There are even credit cards linked to the line of credit for immediate access. Home equity loans are normally available at about two points above prime rates, but lower rates are available for
those with a strong credit history. However, Scotiabank and other major lenders will sometimes even lend money on renovations that exceed the equity in the home. This is based on the future appraised value of the home once the renovations are complete, according to a professional appraisal, which the homeowner pays for. Energy incentives According to Korurek, there are also instances where someone having a legal rental suite renovated into their house can qualify for lending based, at least partly, on the rental income.

Only half of the rental income is normally counted as personal income. If you are tying energy savings into your renovation project, there are incentives to make financing easier. In Metro Vancouver, the best known is VanCity’s “bright ideas” home renovation loan. This offers a personal loan at prime rate for up to 10 years, from $3,500
to maximum of $20,000. To qualify, you need to make renovations recommended under the federal governments ecoENERGY Retrofit program. These renovations must achieve
at least a five-point improvement in your home’s energy efficiency rating CMHC has also added environmentally friendly features to its mortgage loan insurance. If you use CMHC insured financing to make energy-saving renovations or renovate your existing home to make it more energy-efficient, a 10 per cent refund on the Insurance premium
may be available. You could also have the added flexibility of a longer amortization to a maximum of 40 years, significantly reducing your monthly payments.

Garage remodeling ideas should be considered as part of your home renovation plans. If you pay a little attention and make necessary arrangements, you can convert the garage into a new room with a total new look. Garage remodeling ideas assist you to customize your garage to store big boxes, work for your kid’s project, or store sports equipment. The remodeled garage can also be used as a workshop.

The first step in remodeling a garage is garage doors remodeling. Many garages have doors, which are opened inside. These types of doors consume a lot of space. Using a roller shutter will be a good option. It not only saves space but also makes the room more airy when open.

Floor selection is also an important part of garage remodeling ideas. Usually garage floors are made of concrete. For adding a new look, you may opt for tiles, mosaic or marble. This makes our garage look beautiful and attractive. Proper flooring minimizes your cleaning chores.

Another technique that is part of garage remodeling ideas is to increase the storage capacity of your garage. One easy solution for that is to install cabinets. This brings plenty of extra space to keep all those things, which lay cluttered all around all this while.

A garage can also be transformed into a small office with the help of effective garage remodeling ideas. A garage can be redesigned to provide all facilities required for a small office including HVAC, computer, etc. This small office also lets you work without distraction from family members.

You can also remodel your garage into a studio. It is a very easy process and the perfect place to learn music or painting. You can store your art articles in pegboards, shelves.

Implement these garage remodeling ideas to bring a new life to your home.

The Angus drive makeover, for instance, uses an advanced forced-air super high-efficiency heating and ventilation system designed by Coquitlam-based Emco Corporation. “Every home renovation is unique, so a system has to be designed to retrofit with what is there,” said Gary Fabbro, senior manager and HVAC specialist with Emco. This year, he noted, Emco is focusing on indoor air quality, combining heat and ventilation to make homes healthier. He notes that it is possible today to install “triple-function” units that offer high-efficiency forced heating and cooling and in-floor radiant heat, all from a single machine. The payoff for making a home more energy saving is now much faster, due to higher fuel costs and more efficient and less expensive upgrades. A healthier, more comfortable home – and perhaps planet – is the natural byproduct.

A few shelves, storage containers, hooks will make your garage look beautiful and also organized. Shelves can be kept in the corner of the garage. This would allow you to organize a garage by utilizing the corner space. If you attach a rotating base and top, it would be easy for you to store more stuff in the shelf. A good planning will give you ideas to organize the garage space efficiently.

Sort out the items that need to be arranged in different sections. They include tools, sporting items, camping equipment and household items. Find out the locations for these different zones and carefully keep the items in their respective zones. Organize these zones well so that you can get the most usable items at easily reachable locations.

To organize a garage you can also make use of the wall. Hooks and cabinet are good choices to utilize the garage space in an effective manner. Look out or select those items that you can hang in hooks or keep in cabinets. Bicycles, wheelbarrow and weed eater can be hung on the walls; this would free up your floor space. Small or hazardous items can be safely kept in cabinets.

Peg-board is another way to organize your garage The peg-board makes it easy for you to identify the required tools and replace them in their original place quickly after use. You can prepare this peg-board at home and can hang it in our garage. Last but not the least, you should keep pesticides in the corners of your garage so that bugs and pests don’t destroy the articles.

To organize a garage is not at all a difficult task. You just should have a good planning and a little bit of ideas to organize it.

Doors, racks, shelves, wall racks, and cabinets are important components in garage storage optimization. Garages can have up and over doors. Some of them have sectional doors with four or five long sections. The garages with round and corner door are also used for optimizing the space. The roller garage doors just roll up rather than moving from the base to ceiling.

Another innovative garage storage organization idea is to use the overhead storage system. An overhead storage system allows you to maximize the storage in your garage. Seasonal items that are not regularly used can be stored in this storage system. The ceiling is a great place for stationing power tools like chain saws that are used once a year. A shelf on the ceiling is good to store bicycles tools and toolboxes. Shelves with pulley hoist allows in lowering the ceiling shelf. There are bicycle hoist systems, which help in keeping your bike to the ceiling.

