One day, you come home from work or running errands and realize as soon as you unlock the door that you want a different home. You don’t want to move, but you want your home revitalized and transformed. Maybe it happens when you wish for a mudroom where you could kick off your dirty shoes without dirtying the carpet, or perhaps you realize that a foyer with a reception desk would provide an ideal spot for your mail, keys, etc.

However it happens, you just know. You want to renovate. Or wait. Maybe you want to remodel. You want something different and that brought you here. Before you jump on Pinterest to choose the new look of your home, let’s explore if high end renovations would work for you or if you need a simple remodeling job done.

Renovation vs. Remodeling: What’s the Difference?

Remodeling a home does not require new construction. In a remodeling project, you use what you already own and repurpose it. For example, you might take a wood desk, strip its worn lacquer, then refinish it with a new varnish. You place the new piece in the living room instead of the home office where it once sat.
A renovation requires a master carpenter, general contractor, or home builder because you add or subtract walls from the home, build an addition, or remake the interior of a room. This may require gutting the interior of the room to provide the appropriate workspace for the contractors.

High-End Renovation

When a homeowner undertakes high end renovations, they hire luxury home builders to do the work. These experienced teams of professional architects, draftspeople, master carpenters, plumbers, electricians, etc. design and build the home changes you request. These changes may include an en-suite bathroom or full kitchen renovation. Also called luxury renovations, this type of renovation project uses the highest quality materials, such as marble, quartz, and hardwoods.

According to U.S. News and World Report, today’s luxury renovation projects require three things:

• Thoughtful planning
• Patience
• Money

Popular High-End Renovation Projects

Those facts haven’t stopped homeowners from wanting to transform their homes, but it has created a waiting list at most home remodeling companies. Most luxury projects require wide-scale changes. According to Powell Renovations, 10 high end renovations top the list of homeowners’ desired changes.

Home Addition

Many homeowners outgrow their homes but do not want to move to a new one. To create new space, they hired a contractor to build a home addition. Depending on how much usable space they have on their lot, according to their municipality’s building code, these homeowners either build out, up, or down. That means their contractors either extend their home by:

• Adding rooms to the existing structure on the same level
• Add a level, also called floor, to the home by finishing out or adding a basement
• Add a level/floor to the home by finishing out the attic or adding an upper story to the home.

This option adds to the square footage of the home and creates instant equity in the home. For these high end renovations, hire home siding services that can perfectly match the current siding to the addition or have them re-side the entire home, so everything matches.

Kitchen Redo

After bad news from an appliance repair service, you might decide to replace all the appliances in your kitchen. While doing this, consider a few high end renovations that can make your kitchen more useful, like adding an island. Every 15 years or so, every homeowner needs to replace their appliances because they wear out, so this need offers a timely option for other projects, too. The contractor who installs the new appliances will have to remove the old ones first, so your kitchen provides the open space needed for changes.

Consider adding new countertops of marble or quartz and hiring a cabinet company to create custom cabinets or new doors. Other exciting kitchen projects among the projects common in high end renovations include new flooring, such as vinyl laminate or ceramic tile, and repainting or wallpapering in an updated theme. Some homeowners remove the wall dividing the kitchen from the dining room or living room to create a vast open expanse that feels more modern.

En-Suite Bathroom

Add an en-suite bathroom to your bedroom to experience hotel-like luxury every day. Unlike a shared bathroom or a hallway bathroom, an en-suite bathroom services only the bedroom in which it’s built. Some of these designs place the sinks and mirrors in a separate, foyer-like room that leads into the bathrooms, one on either side of the foyer-like washroom. While adding a bathroom increases the home’s asking price, an en-suite bathroom bumps the price up a little more.

Full Home Lighting Upgrades

Perhaps you love your home’s design, but you want it to sparkle a bit more. Update the lighting throughout your home with new chandeliers, wall sconces, lamps, and exterior lighting. Adding to the yard lighting means installing lights on the outside of the home, on the front and rear steps, and in the yard. Consider stake lights and hanging lights that brighten your garden.

Deck Construction

If your home doesn’t already feature a deck or patio, add one! This renovation also adds instant equity once finished and that means an increase in your asking price when you eventually sell your home. Consider a veranda or multi-level deck that provides separate areas for conversation, dining, working, relaxing, and food preparation.

Outdoor Kitchen

For outdoor food preparation, you’ll need to add an outdoor kitchen. These home extensions popular with the entertaining set provide a full kitchen on the home’s deck or patio. The idea spawned from suburban families who like to cook out on their grills, but an outdoor kitchen includes an oven, stove, and grill area. Some kitchen designs include a brick oven or in-ground fire pit to create the ultimate luxury lawn experience.

