2025 12 NY Resolutions For Your Home - SEPTEMBER: Plan your home’s future remodeling projects

SEPTEMBER 2025:
Plan your home’s future remodeling projects

Start by asking yourself... Do I plan to stay in this house short or long term?

SHORT-TERM:  First, find out if you should even renovate your house before selling!

Ask your local real estate agent, who has a lot of experience, which projects are going to help in your neighborhood. You’d be surprised that up to 50% of the projects homeowners think they want to do might not make any difference in the value of your home or make any difference in the sale.

LONG-TERM: Focus on adding value, consider remodeling your kitchen and/or bathrooms. For instance, a mid-range kitchen remodel costs an average of $27,500 and recovers around 96% of project costs at resale. With a sizable price tag, you’ll want to plan this remodel well in advance to ensure you get all the details "right".

Draft up a home renovation plan:

- Find inspiration online

- Get quotes from general contractors

- Create a savings plan to finance the project

Empty Nesters Renovation Idea #12 - Implement a Hobby Room

 

12. Implement a hobby room.

If the home already has a guest room, empty nesters may opt to turn a child’s former bedroom into a room for themselves. For crafters who have plenty of bobs and bits, a dedicated hobby room frees up storage space elsewhere. The same goes for book enthusiasts, music lovers, photographers, collectors, and other hobbyists.

Having a space to unpack your hobby helps ensure you actually participate in the hobby. In a newly child-free home, empty nesters now have more time to do other things they enjoy. Add the shelves, lights, or desk space you need to truly make the most of your extra free time.

Empty Nesters Renovation Idea #9 -

 

9. Replace flooring.

Over time, kids can do a number on the floors from dropping heavy items, making messy spills, or using the wrong cleaning agent. This doesn’t apply to just specialty flooring; it goes for all types, including hardwood, carpet, tile, and vinyl.

Once a home becomes an adult-only domain, empty nesters may be inclined to finally replace their flooring that’s outdated or just worn out from age. Homeowners can finally invest in modern flooring that will be taken care of properly and add to the home’s value. 

Empty Nesters Renovation Idea #8 - Update Interior Paint

 

8. Repaint interior walls.

After the kids are gone, empty nesters feel like it’s finally safe to paint their walls. Not only does having kids around make it more complicated to paint, but over the years those kids have left their mark in the way of chipped paint and smudges throughout the house.

Empty nesters have likely lived with the same color on their walls for a long time, and they’re looking forward to the makeover a new paint color brings. A fresh application of paint is a straightforward DIY that can make a home look entirely different and symbolize a new phase of life. 

Empty Nesters Renovation Idea #7 - Cozy Guest Room

 

7. Create a cozy guest room

Now that you’re an empty nester, you have a spare bedroom. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel and turn the space into something entirely different; a lot of empty nesters opt to keep it as a guest room that their kids can use when they come home to visit.

This common renovation usually sees a refresh to the walls, new bedding, perhaps a different bedroom set, updated bedside tables and lamps, and some thoughtful additions for guests, like extra robes and slippers in the closet.

Empty Nesters Renovation Idea #5 - Add an entertainment or home theater room.

 

5. Add an entertainment or home theater room.

Empty nesters have worked hard for many years raising their kids, and they deserve a space to chill out for movie night or watch the game. Several of these folks prioritize adding or enhancing their home theater, giving it a dedicated space away from other noise in the home, say, in the basement.

This renovation could be a small change, like swapping out the television for a better one or getting a new surround sound system. For more ambitious homeowners, purchasing plush theater seating or even adding a popcorn bar in the corner of the room creates the right atmosphere for movie marathons. Hard-core film buffs may also opt to add acoustic foam paneling to their walls, so they can enjoy a true home theater experience. 

Empty Nesters Renovation Idea #4 - Upgrade Kitchen

 

4. Upgrade the kitchen.

The kitchen always serves as a gathering space, but with teens and young adults around, your counters are just as often sat upon as used for food prep. Whether you have dents in the fridge, burn marks on the counter, or a cupboard door that’s on its last legs from being slammed shut too many times, this is the ideal time to give your kitchen some love as one of your first projects.