A good shelving system is needed for garage storage organization. Wire shelves and matching liners are good for storing common tools, appliances and boxes. Intermetro shelves are good for placing heavy tools and gadgets in the garage. These shelves are called as heavy-duty wracks, and they have adjustable shelves. These inexpensive shelves of multiple sizes are of great use in storing the common items in a garage.

Use of wall-mounted racks is another useful items in garage storage optimization. They allow you to free up your garages floor space. You can also keep your ski board, boots, and accessories more safely and off the floor. Wall mounted shelves are available in single or double tier models. They are one of the most effective methods of garage storage optimization.

Fireplace makeover ideas just need some creativity and a few hours of dedication from your end. It won’t affect your budget. Some of the fireplace makeover ideas are limited to just repainting the bricks of the fireplace. Light and soft colors are the best to alter the look and feel of your fireplace. Using a heat resistant paint would be the best option. The paint colors should match the scheme of your room.

Adding accessories is one of the cost effective fireplace makeover ideas. Keeping a large framed mirror over the mantle will make it more beautiful. A tall pair of candlesticks during winter will make our living room look elegant. An antique vase and a framed picture over the mantle are the also the best options. Displaying mementos on your mantle add character to your room. Accessories should be made matching the theme of your living room. Having a shelf for the frames and vase above the mantle is also a cost effective way to décor the living room.

Some of the fireplace makeover ideas need to be followed with more care. These include cleaning the fireplace. A fireplace looks new if regular proper cleaning is carried out. Use a moist rag to clean the sobs. The doors and screen can also be modified to give your fireplace a new look. You can choose either a traditional look or a modern look.
It is the fairly easier way in fireplace makeover ideas. Replacing, redesigning or refinishing the mantle can also give a new look to the fireplace.

Fireplace makeover ideas give new energy and life to your living room. You can fascinate your guests and change the boring look of your fireplace by dressing up your fireplace and giving it a new life.

Garage makeover ideas just need a little imagination, a fixed budget and a plan. Firstly you need to decide what you want your garage look like. Secondly decide whether you want to park your vehicle in the garage or not. If the weather is favorable, you can park your vehicle outside, so you can get your garage space free.

Despite a garage was built with a purpose of parking the car, it could be modified into a multi functional space. Apart from allowing cars, a garage could also serve as a shed, workshop, a home office, a rehearsal studio for a musical band or a storage locker, or a combination of them in a small place. Some of you may use it as a gym while a few others find it as another living space designed for household activities.

When you go for garage makeover ideas the end goal should be that you get enough space for the designated purpose. If you just have basic skills, you can transform a garage into a place you wished for.

There are a number of garage makeover ideas that can work for you.  If your laundry is at the basement you can use your garage as laundry room. Thus you can avoid going upstairs and downstairs for your laundry.

A musical studio is one of the best choices in garage makeover ideas. The garage is the start place for many bands. Soundproofing your garage walls is good to avoid neighbor’s complaint. Another garage makeover idea is to transform it into a gym. You can put your equipments into the garage if your indoors doesn’t allow enough space.  Thus you can have plenty of space for your exercises and training.

Garage makeover ideas are plenty and they’re all about space optimization. If you want to free yourself from clutter opt any of the garage makeover ideas.

That’s what really creates the spatial perspective.” Determine if a 5.1 surround system – a centre channel and left and right channels in the front and rear, along with a subwoofer – or a 7.1 surround system, which has two additional rear channels, is able to fit in your space. Engineers have scaled down big loudspeakers and applied them to compact designs, according to Hi Fi Centre’s Colombo. “You can get very clean, very articulate, well-reproduced sound from a small loudspeaker, because the tweeter and a small mid-range driver produce most of what you hear,” said Colombo. “But what you give up at that point is the ability to play the really deep notes. But you can overcome this with a good quality subwoofer.” While small systems tend to feature lower wattages than larger home theatre amplifiers, Colombo contends it is simply marketing hype. Small watts can deliver big sound, he claims. “I’ve got a little machine that’s 50 watts per channel, and it will out-pound the 700-watt beast,” he said. “In addition, the sound is very well reproduced and very high fidelity. Don’t get hung up on numbers. Give it a listen.” And, sorry, but MP3 devices and iPods are no substitute for CDs in a home theatre system, according to Sanford. “[iPods] are not going to give you the range, the bass and all the detailing you are going to get from that CD or DVD.” As for keeping the neighbours awake, small wall speakers will not typically cause problems because they reproduce mid- to high-range frequencies that do not travel easily through walls. It is the low frequencies from subwoofers that can generate vibrations and cause problems, said Colombo. “And the only solution for that is the volume knob.

Since you spend a lot of time in the bathroom, your bathroom must always look attractive and lively as that would directly have an impact on your psychological mind. A dull and lifeless bathroom is indeed stressful and depressing.

Bathroom renovation is a challenging task in case you are really taking the job seriously. You have to keep in mind several aspects of bathroom remodeling and designing before you actually start with the work.

Things to Consider for Bathroom Renovation

•    The very first aspect that you have to deal with is the size of your bathroom. How big is your bathroom? If you have an extremely small bathroom, avoid planting unnecessary furniture. Fix in that are required and not simply for the sake of decoration. In case of a large bathroom, fit in furniture of the size in sync with the area of the bathroom available.

•    Be sure of the lighting of your bathroom. For that, be aware of the exact position of the bathroom. Find out the points on the walls that would lead to the best illumination.

