Ask the Virginia Beach Home Inspector

Question:

 Dear Virginia Beach home inspector we want to make some improvements on our home so it will sell quickly. What do you suggest?

Answer:

   Basic improvements are important,and  they don’t have to cost much if you do them yourself.

* You can start by adding a fresh coat of paint to bring new life to a room. If you have rooms or walls that are odd colors, paint these entire rooms in beige and install new electrical outlet covers.  Touching up woodwork will also bring a fresh look to the room.

* Adding new faucets in the kitchen and master bath are  can add a more modern look when the present fixtures are starting to show their age.

   This applies to light fixtures as well. Sparkling new fixtures on a newly painted ceiling actually gives you a “new room.”

* One of the most important areas is the kitchen. If you have a few thousand dollars to spend on a project, decorators say new countertops are a good choice. Some choices are quartz as in Caesarstone or Cambria, DuPont’s Zodiaq or solid surface Corian, or Eco’s Cosentino or IceStone.

* Add new life to the exterior by painting the window frames, and the front door. The door is especially important and can be made a contrasting color, like red.

   Make sure the trim around the roof isn’t chipped or deteriorating, and that your gutters and downspouts are properly attached.

* If the roof has a dark streak or two, a roof-cleaning company can make it look new again. The black streaks are caused by bacteria known as gloeocapsa magma (algae growth). A professional roof cleaning    will take them away. Just remember that you do not want to take a power washer to your roof, it will do more damage than good.

Now that spring is here in Virginia Beach, you may be thinking about sprucing up your house. You’ve seen exterior front doors painted red, yellow or green, but have you considered adding color to a room by painting the interior door? A couple of coats of paint in a cool shade might be just what the space needs.

Natalie Myers a designer at Veneer Designs in Los Angeles says to get the main features in the room addressed first. Then, if something seems to be missing, painting the door is a great idea.

It’s easy, inexpensive and a low-commitment project. If you don’t like how it turns out, you can simply paint it a different color. At Lowe’s Home Improvement stores, they say customers are becoming more confident about using color.

Choose a gloss finish and you’ll need fewer coats. Additionally, it will hold up when you clean it. Since you just need a small amount, invest in a high quality paint.

Before you paint the entire door, test a small area to make sure you like the color. 

This is your “Around the House” tip from the Virginia Beach home inspector.