some spaces that feel more intimate and cozy. WHAT INTERIOR DESIGN MISTAKES DO YOU SEE MOST OFTEN? I don’t know if I would call it a mistake, but just seeing designers that just do what is currently trending because those trends go in and out, especially now with Pinterest and Instagram, people see something; they grab onto it really quickly; everybody starts doing it; and then within six months everybody’s onto something else, trying to bear in mind that whatever’s really hot today isn’t going to be in six months. WHAT ARE THREE THINGS HOMEOWNERS SHOULD PRIORITIZE WHEN PLANNING A BUDGET FOR

Linda Jalua Realtor, The Damron Group 102 Wonder World Drive, Ste. 301, San Marcos 512-392-7653 www.thedamrongroup.com

Allyson Buck Owner True Design 186 E. Garden St., New Braunfels 719-432-9752 www.maketruedesign.com

MAINTAINING YOUR HOME The National Association of Home Builders oers routine home maintenance tips for homeowners looking to maintain their homes’ value and ensure their

EXTERIOR

INTERIOR

1 Roofs should be inspected by a qualied roofer every three years, and skylights should be inspected so leaks do not develop. 2 Ensure downspouts and gutters do not get clogged with leaves and other debris. 3 Inspect siding each year to see if it needs repainting, and trim shrubs away so they do not touch the siding. 4 Check for split or cracked caulking on windows and doors annually, and replace the caulk as necessary. 5 Moving parts of garage doors need to be oiled once every three months.

6 Air lters require regular replacement, generally once every three months. 7 Regularly check security alarms and circuit breakers . Check batteries in smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. 8 Clean each faucet’s aerator every three to four months. Maintain garbage disposals by running cold water through them. 9 Masonry walls can develop a white powder that can be scrubbed o with water and a sti brush. 10 Hardwood oors without polyurethane need to be waxed with a liquid or paste “spirit” wax. Use emulsion wax on vinyl.

safety. Find other useful homeownership tips at www.nahb.org.

SOURCE: NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF HOME BUILDERSCOMMUNITY IMPACT

SAN MARCOS BUDA KYLE EDITION • JULY 2023