Do not hesitate to fit in lights wherever required. The bathroom is the place where you actually get ready. Ample lighting is required since you prepare yourself before moving out.

Lighting should not only be of artificial ones but also of natural light. For natural light make sure of the placement of the window. Proper amount of sunlight will also keep your bathroom free from germs.

In fact, a good mix of artificial and natural lights would do wonders in your bathroom. Relying only on artificial lights can make your bathroom too bright. On the other hand only natural light can make your bathroom appear dim and dull looking.

Since you would be carrying out the entire renovation work all your own, search out for tips everywhere. Get hold of a good magazine on home improvement or watch television shows that would educate you on bathroom remodeling or renovation. Taking some guidance from veteran or a professional designer would definitely be a good help.

Small Bathroom Makeovers Tips

• Cover up the plumbing work. It would appear to be quite cold if your bathroom has its plumbing visible. You can build a storage unit in order to cover the plumbing behind the toilet. Else, you may simply fix a curtain in sync with your bathroom décor just below your wash basin.

• Paint you bathroom. Yes, look up for some amateur painting tips online and buy few cans of color which you want to see your bathroom in. Avoid using cool colors like blue if you live in a cold region. Use some warm pastel colors to bring in a mood of gaiety.

• Always use a well lit bathroom. A dimly lit bathroom is quite annoying. If your bathroom requires some additional fittings, call for an electrician. Fix bright lights to make all corners of your bathroom more visible. In order to increase the lighting effects of your bathroom, attach mirrors to the walls.

You need not have to spend much on your small bathroom décor in order to try the above mentioned tips. Your bathroom is sure to look warm and cozy. Another bit of tip to make your bathroom appear welcoming. Screw several towel hangers on your bathroom walls. Your towel must be hung well stretched. Wet cluttered and unkempt towels develop molds as they do not get enough air. So, purchase some decorative towel hangers for your bathroom.

A clean, spacious and airy bathroom is always inviting. Perhaps, there’s nothing more refreshing than taking a bath in warm and well decorated bathroom.

Belisle has other tips on getting rid of renovation waste. He advises holding a demolition sale – many are advertised free on craigslist– to get rid of old countertops, kitchen cabinets, flooring and other items that are still in good condition. “We once sold 70 feet of granite countertops from a Shaughnessy renovation,” he said. Working appliances, lighting, fencing materials, doors, windows and plumbing items can also be donated to Habitat for Humanity’s Restore outlets, he added. Belisle also noted that old wood studs could be recycled if some building restrictions were eased. He explained that
Heritage-era houses often had 96-inchlong studs, but modern construction uses 92-1/4-inch studs. “It is easy to trim these down,” he said. A glitch, though, is that city inspectors often require a current lumber stamp, which can restrict recycling, even if the old wood is in excellent condition. He also wonders why there is no facility in the region capable of handling old fiberglass insulation, a common waste product from renovations. Tips on renovation recycling Get organized. Compile an inventory of materials that will be generated from your project. Walk through and create a list of all materials and determine how you will deal with them: salvage for reuse, recycling or disposal. Consult a salvage contractor about what can be salvaged from your project before you begin demolition. Have bins or boxes before you start your renovation project to separate your waste as you go. Whether you decide to haul the waste yourself or hire a waste hauler, separating waste early will make your hauling arrangement easier and cheaper, because everything is source separated.

Think about where you will store your materials until they are hauled away. Try to arrange materials by destination and type:

• salvageable materials, such as cabinets, flooring, doors, going to reuse stores or
being sold;

• recyclable materials, such as drywall, wood, cardboard and metals going torecycling depots; and

• waste going to the transfer station. Make sure material is stored in a covered area to prevent wetness. Some material needs to be dry, or it might be rejected at the depot and end up as garbage. Besides, you are charged by weight, so heavier wet materials are more expensive.

The following are eight important design principles to assist the do-it-yourself decorator in planning an effective and well-presented living space.

1. Define your priorities before you begin Determine your needs and your budget. Sometimes, the change may require more than rearranging furniture or art, and move beyond paint and other relatively inexpensive cosmetic changes.

2. Create a comfortable conversation area The basic ingredients for conversation are a sofa and two upholstered chairs, all within reach of a piece of furniture, which serves as a coffee table. Other furniture configurations will work, such as a section- al sofa or two love seats. Anyone who’s just starting out, or who expects to move fairly soon, should stick with the basic sofa and armchairs, because they’ll work in any space. Scale is important. Choose a classic shape. Buy the best quality you can afford. A conversation area should be oriented toward an attractive focal point, such as a fireplace, a specific view window, a wall unit or an eye catching art display. If the room has more than one entrance, the conversation area should be arranged so people can walk around it, rather than through it.

3. Furniture placement is critical Avoid placing your furniture against the walls. Do not overcrowd your rooms. Establish a traffic pattern within the room.

4. Create balance in a room, visually and physically A room is off-balance when all the large, heavy pieces are on one side of the room, and the smaller, more delicate pieces are
on the other side. If the seating is of different heights, and/or the artwork is hung at different levels, the room loses its sense of tranquility and cohesiveness. The quickest and easiest way to achieve a “pulled-together” look is to use pairs of chairs, lamps, end tables and so on. Pairs make a space more balanced and relaxed. It is often best that complementary pieces, such as chairs of a similar height and width, be covered in identicalfabric.

