Category: home improvement

Energy efficient home improvements can be more valuable in the long run than mere cosmetic changes. Better yet, your wallet will like them too!

If you’re planning to refinance your mortgage, consider borrowing more than the amount needed to pay off your existing mortgage, and use the extra cash to make energy-efficiency home improvements. Here’s why.

You’ll gain two benefits:

 Interest paid on your home mortgage is usually tax deductible as is interest on home equity loans.

 Energy-efficient home improvements will immediately lower your monthly energy bills.

Just like the real costs of owning a car includes operating expenses, the same is true for a home. Rising utility costs must be factored into the costs of owning home.

When you are buying, selling, refinancing, or remodeling your home, you can increase your comfort and save money by using the Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM). It can be applied to most home mortgages. EEMs provide the borrower with special benefits when purchasing a home that is energy efficient, or can be made efficient through the installation of energy-saving improvements.

Other findings from the Scarborough Research study include:

 Internet users are more likely to improve their homes. For instance, those who have spent $1,000 or more online are 19 percent more likely than the norm to initiate home improvement projects. In addition, consumers who use the Internet to purchase through an auction site, access automobile information or seek financial information/services are between 18 and 20 percent more likely than average to enhance their homes.

 Over half (53 percent) of consumers remodeled their kitchens themselves while only four percent actually paid someone to do the work for them. Other do-it-yourself home improvements include interior paint or wallpapering (78 percent), landscaping (76 percent) and remodeled bathrooms (61 percent). The home improvements that rank high among paid labor include installing a home security system (81 percent), heating or air conditioning (76 percent) and carpeting and floor covering (63 percent).

 Consumers who listen to ’70s Oldies/Classic Hits, New Country and All Sports radio formats are 14 percent more likely than the norm to have home improvements done.