Many people think about personal fitness or emotional growth when planning their New Year’s resolutions, but this can also be the ideal time to think about improving your home. A few simple changes can help you make your home more stylish, efficient, comfortable, and budget friendly. Here are seven great New Year’s resolutions you should think about making.
1. Get Rid of Clutter
When you live in one place for a long time, things start to pile up, especially in cabinets, closets, and other out-of-the-way storage places. Plan to go through one room of your home every week or month and cut back on your belongings. Getting rid of things you don’t need makes it easier to stay clean and organized, especially if you want to maximize space in your downtown San Diego condo or loft.
2. Fix Broken Things
Do you frequently walk by a squeaky door or scratched wall and tell yourself you’ll get around to it eventually? Use your New Year’s resolution to quit putting those things off. Make a list of everything that needs to be fixed and plan a realistic timetable for dealing with them.
3. Get an Audit for Energy Efficiency
An energy efficiency audit will carefully test your home to see how it uses energy. The audit can give you tips about things that may be wasting energy in your home so you can lower your electric, gas, and other utility bills. You could end up saving big by making the time to have your home audited.
4. Pay Off Debts
In many cases, you can take a few years off your mortgage payments and save thousands of dollars in interest just by paying an extra $100 or so each month. Making this resolution requires a bit of budgeting, but it’s worth it in the long run.
5. Start a Home Emergency Fund
When you finally own your own home, you may find there are all sorts of expenses you don’t expect. Start setting aside a little money from each paycheck so you have at least $500 in emergency money, which can be used for things such as replacing a broken light or paying for a plumber.
6. Get Ready for Taxes
Resolve to quit waiting until the last minute, and get a jump start on your taxes. Instead of taking the easy way out, make sure to see whether or not your property tax assessment is correct, and look for homeowner deductions. You might not love the idea of taking extra time on taxes, but you could end up with considerable savings.
7. Update Your Home
The new year is the perfect time to make your home look a little trendier. To get an update that looks good for years to come, consider using upcoming styles instead of current ones. Updating your home makes it look more stylish and increases its resale value.
Whether you’re interested in improving your living space or saving money, these are fantastic resolutions for homeowners to make any time of year. If you’re hoping to be a homeowner soon and looking for downtown San Diego real estate, trust the experienced professionals at 92101 Urban Living to guide you through every step of your home-buying journey. Call one of our friendly agents today at 619-649-0368 to schedule an appointment.