Reface the cabinets, change the light fixtures, install the under mount sink you like, or do a complete overhaul, including new counter tops and tile back splash.

Empty Nesters Renovation Idea #3 - Home Gym

 

3. Add a home gym.

Bedrooms are not the only rooms that kids occupy. Once they’re out of the house, the basement or rumpus room becomes fair game for renovation. These rooms become excellent areas to set up a home gym. Having a dedicated workout space may prompt you to get in your morning run on the treadmill, lift weights, or join an online yoga class.

Start by removing all the unnecessary clutter from the room, then add the gym equipment you need, from free weights to cardio machines to a television on the wall so you can follow along with virtual workouts.

Are empty-nesters really downsizing? Or, is it time to Renovate...?

 

Call it “right-sizing” or whatever you want, baby boomers are facing a housing market that can present opportunities for a fun second chapter — or a cold dose of financial reality.

The final tuition payment has been sent. The kids are finally out on their own and — after opening the well-deserved bottle of champagne you’ve been holding onto for decades for this exact moment — it’s time to figure out your next step.

For many empty-nesters, that means downsizing from the large family home in the suburbs and moving into a chic condo in the city that can rival a small mansion in terms of cost. For some, it’s their first time dealing with the high-cost market in decades. It’s a splash of cold water instead of champagne. So, what's the alternative... maybe now is a terrific time to renovate your home.

The 12 Most Common Renovations for Empty Nesters - When there are children at home, the house goes through a lot of wear and tear, making it hard to justify certain fixes or upgrades. From chipped paint to scuffed floors, dents to stains, parents tolerate a lot of imperfections when their children live under their roof. Once those kids go off to college or move out, renovating an empty nest becomes a practical option for those ready for an upgrade, but not ready to downsize. Approximately 3 out of 4 empty nesters renovate their homes after their children move out, over the next few days, we'll share with you twelve projects they’re most likely to tackle. Stop back often to review all of them.

6 Home Improvement Projects to Invest In This Fall - #4 Bathroom Update

4. Bathroom Update - 100% + ROI

Minor, low-cost bathroom updates can get you the highest ROI this season.

For the biggest bathroom ROI, opt for projects like new tile, updated cabinets or new fixtures. Updating fixtures and hardware, re-grouting or retiling, and updating the look of your vanity are all great ways to elevate the style of your bathroom, without the expense of a complete remodel. If you have cabinets that are in good shape, it can save you money to reface or paint them for a fresh new look.

6 Home Improvement Projects to Invest In This Fall - #3 Kitchen Boost

3. Kitchen Boost - 90% to 95% ROI

Often the first thing guests and potential home buyers look at is the kitchen when evaluating the appearance and value of a home.

Since costs can be more in the late spring and early summer due to a contractor’s busy schedule, fall can be a great and less expensive time to start a kitchen remodel. And with minor kitchen renovation projects, expect to earn a great return on all money invested. A full kitchen remodel does a lot more than enhance the style of the heart of your home!

2022 Flooring Trends... Over 25 New Ideas!

 

2022 Flooring Trends: 25+ Top Flooring Ideas This Year

Ready for the remodel you’ve always dreamed of?

Planning to flip that house that’s been on the market for months?

This next blog series will give you the scoop on the latest flooring trends to help you get your project started right.

Top Home Improvement Projects - #5

 

Focus On Wellness Design and Sustainability

Flexible spaces, outdoor living and smart features all align with today’s homeowner’s wellness goals. The home improvement market will be heavily influenced by consumer preferences in line with a wellness-focused environment.

“Our home has now become our reprieve and we want it to be a place where joy is found,” adds Laetitia Laurent, interior designer and founder of Laure Nell Interiors. Homeowners look for wellness features that match their lifestyle habits, from steam rooms, hot tubs, zen gardens and smart appliances. READ MORE

7 Top Home Improvement Projects For 2022

 The home remodeling market has been in continued expansion despite the pandemic. According to Improving America’s Housing Report by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, the home improvement market reached $281 Billion in 2021 and is expected to continue rising next year.