Essential Things You May Need To Know Before Building A Deck

Many home owners often prefer building a deck on the outdoor over a patio. A deck can enhance the appearance of a house and also provide a relaxing space.

Considerations involved in deck building

Before starting the work of building a deck, homeowners are advised to consider the following factors, which play an important role.

 

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·         Purpose of the deck

Home owners may consider building a deck for variety of reasons. These reasons may range from creating an entertainment or dining space, guarding the privacy of the home or for creating a patio garden. The design of the deck may vary according to the purpose of use.

·         Location of the deck

The first step in building a deck is to ascertain its location. For smaller properties, decks may be built only on the lone available spot. Larger properties may provide a number of locations to choose from. The location of the deck may also depend on privacy requirements and the exposure of the spot to various weather conditions.

·         Budget

It is important to arrive at a cost estimate before building a deck. Deck building may involve various types of expenses which may depend on the following factors:

• The deck size.
• The complexity and intricacy of design.
• Lumbering cost.
• Fee charged by the contractor.
• Cost of extra features like railings, flowerboxes and built in seating.

Choice of building the deck yourself or hiring a contractor

Freestanding platform basic decks are easy to build provided you possess the necessary carpentry skills. Multi level and intricately designed decks may require certain engineering skills. In such situations, it is advisable to hire the services of a contractor for the job. You can log on to http://utah-decks.com/ to get quotes for deck building.

Choice of decking materials

Nowadays, a variety of decking materials are available. These include various types of weather resistant woods, pressure treated woods, hardwoods, composite decking materials or other alternatives. You may choose a material according to your requirement and budget.

Deck design and shape

The design and shape of the deck depends on the house design. An appropriate design and shape of the deck can be arrived at after considering the architecture and structure of the house.

Additional features

A deck may or may not include extra features like privacy fencing, roofs and railings. Decks may also be incorporated with built in benches and accessories like outdoor and patio furniture. Another option is to build storage decks which provide shelves and closets. The choice of additional features may depend on the budget and the available space.

Licenses

Building a deck may often require approval from the local authorities. It is advisable to secure approvals in order to avoid future trouble.

Deck lighting

Building a deck may also require the services of an electrician to provide connections or installing lights on the deck. Depending upon the budget, designer, LED or general lights may be chosen.

A deck can offer a high degree of functionality if built properly. It is hence important to consider certain essential factors before deciding on the design, shape, materials and additional features of the deck.

How to Choose Bathroom Fixtures

Several decades ago, bathroom fixture designers didn’t have much to do as they used to come in a couple of styles, colors and materials. This means that buyers usually didn’t have to think hard when equipping their bathroom with fixtures. Today, they come in a multitude of styles, and you can find a wide variety of fixtures that will match your bathroom décor perfectly. However, too many choices can cause a real headache, especially when doing the complete bathroom overhaul. They are the “crown jewels” of every bathroom so select your fixtures wisely. They range from luxurious to budget-friendly so let’s see some tips on how to choose bathroom fixtures that will suit both your style and budget.  

 

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Replacing the old bathtub and sink or not?

Before choosing the suitable faucets, have a look at the condition of your sink and bathtub - you need to decide whether you’ll replace them along with the other fixtures.  If yes, you’ll need to decide which features they’ll have and consider the size and the style of the bathroom first. The choice of fixtures heavily depends on the sink, bathtub and shower. If you want to do a complete bathroom renovation, make sure that you choose major items such as bath carefully – smaller fixtures are much easier to replace. You should have a look at numerous pre-matched ideas to find out what fixtures would look best on your sinks and bathtub.

Set the maximum budget

Before setting out to do some serious shopping, know your budget. I already mentioned that fixtures go from extremely pricey to low-budget. Don’t think that less expensive fixtures necessarily mean bad quality – you can find elegant plumbing fixtures of decent quality that will match the rest of your bathroom at relatively low prices. Look at the prices and try to decide on the whole fixture set before actually making a purchase – this will help you to stay within your budget limits. If on a tight budget, look for wholesale deals or find “damaged” fixtures sold at discount prices. These are fixtures with minor, often invisible imperfections.