5. Create a focal point for the room A focal point can be a fireplace, a window with an interesting or attractive view, a large painting or group of pictures, or even a fabulous armoire. Then, dress this area so that it attracts the eye.

6. Artwork Art is the defining element that elevates the sophistication of a space. Buy what you love–it doesn’t have to be expensive art to provide pleasure. Two critical mistakes that most people make are hanging art too high and scattering it on every wall. Art should be placed at eye level, and in balance with the space.

7. Creative placement of accessories Display only the best and most attractive of your collectibles in the home. If you have a large collection, consider rotating these seasonally.
Punctuate areas with a collection of accessories, and plants to balance the areas. Do not over accessorize. As a general rule, less is always more.

8. Lighting Most rooms require three types of lighting: task lighting, general illumination and accent lighting. Accent lighting is used to define spaces and to accentuate artwork and feature areas. Lighting can also used to set a mood, which can be aided with the use of dimmers

Fixing vanity cabinets would definitely provide space to keep your items. But while fixing the cabinets you must also make sure that they enhance the over all look of the bathroom instead of damaging it. Hence, you are recommended to spend considerable amount of time on bathroom remodeling.

Gone are the days when we had to take professional help to decorate interiors. We now do on our own. Thanks to DIY network, HGTV and such. From bathroom tiling, bathroom painting to assembling of bathroom cabinets, you may invest your own creativity to execute the tasks.

In case you intend to assemble bathroom vanity cabinets on your own, it is quite important to know what type of bathroom cabinets you actually require. Let us take a look at requirements of
bathroom cabinets.

Bathroom Cabinet Requirements
• First take accurate measurements of the areas where you intend to fit in the cabinets. For accurate measurements you should take the measurements at least for twice. While taking measurements be especially carefully for taking corner cabinets than the ones that are to be fixed on straight walls.
• Decide the type of wood and color of the cabinets. No doubt, the color of the cabinets would certainly depend upon the color of the bathroom. If the bathroom color is light, try to get a light shade to wood for the cabinet. Oak wood has light shade and would give a classic look to your bathroom. For darker shades, you may use woods like mahogany.

Go for some one or two instructional classes to learn how to remodel bathroom professionally. Such classes are usually held at hardware stores. You may also get hold of such shows in the television. The last, but no the least, you may browse the Internet to get information on bathroom remodeling.

“There was a lot of news coverage when EnerGuide died, but not a lot explaining the new program, so many homeowners probably thought the federal incentives were finished,” Kadulski said. EcoEnergy also relies on the homeowner to cover the full costs of energy audits, usually between $250 and $300, which had been rebated under the EnerGuide program. As well, EcoEnergy applies different cash incentives values for specific work. The old program paid incentives based on the total amount of work performed. Doug Martin, who handles energy audits for AmeriSpec, said the EcoEnergy program is less popular with homeowners, who balk at paying the full cost of the audits and doubt they will do enough work to qualify for much government assistance. For example, there is a
maximum of $30 in federal grants for each window replaced with a high-performance
mode, “which is not much when you consider the cost of new windows,” Martin said. Kadulski said another concern is that a homeowner can only apply once for EcoEnergy funding, but the payments are based on specific improvements, which may be done over a period of time. Also, in B.C., unlike some other provinces, there is no provincial program to match federal EcoEnergy funding, Kadulski said. He added, however, that homeowners might be opting to improve their home’s performance without dealing with any potential government grants, or red tape. EcoEnergy does offer some assistance, a maximum of $5,000 if major renovations are done to dramatically improve the energy performance of a home.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. This is the ‘Chess’ super energy-saving demonstration house by Laebon Homes near Calgary, Alberta. Solar thermal panels provide the domestic hot water and primary space heating. Additional heating is via a ground source heat pump. The home’s electricity is produced by a grid-tied photovoltaic system. It is one in a series of such demonstration homes being built this year, all east of British Columbia, under the EQuilibrium Initiative of Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.

1. Paint:
Adding a new coat of paint can freshen up a house and make the interior or exterior look like new. For homeowners looking to sell in the near term, neutral colours are most preferred.

2. Hardwood floors:
If genuine hardwood exceeds budgets, laminate flooring works well. Buyers like to see hard floors throughout, so try to lay down laminate in dining rooms, living rooms and even in bedrooms.

3. Lighting:
Old or standard-grade light fixtures and cover plates can date a house. To modernize, install new light fixtures. Remember to go green and use compact fl uorescent light bulbs where possible.

4. Front lawn:
To increase curb appeal and entice buyers ensure front lawns are tidy and gardening is minimal. While there is no need to go overboard, adding some standard shrubs and fl owers will make a home more inviting.

5. Kitchen upgrade:
Replace the cabinet knobs with more modern styles. Repaint the cabinets. Install a modern new faucet set and, if you can do it on your budget, upgrade to stainless steel appliances including a new range hood. If you are hiring a professional contractor, the experts say, concentrate on the bathroom, kitchen and entry way for the maximum return on investment. The realtors and appraisers all agree that any work must be of a high standard. “If it won’t be done right, don’t even start,” advised one Vancouver realtor.

