Home Renovation Projects That Will Make You Happier
If you own a home, you’ve probably at least considered making some major and dramatic changes to it; Control over our refuge is important from a psychological point of view, and one way to exercise this control is to change it to better suit our needs. And we’re increasingly looking at our homes as a reflection of our emotional and mental state , often turning to renovation projects when we’re feeling stuck or unhappy in other areas of our lives (for better or worse ).
We typically discuss home renovation projects in terms of return on investment (ROI), or the practical impact of changes on our daily lives and our families. But there is a crucial aspect of home remodeling that we should pay more attention to: happiness. How happy will this home renovation project make you? The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has measured this to some extent with its ” Joy Score ,” which asks homeowners to rate how happy their home renovation made them. Combined with a few other factors, you can come up with a list of home renovation projects that will make you happiest—and they aren’t always the most expensive or ambitious.
Home projects that bring joy
It’s no surprise that one of the key factors in any home renovation project is how well the end result matches the needs that inspired it. If your kitchen was barely functional before the renovation, and after the renovation has everything you need, you’ll likely be very happy with the project (assuming there aren’t any heartbreaking problems like a huge cost overrun or your contractor dropping a super-expensive countertop just a several inches). away from the installation).
But the renovation projects that will make you happier in your home are often the simplest ones. All these repairs received the highest joy rating – 10 , for example:
-
Drawing. Painting the entire interior of your home, or even just one room, can be very, very satisfying. There is some evidence that color has a clear effect on your mental state, and many people subjectively experience a mood boost when using the right paint colors. Plus, drawing is literally about erasing mistakes. Add in the relatively low cost, speed, and simplicity of this project, and the happiness factor becomes apparent.
-
Home office addition. It’s all about problem solving. If you work from home and balance a laptop on your lap in the bathroom, creating a dedicated office space can help you feel like a professional.
-
New or refinished wood floors. Like paint on the walls, this new shine on the floor feels like letting go of past mistakes (like when you dragged your couch to a new location and left deep gouges in the floor). Plus, the longevity of the end result—an improvement that will last for years—is very satisfying.
-
Cabinet repair. Our closets are like Dorian Gray’s personal portrait: the public-facing parts of our home may be neat and tidy, while our closets are overflowing with nightmares. Decluttering always feels good , so it’s no surprise that creating order out of the chaos in our closets makes us happy.
-
Attic conversion. Conquering a part of your home that is currently ruled by spiders will always make you feel better. Not only are you turning a dark and slightly dangerous space (where you could easily make a mistake and fall through the ceiling) into a functional and usable space, you are increasing your square footage and increasing the value of your home.
-
New insulation. This may seem surprising, but when you think about it: new or upgraded insulation not only makes your home more energy efficient, which is nice, but it also makes your home more comfortable, which makes people want to spend more time there.
Joyful Outdoor Projects
Renovating a home outside of your home looks a little different, but access to outdoor spaces can have a huge positive impact on your overall happiness, so it’s no surprise that some of these projects score really high on the joy scale :
-
Underground swimming pool. A swimming pool makes people want to spend more time in their homes and gives them a greater sense of enjoyment of the property. Not only can you cool off and work out in the pool, but you can also throw some pretty epic parties around it.
-
Landscape lighting. Another ideal indicator of joy is adding light to your outdoor spaces. A solid outdoor lighting design can transform a dark, foreboding yard into a beautiful place you want to spend time in. It also increases the feeling of safety because you can actually see what’s going on. Plus, it doesn’t have to be a complicated project: all you need are solar lights if you use them wisely .
-
New patio or deck. Just like a pool, a new patio or deck makes people want to make more use of their outdoor spaces because they provide comfortable places to relax. A new patio or deck turns a blank canvas into an entertaining space or a place to decompress, enjoy cocktails and enjoy the fresh air.
-
Fire function. Fire can have positive psychological effects – it can be relaxing and meditative. It has a Joy Score of 9.7 because it makes our outdoor spaces more inviting , gives them more “personality,” and increases the amount of time you can enjoy your yard, patio, or deck because it allows us to use those spaces even when it’s a little colder than I would like.