Photo: David Croxford

You can increase your net worth through homeownership. Over time, smart remodels, proper upkeep and payment-plan monitoring can help grow your nest egg. However, you can also lose money by overlooking beneficial refinancing opportunities or putting off much-needed repairs. A myriad of factors contribute to your overall financial homeownership health, as I discovered while researching my home-finance piece this month. I hope the list of stay-healthy strategies will inspire you to find new ways to maximize your investment and safeguard against loss.

This month’s New & Improved Home feature is a great example of smart homeownership strategies. During their remodel, the owners added valuable square footage to their home, created an open, inviting floor plan and updated key finishes and fixtures. They also tackled the kitchen, which is almost always a smart remodeling investment when done right.

Finally, we reveal more smart choices in our cabinetry and cooling and ventilation stories. In our cabinetry piece, we explore style and material choices that last for years and yield the best bang for your buck. We also cover selection pitfalls to avoid. In our cooling and ventilation story, we highlight cooling upgrade options that come with financial incentives such as rebates and tax credits.

Interested in growing your homeownership investment? I welcome your questions.

Aloha,

Sabra Morris | Editor
sabram@hawaiihomeandremodeling.com

Photo: Alex Viarnes of Poi Boy Productions

The summer of 2010 will forever be remembered as the summer my 15-year-old twin boys took drivers’ ed and I went crazy buying flowers for my lanai to cheer myself up.

Not that my boys’ independence isn’t a good thing. Learning to drive is a sign of progress, no doubt, but also the start of letting go. Just a few months ago, one of my boys told me he would have to stop the morning drop-off kisses, because, he said, “You need to start preparing yourself for when I go away to college.”

As the looming thought of my boys leaving home grows stronger, I’ve turned to home décor to cheer myself up. It’s amazing what surrounding yourself with things you love can do to enhance your mood.
Now, I have flowering baskets hanging from every puka and scattered in pots on our lanai, signifying that summer is here and inviting us to be outside. To add to the festive outdoor ambience, I strung lights along the water side and a round paper lantern near the table (both from City Mill). I encourage (read: force) the boys to spend time outside with me, having dinner and sharing what’s left of our time together at home.

While the teenage years aren’t always a breeze, and we sometimes have loud disagreements (sorry, neighbors), each summer reminds me that time is breezing by. I know that one day all too soon, I will go out on my lanai and think it’s too quiet and I must buy more flowers.

Aloha,

Terry Rollman | Publisher
terryr@hawaiihomeandremodeling.com