Adisreputable driveway paving crew has been bulldozing through Vancouver neighbourhoods this spring, offering cut-rate, no-tax deals for homeowners who pay up front. “We received 10 calls in three days on these guys,” said Lynda Pasacreta, president and CEO of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) of the Lower Mainland. The complaints relate to shoddy workmanship, low-grade materials and jobs left uncompleted, sometimes with the original driveway in pieces and the contractor long gone. For Pasacreta, it is another sign of summer. Warmer weather usually leads to unscrupulous and unqualified people showing up at homes with offers to do everything from landscaping to roofing, she notes. “What may seem like a great deal could end up emptying your pockets,” she said. Complaints about contractors include high-pressure sales tactics, confusion over contract terms, poor workmanship, incomplete job performance and overcharging the agreed upon price, she explained. And, she said, as the renovation industry kicks into high gear in the run-up to the 2010 Winter Olympics, renovation scams will likely increase. With honest contractors working flat out and more people trying to add rental suites in anticipation of the games, Metro Vancouver and Whistler could become a target-rich environment for dishonest dealers. Scam artists also damage honest contractors, said Alvin Epp, president of Kelrek Services Ltd. and the immediatepast chairman of the Renovators’ Council of the Greater Vancouver Home Builders’ Association (GVHBA). “Fly-by-nighters” stain the entire home renovation industry, and drag a note of suspicion into dealings between honest people, he said. Epp candidly adds, however, that the trust issue is a two-way street. Shady or misinformed homeowners can also shoulder the blame for renovations gone wrong, he says. Examples include homeowners insisting on cheap, non-conforming building materials, refusing to pay for change orders that they verbally requested or pressuring contractors into not charging the GST. “Some clients do try to take advantage of contractors,” Epp said.

Keeping the bad guys out
Pasacreta and Epp recommend the following when hiring and working with a renovation company:

• Get it in writing
Ensure all details and verbal promises are included in a contract. Review it and make sure that you understand everything. Never sign a contract with sections left blank.

• Check for qualifications
Verify the individual is licensed, bonded, insured and has registered with WorkSafeBC (Workers’ Compensation Board). He or she should also be a member in good standing with the BBB, and a reputable trade association, such as the GVHBA Renovators’ Council or the CHBA-Seato- Sky, which represents qualified Whistler and Squamish area contractors.

• Don’t always go for the lowest bid. If estimates for the same work vary widely, find out why. Some unscrupulous operators will use sub-standard materials or take longer to finish the job.

• Do not pay in cash and do not make cheques payable to an individual, only the company. Pay all the taxes.

• Avoid “bait and switch” tactics. Some disreputable companies will offer low prices for installing items like windows and home siding, but then claim the item is out of stock and can only be replaced with a high-priced substitute. Have everything in writing and know
the terms in advance.

• Do not be pressured into hiring anyone. Take the time to do your due diligence. If you did sign and would like to change your mind, B.C. law states that, if it was a door-to-door sales contract you have 10 days to inform the company.

• Avoid crooked contractors by going to bbb.org for a reliability report. You will also find hiring tips and can request a job quote from BBB Accredited Businesses.

Makeover The first involved the near seven-figure total makeover of an older home in a prestigious neighbourhood. The extensive work involved reclaiming space for new bedrooms and living space in the attic, raising the roof to add an extensive ensuite and converting the existing garage into an extra bedroom. Engineering aspects included the removal and replacement of the entire sewer system. A large front deck and office were also added above the new garage. Inside, volume space was created by removing walls and old posts and integrating steel beams to create a flowing living area, a new kitchen, a great room with bar and entertainment area and home theatre. Environmental aspects extended to choosing bamboo for the floors, ceilings and soffits, replacing all windows
with metal-clad, high-performance, low-E models, adding extra insulation and recycling as much material as possible. The finished home, while totally modern, fits comfortably into the original Whistler-style neighbourhood.

Rebuild This complete rebuild, which captured a gold Georgie, took an old Gothic arch cabin on a fabulous view lot and recycled it as a surf cabin on Vancouver Island. With the lot cleared, Blue Ice built a timber-frame, 3,960 square foot, open plan home with an ecological emphasis. Original joists in the cabin were reused, and barn wood from an old Williams Lake stockade was recruited for wainscoting and mantles. The wide plank hardwood flooring was reclaimed from a 1940-era warehouse. Local mill waste was recycled for all the fir trim. Heated slate floors, Icynene foam insulation, low-E skylights
and a heat-recovery ventilation system with a high-efficiency furnace and fireplace keep energy costs low. A new two-bedroom rental suite will help lower housing costs. The stunning rebuild was completed on time and within the client’s $850,000 budget.

Small Bathroom Makeovers Tips

• Cover up the plumbing work. It would appear to be quite cold if your bathroom has its plumbing visible. You can build a storage unit in order to cover the plumbing behind the toilet. Else, you may simply fix a curtain in sync with your bathroom décor just below your wash basin.

• Paint you bathroom. Yes, look up for some amateur painting tips online and buy few cans of color which you want to see your bathroom in. Avoid using cool colors like blue if you live in a cold region. Use some warm pastel colors to bring in a mood of gaiety.

• Always use a well lit bathroom. A dimly lit bathroom is quite annoying. If your bathroom requires some additional fittings, call for an electrician. Fix bright lights to make all corners of your bathroom more visible. In order to increase the lighting effects of your bathroom, attach mirrors to the walls.

