Remodeling Decisions That Add Value: Improving Living Areas
The main living area is both a public and private space in your home – one that you share with visitors and family. It is a central core space that should easily connect with dining areas, kitchen, and hallways to bedrooms. The living area should be given top priority in the hierarchy of rooms. Often it is not.
Sometimes the front door opens right into the living room, and the passage deeper into the house cuts right through it. Please! Before you go a step further, stop to imagine how you will furnish and enjoy sitting in a room like this. If your home has this layout, consider some serious surgery to correct this problem. Never allow walkways to cross through the middle of living areas. This creates a division within the space which no amount of furniture placement will help. If you have this floor plan, face up to it, and make the necessary changes before moving on.
Most buyers today prefer two or more living areas. These may include a main living room, plus a family room or den, a study, and a game room. Keep in mind that the trend today is to avoid wasted space. Rooms that are used primarily for display have very little real use and value. Consider converting an unused formal living room to a study. Sometimes a wall can be opened up to bring a seldom used room into a real relationship with the house. This is much cheaper than adding on more space. Remodeling tip: Make better use of the space that you have.
The “greatroom” is a popular layout that combines the living-dining-kitchen space. This open style is efficient in its use of space, combining multiple uses. The house seems bigger than it would if divided into small rooms. People are able to work in the kitchen and talk with family members or guests in the living area. If you can open a kitchen wall to allow a connection between spaces, you will be making a change that most buyers prefer.
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