Everyone has their own personal taste and sense of style when it comes to home decorating and upgrades, but there are five things I have found that most people seem to be put off by. These five things are important for all homeowners to know, even if you’re not considering selling your house in the near future. Maybe you are considering some home improvement projects down the line and want to add the most appeal and value you can for your money. Or maybe you are thinking of selling your home and want to make a few changes before listing your home. No matter your situation these are important to keep in mind!

1) Types of Flooring

Flooring is the number one thing I hear complaints about while showing houses! Through the 90’s it was very common to see vinyl and linoleum. Now days though, people generally like wood, tile, and carpet. A majority of homeowners are even gravitating less towards carpet and more toward hard flooring that’s easy to clean and maintain. It’s very typical to see carpet only in bedrooms now, although wood and tile are on the rise even in bedrooms. When changing flooring in your house, consider the whole house and how it will flow. If there are too many flooring types with different transitions it makes it feel chopped up, busy, and unplanned. If you’re updating your living areas to tile, consider doing your bathrooms in the same material as well. Sometimes you plan to do it later, and the same material can be hard to find or no longer available.

2) Brass Hardware, Lighting, and Faucets

If you bought a house in the 1990’s or early 2000’s you probably have (or did have) brass accents throughout your house. Unfortunately, the brass finish has lost it’s appeal and now people prefer brushed nickel and oil rubbed bronze accents. The good news is that upgrading your door hardware, lighting, and faucets can be an inexpensive way to make a big difference in the look of your home. It can also be done in baby steps, new door hardware this month, faucets in 3 months, and new lighting as you find pieces you like. An interior design friend of mine even shared the trick that some lighting can be taken down and spray painted (have you checked out all the spray paint options lately?) to achieve the desired finish look rather than buying and installing new pieces and spending much more money then is needed to get the desired look.

3) Countertops

The average countertop used to be laminate, only luxury homes used to have granite. Boy has this changed! Buyers now consider laminate counters to “cheapen” the look of the kitchen and also don’t like that it can peel up, chip, or scorch easily.Granite is now the new norm, and many people will not even consider laminate or even tile countertops anymore. With so many types of modern looking counters that can also better handle daily kitchen functions can you blame them for not wanting laminate? Now countertop options include Corian, granite, quartz (natural or manmade), concrete, butcher block, marble and more! The safest bet for counters these days is to go with a granite that doesn’t have too busy of a design. Not only has research proven that granite is more attractive to buyers, but it’s also proven that it adds value to your kitchen.

Check in on Saturday for the final two things that can make your house unattractive…