You need not have to spend much on your small bathroom décor in order to try the above mentioned tips. Your bathroom is sure to look warm and cozy. Another bit of tip to make your bathroom appear welcoming. Screw several towel hangers on your bathroom walls. Your towel must be hung well stretched. Wet cluttered and unkempt towels develop molds as they do not get enough air. So, purchase some decorative towel hangers for your bathroom.

A clean, spacious and airy bathroom is always inviting. Perhaps, there’s nothing more refreshing than taking a bath in warm and well decorated bathroom.

There is a dangerous secret in Metro Vancouver’s booming renovation sector: work being done without municipal building permits. Some homeowners claim ignorance of when a building permit is needed; others chose to begin work without a permit, hoping to speed up the construction, and save the few hundred dollars it will take to have the plans and inspections completed and the permits processed. Others are just trying to keep city tax officials from increasing the assessment value of the house. Whatever the reason, not getting the necessary building permits for a renovation can be the most expensive mistake a homeowner will ever make. “Generally speaking, if you are breaking up drywall, you need a building permit,” said Eric Schapira, founder of Georgieaward winning Klondike Contracting Corporation of Vancouver, which has been handling home and commercial renovations since 1998. Schapira explains that tearing out drywall normally means demolition, or changes to electrical or plumbing, any of which can trigger the need for building permits. In some cases such work may require only a permit for electrical or plumbing, not a general contractor’s permit. Often, however, an overall permit for the renovation is required. The cost of a general contractor permit is set on a sliding scale in most municipalities, but Schapira explains that an accepted rule of thumb is one per cent of the overall cost of the renovation contract. Expect it to take one to two weeks for the
renovation permits to come through, longer if the municipality is facing a backlog. Each municipality has different criteria for renovation permits, so it is important to check with city hall before any work starts, Schapira said. For instance, in the City of Vancouver, the placement of windows are subject to fire regulations regarding percentage of glazing – usually seven per cent of the envelope – and privacy corridors for neighbours. If a rental suite is being added, fire sprinklers and a minimum ceiling height are required. Many municipalities have set-back regulations that can restrict the size of a deck or an addition, and all are now subject to recent amendments to the B.C. Building Code.

Costly penalties
Municipal inspectors have a degree of flexibility on enforcement. A minor infraction or a generous translation of grandfather clauses may be allowed on one renovation, but not another. This ambiguity is one of the risks. “It is a bit of a pandora’s box,” Schapira said.
“We always advise our clients to get all the permits where and when required,” Schapira said, who noted the penalties for not doing so are severe. In one Vancouver case, a Kitsilano couple who had renovated their house and added a basement suite faced $30,000 in fines and fees when their non non permit work was discovered. Municipalities can also issue a stop work order on illegal renovations, and demand that completed work that is not up to the building code be removed. Walls may have to be opened up to check
electrical and plumbing installations, and subsequent building permit fees are doubled. At the very least, the homeowner can face delays and hefty costs. The odds on getting caught are increasing. City inspectors work in zones and are consistently on the same streets, so they recognize work being done without permits. Also, neighbours upset about
increased traffic and debris generated by a renovation often notify the city.

Best advice
The best advice, says Schapira, who has led consumer seminars on building permit regulations, is to deal with a professional contractor, who will arrange to have all the engineering, electrical, plumbing and city permits in place before work starts, and finish the work to the standards of the provincial and municipal building codes.

“I call it a catch-22,” said one contractor, who recently had a Commercial Drive project
slapped with a city stop-work order. “Homeowners find that part of the house has had previous work done without permits and are afraid to go for a permit [for new renovations] in case the illegal renovations are discovered.” Grandfather provisions Chow notes that some older alterations done without a permit may be approved under grandfather provisions, but he recommends that anyone buying a house check with their municipal building department, which will have a record of any permits on the property. This could avoid an ugly surprise. “We see some very angry people,” Chow said. There are also situations where someone has a non-conforming rental suite in their basement, most often with a ceiling below the minimum six-foot, six-inch height required by the city. Rather than risk detection by a city inspector, they do other renovations without a permit. Most of the homeowners opting to renovate without a permit aren’t trying to avoid paying for the fees, the Commercial Drive contractor, who asked to remain anonymous, explained. “They are often honest people, just caught up in the permit maze,” she said. However, such renovations often require dealing with underground contractors, such as retired electricians and plumbers willing to work under the table for all-cash, no-tax payments. It’s a slippery slope with the danger of running into huge expenses if you are discovered. (See sidebar.) Easy to get caught All it takes is a neighbour, tired of the noise of the construction or the debris, to call in a complaint to the city, or an inspector noticing the illegal work being done. Penalties include automatic doubling of any permit fees, and could include demands that the nonconforming work be removed. It is not uncommon for penalties to run into the tens of thousands of dollars, or for the homeowner to face weeks of delays with the work stopped. There could also be tax penalties, from Revenue Canada demanding GST payments, to changes in the assessed value of the home, which will affect property taxes.