Make a decision on the style

Most people will put aesthetics before functionality and this is crucial in most purchases. This is not such an easy task as it may seem: color, shape, type of handles, single/dual lever, hands-free options… there are lots of things to consider. With all possible colors and designs, making a choice is truly a challenge. Before you even start looking for suitable fixtures, think about your bathroom decoration style. Is it vintage, minimalist, ultra-modern, traditional or rustic? Heavily decorated bathrooms need equally ornate fixtures. Minimalist style is usually associated with chrome and nickel, and if you want a delicate look – bronze finish is a good choice. Your lifestyle is an important factor as well – if you have children or many occupants, stay away from sensitive finishes (such as previously mentioned bronze).

Choosing a faucet

There are many types of fixtures, but faucets are the highlight of every bathroom. If you already have a sink, make sure that faucet matches the hole openings. The most common type of sink is the one with three holes. Depending on the type of the sink, you can choose a single-hole faucet, widespread mount, or center-set that matches a three-hole sink. Single-handle faucets are the best choice in most cases as they have a plate that hides the extra holes. Make sure that the style and finish match the other fixtures such as towel bars and robe hooks – these small details won’t go unnoticed. We recommend a combination of single level/ceramic valve faucets (because of their durability) and a metal pop up instead of knobs.

How to choose a perfect finish

A finish is the surface of the exterior parts of the fixture that gives it its color. There are numerous finishes to choose from that not only give fixtures different colors, but they are of the different durability as well. The basic and most common finish types are nickel, chrome and brass, but a bit more luxurious options can be found on the market, such as oil rubbed bronze or satin gold. PVD finish is one of the most quality and durable ones as it’s almost fully scratch resistant. Various finishes can have PVD characteristics (so you can choose any color you like: steel, nickel, brass and so on). Make sure that you choose plated surfaces: chrome is often applied over faucets to protect them from corrosion. 

Why Buy Your Own Property as Early as Your 30’s

Entering your early 30’s marks the start of a turning point in your life. At this point, you begin to worry about what’s in store for your future, and how you’re going to assure that your life is marked by the balance of stability and growth. In this stage, people usually think of ways to ensure that that particular balance is achieved, and the idea of investing on a worthwhile product becomes real and tangible.

 

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Basically, people invest in order to accumulate wealth. It sometimes has its own risks, but the rewards when you study and strategize your investments can be enormous. Right now, one of the most promising investments that people lean on apart from stocks are properties. By investing on the right property, you’ll have a great deal of money for future necessities like education, retirement, medical needs, recreation, and saving up for the future of your family. Here are a couple of reasons why you should buy your own property as early as your 30’s.

1.   The long term returns beat the short term issues.

Due to the massive problems brought about by the housing bubble, people have become more wary of buying properties because the housing market can become unstable. In order to deal with that issue, people rented houses, apartments, and condominium units to save money. According to them, shelling out a couple of hundred dollars per month is more efficient than buying a whole property. If you buy properties, you become tied to that investment forever, and if the issues in the housing market materialize again, it could be a very huge problem for you.

However, even though that was a legitimate claim at that time, the current state of the housing market in the US has become stable, predictable, and manageable. Now is the right time to invest. Achieve it by buying a property that might cost a lot of money in the short run, but can sustain you and your family in the long run, once you have fully paid for it.

2.   You can profit from your properties by flipping and renting them out.

Apart from holding the job that you currently have, buying a property and flipping or renting them out gives you an additional source of a positive cash flow. Again, it may be expensive at the beginning, but through the years, the investment will slowly come back to you through the form of monthly rents or up to 50% capital gains once you flip and sell those properties successfully. You only need patience, creativity, and a little bit of capital in order to begin. 

Buying properties are worthy investments

Whether you are buying a property for profit or for stability, it is an assurance that the returns will more often than not be worth the risks of the short term sacrifices. It has been proven that if you are going to compare renting and buying houses, buying your own property will be more cost-efficient in the long run. Once you own the property, you can either keep it, flip it, or rent it out. Either way, through positive cash flow or through not needing to pay the rising rent prices every month, you are going to get your money’s worth.

In order to succeed in this business, you only need to look for the right property to invest on. You can do this by communicating with an experienced commercial real estate agent who will be able to explain the pros and cons of every property, and how to maximize your utility for your new investment.

Written by the experts at Columbia Real Estate, the most knowledgeable agents for residential real estate in Columbia, MO.