Pool Installation

One of the most popular high end renovations in suburban areas has become the addition of a swimming pool. Have your construction crew build a deck or patio around the pool’s perimeter that matches the patio or deck attached to the home. Doing so creates a more unified appearance and increases the luxury feel.

Although many people think pools must take up a huge amount of space, many designs require only a few square feet, such as a reflecting pool or koi pond. Consider a kidney-shaped swimming pool or a Jacuzzi for a small yard. Either option takes up little space, costs less to build than full-sized rectangular pools, and still lets you take a dip to cool off in hot weather.

Landscaping the Lawns

Landscaped lawns set apart luxury homes from others. Contract with a local landscape architect or landscape designer to create a uniform plan for your lawns. These professionally created plans designate where to plant trees, shrubs, flower beds, etc., and the landscapers who work with the architect or designer handling the planting.

Your home, yard, and plants need your help to remain healthy though. Call local pest control services to treat your yard and home with environmentally responsible pesticides that drive away or kill bugs. Most homeowners’ insurance does not cover termites, for example, so homeowners must remain vigilant in ensuring the wood eaters can’t take up residence in their homes. The pest control company should also spray for ants, roaches, spiders, mosquitoes, fleas, ticks, and mice.

Driveway Upgrades

Upgrade the driveway and walkways approaching your home to complement the gorgeous expanse of well-manicured lawn you now have and your updated home. For this type of project, you need a mason or hardscape services professional. If you added a patio to your home, the same company probably handles driveways, too. When the concrete of a driveway or sidewalk cracks or breaks off, it dulls the appearance of the home’s front yard, thus eroding its curb appeal, but resurfacing the driveway to a smooth, sleek finish boosts curb appeal.

Solar Panel System Installation

Solar panel systems might seem trendy, but they’re the proverbial wave of the future, just like electric cars. Switching to solar numbers among some of the most expensive high end renovations at the outset, however, most systems pay for themselves in 10 years or less. Before you pay for the solar panel system installation though, get a roof inspection from a local roof repair company because asphalt shingle roofs typically last about 15 years. To maximize your roof’s lifetime, switch to metal roofing or clay tile roofing, both of which last 30 to 50 years.

You best serve your budget by replacing the roofing first, then hiring a contractor to install the solar panels. If your roof has already aged more than 10 years, replacement time lies just around the corner. You’ll get charged more labor if the roofer needs to first remove the solar panels, then handle the tear-off, replace the roofing, and replace the panels. Put in the new roof and switch to a solar panel system at the same time to save big on your luxury renovations.

Wall-to-Wall Carpeting

Sometimes, your home doesn’t need walls knocked out or additions built onto it; it just needs to feel new and these smaller projects outside the Top Ten do it. Flooring can transform a home instantly, so consider calling a local carpet installer to replace your home’s flooring. Your high end renovations might include wall-to-wall carpeting in every room except the kitchen and bathrooms where hardy laminates work much better. Remember to carpet the sunroom or Florida room, too, so the luxurious feeling carries through the entire home.

Installing an HVAC System

Some opulent older homes still use window air conditioners, especially in the Deep South and California. Nothing says that you mean business with your high end renovations like installing a unified heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system. Add a heat pump and use mini-splits for areas like the home’s workshop or garage, so you can control the temperature in those areas separately from the main areas of the home.

Tankless Water Heater

Hire a plumber to install a tankless water heater, a renovation that no one sees, but every family member enjoys. A tankless water heater heats water as you use it, instead of pre-heating a tankful of water. That results in consistent hot water and lower energy bills because you only heat water when you use it, instead of the heater running all day to maintain 100 to 500 gallons of heated water.

Getting Started with Your Home’s Luxury Renovations

Now that you know what work other homeowners typically have completed during renovations, think about what you wish you could change about your home. Do you long for a covered breezeway leading from your unattached garage to your home? Have you always wished that your house included a sunroom? Make a list of everything you want to change, no matter how big or small, so you can discuss it with the architect or home designer with whom you contract.

Your list should include any wallcoverings or flooring you want to change. Getting rid of popcorn ceilings ranks pretty high on many homeowners’ lists, too. Whether you want a walk-in closet, a white picket fence, or an eight-foot-tall stone wall surrounding your home, it goes on the list.

After talking to your professional contractor, you will gain a better understanding of what changes they can easily accomplish and what will take time to complete. The architect or designer may rough out a few sketches or show you examples of their prior projects that accomplished work similar to what you want done. They will let you know the ballpark cost of the full renovation, and how to prioritize the projects to make the greatest impact quickly while making the most of your available funds.