What permits cost So how much does it cost to get a permit for renovations? It is bit complicated, especially in Vancouver, which has various bylaws for different neighbourhoods, but the fees are generally based on the estimated value of the renovation. Let’s take a typical makeover: tearing out a wall and expanding a kitchen into a family room at a cost of $60,000. In Vancouver, the basic fee is $104 for the first $5,000 worth of work, and then $8.10 for each additional $1,000, up to $50,000. Over $50,000, the charge is $4.05 for each $1,000. In the above scenario, therefore, the Vancouver permit fees would be $509. However, fees escalate if major exterior renovation work – such as adding a second storey – is being done, which requires a development permit and payment for architectural and engineering services to draw up plans. Such work must also comply with neighbourhood restrictions that can dictate everything from the height to the setback and the placement of windows. Also, if a renovation adds a rental suite, there is a separate $1,000 fee for a residential occupancy permit. It takes a minimum of two weeks to get a building permit for minor renovations in Vancouver, but can run up to 12 weeks or more for major projects, Chow estimates.

What it can cost if you’re caught.
In this real-case scenario, a multi-unit Commercial Drive area house was found to have been renovated without building permits. The City of Vancouver put a stop-work order on the house in June and demanded that work be removed or brought up to standards, and a new permit application be made with architectural and engineering plans.

The owner faced the following costs:

Architectural drawings $6,000
Structural engineer $2,000
Survey $1,800
Permits $2,000
Landscaping plan $1,000
Electrical & plumbing contractors $3,000
Demolition of already finished main floor and new stairway $4,000
Removal of kitchen $1,000
Changes to finished exterior $2,500
Changes to finished landscape $500
Changes in duct work and electrical for basement suite $10,000
Rental loss from stop order $10,000
Total cost, before renovations are redone $43,800

Adisreputable driveway paving crew has been bulldozing through Vancouver neighbourhoods this spring, offering cut-rate, no-tax deals for homeowners who pay up front. “We received 10 calls in three days on these guys,” said Lynda Pasacreta, president and CEO of the Better Business Bureau (BBB) of the Lower Mainland. The complaints relate to shoddy workmanship, low-grade materials and jobs left uncompleted, sometimes with the original driveway in pieces and the contractor long gone. For Pasacreta, it is another sign of summer. Warmer weather usually leads to unscrupulous and unqualified people showing up at homes with offers to do everything from landscaping to roofing, she notes. “What may seem like a great deal could end up emptying your pockets,” she said. Complaints about contractors include high-pressure sales tactics, confusion over contract terms, poor workmanship, incomplete job performance and overcharging the agreed upon price, she explained. And, she said, as the renovation industry kicks into high gear in the run-up to the 2010 Winter Olympics, renovation scams will likely increase. With honest contractors working flat out and more people trying to add rental suites in anticipation of the games, Metro Vancouver and Whistler could become a target-rich environment for dishonest dealers. Scam artists also damage honest contractors, said Alvin Epp, president of Kelrek Services Ltd. and the immediatepast chairman of the Renovators’ Council of the Greater Vancouver Home Builders’ Association (GVHBA). “Fly-by-nighters” stain the entire home renovation industry, and drag a note of suspicion into dealings between honest people, he said. Epp candidly adds, however, that the trust issue is a two-way street. Shady or misinformed homeowners can also shoulder the blame for renovations gone wrong, he says. Examples include homeowners insisting on cheap, non-conforming building materials, refusing to pay for change orders that they verbally requested or pressuring contractors into not charging the GST. “Some clients do try to take advantage of contractors,” Epp said.

Keeping the bad guys out
Pasacreta and Epp recommend the following when hiring and working with a renovation company:

• Get it in writing
Ensure all details and verbal promises are included in a contract. Review it and make sure that you understand everything. Never sign a contract with sections left blank.

• Check for qualifications
Verify the individual is licensed, bonded, insured and has registered with WorkSafeBC (Workers’ Compensation Board). He or she should also be a member in good standing with the BBB, and a reputable trade association, such as the GVHBA Renovators’ Council or the CHBA-Seato- Sky, which represents qualified Whistler and Squamish area contractors.

• Don’t always go for the lowest bid. If estimates for the same work vary widely, find out why. Some unscrupulous operators will use sub-standard materials or take longer to finish the job.

• Do not pay in cash and do not make cheques payable to an individual, only the company. Pay all the taxes.

• Avoid “bait and switch” tactics. Some disreputable companies will offer low prices for installing items like windows and home siding, but then claim the item is out of stock and can only be replaced with a high-priced substitute. Have everything in writing and know
the terms in advance.

• Do not be pressured into hiring anyone. Take the time to do your due diligence. If you did sign and would like to change your mind, B.C. law states that, if it was a door-to-door sales contract you have 10 days to inform the company.

• Avoid crooked contractors by going to bbb.org for a reliability report. You will also find hiring tips and can request a job quote from BBB Accredited Businesses.

Fresh can also be fun. For instance, Rutgers’ showroom displays Rock Knobs, from a Calgary company that hand picks river rocks and mounts them on steel shanks as cabinet door handles. To be fresh, cabinet handles must have a long shank so a person with arthritis would have no problem gripping them. Rutgers also ranks drawer hardware and hinges on their durability. “A lot of cabinet hardware has plastic in it, which is really a disposable product. To be fresh, our hardware suppliers must offer a lifetime warranty.” CMK Solutions will soon display a new Franke stainless- steel sink with a ledge that can raise or lower the bowl to enhance accessibility. It also has a built-in compost bin. She will also showcase backsplashes made in Burnaby out of recycled glass. Rutgers hopes that she can act as a gateway to sustainable, sensible materials, but she conceded that creating a 100 per cent green home is impossible. “Ideally, you would have to be living off the grid and growing all your own food, but that is unobtainable for most people.” Being fresh, she said, may be as close as we can get.

First, clean it out, urges Babak Sedehi, president of PremierGarage of Vancouver, a company that specializes in turning messy garages into healthy rooms. Sedehi advises setting a firm date for the clean up, and Garage Makeover Ideas when you start, don’t stop. Sort everything into two piles: throw it out and keep it. Then sort the stuff you want to keep, which will require a storage system. This is where PremierGarage can help. The company sells and installs durable inch-thick storage cabinets that can be arranged in a variety of configurations and sizes. PremierGarage will also clean the old floor and install a patented polyurethane finish that is tough, stain resistant Garage Makeover Ideas and easy to clean. Sedehi says a new floor and sufficient storage cabinets for a typical attached garage can be installed for less than $6,000 in most houses, a fraction of what the reclaimed space is worth. Roll doors You may maximize the potential overhead storage space in a garage by changing the standard door to a roll-up version. Vancouver-based Garador provides a ‘Roll-A-Door’, which is made of a lightweight steel that rolls up into a drum mounted on the inside of the garage. The Garage Makeover Ideas remote-control system can open up the whole ceiling, allowing the garage to take oversized vehicles, and boost the storage. The Garage Makeover Ideas end result: 400-square-feet or so of safe space that can be used for games, an attractive storage area and, oh yes, the family car.

In Greater Vancouver, where homeowners have the highest equity in the country, it is not uncommon for renovations to reach five or even six figures, so renovations normally involve some form of financing. Options include home equity loans or lines of credit, a first or second mortgage, and personal loans, but there are other less traveled routes, such as indirect financing, Wong explained. Indirect financing means that you deal directly with a large home improvement retailer, for example a Home Hardware Home Improvement Centre, that will arrange direct financing. The rates on such retail loans are usually higher, but they have two advantages: it is easier to qualify for the loans and you know exactly what you are buying. Some veteran renovation contractors also offer direct
consumer financing through lenders, and can qualify applicants on site. The majority of larger home renovation loans, however, are either secured home equity lines of credits or unsecured personal lines of credit. The advantage is that the money is advanced as the renovation progresses and lines of credit offer flexibility in case of cost overruns. Some
home equity lines of credit are offered at prime or even prime minus one point. There is also the option of taking out a second mortgage or arranging a single mortgage that rolls the renovation loan into your existing mortgage. In such cases the interest rate can often be a blended rate, based on your current rate for the existing mortgage and the higher rate for the additional financing. If you are unsure of the entire renovation’s cost, you can set up an interim line of credit to pay contractors and suppliers and then arrange a second mortgage, at a lower rate of interest, to pay off the line of credit when the work is complete. “The advantage is that the line of credit allows you to write cheques immediately,” said Wong. Usually, the maximum loan allowed is 75 per cent of the equity in the home, but most lenders like to keep it lower. Wong added that some lenders
will also take potential rental income into consideration if a homeowner is adding a legal rental suite. For those with a shaky credit history, or have problems verifying income, mortgage brokers will provide renovation loans based on the equity in the home. When
the renovation is projected to add value tothe home, some brokers will even arrange loan-to-value ratios based on the postrenovation value of the home. It appears risky, but in the fast-appreciating Greater Vancouver housing market, such strategies can pay off, according to mortgage broker Invis Inc. The bottom line is that the renovation loan market has never been more flexible. Wong cautions, though, that homeowners should take a hard look at their ability to repay the money, and to the potential value added by a renovation, before they go shopping for a loan.

Renovation loan strategies

• For smaller projects, use a credit card for purchases formaximum flexibility and to earn air travel points, then take out a lower cost loan or home equity line of credit to pay it off.

• For mid-size projects, arrange a secured home equity line of credit. Credit limits are usually up to 75 per cent of the clear equity in your home.

• For large projects, consider amortgage add on. Inmost cases, your existing mortgage rate is blended with the current rate and your payments are adjusted to reflect the new
principal and interest.

If you have a small sized bathroom, but want to give it a spacious look, be smart to remodel your bathroom. The following are some tips on bathroom renovation that can be of great help.

Bathroom Renovation Tips

• Plan before you set. Carefully plan the bathroom renovation. In fact, if you fail to plan properly, the look of your bathroom may get further damaged.
• While planning, try to focus more on floor planning. Go for free-floating cabinets. Your bathroom would have more floor space than other wise.
• To stretch the space of your bathroom, you may fit in mirrors on the walls.
• Choose paint colors that are warm and accommodating. Try to give a fresh feeling to your bathroom as that would stimulate your positive mind.
• Keep things small. You bathroom would look stylish and spacious. For instance, fit a small shower instead of a big bath tub. Small sized bath tubs might give an unnatural look, hence stick to a shower.
• Focus on right position of the toilet. The toilet is the indispensable part of your bathroom. To make your bathroom look spacious, place the toilet as close to the wall as possible. But while fixing the toilet make sure of the drainage. The bathroom drain should be at least 10 to 14 inches away from the wall of the bathroom. So, before you go out in the market to buy toilet, make sure of the measurements as the size of the toilet must be apt with the size of your small bathroom.

Besides the above mentioned tips, try to keep your bathroom clutter free. A messy bathroom would always look overcrowded. So, clean your bathroom on a regular basis so as to give it a spacious look.