So you have been living in your home for a number of decades now and you no longer find it as cozy as it used to be? Or, your mobile home was delivered and you feel it can look cozier with a few touch ups here and there? Whatever the reasons for remodeling your home, you will need proper planning and professional guidance on the best mobile home remodeling ideas before you get down to work.
Take time to go through the current status of your home and make a decision on what you want to change. Remodeling your home can add value to it and leave you a satisfied person. It adds a personal touch to the building. However, before we take you through remodeling ideas, evaluate your home and answer the following questions:
3 Questions to Answer before Remodeling
1. Why remodel?
You do not wake up one day and decide to start remodeling your mobile home. The decision must have been inspired by a number of reasons. The reasons could be;
- Cost Efficiency- You may feel that your home is too outdated and no longer serves your modern lifestyle and you would wish to upgrade it to address your current status. The options available are either to acquire a new home or improve your current one. The latter option is likely to save you money and is much more cost efficient.
- Better Returns-You may decide to remodel your mobile home because you intend to resell it at a profit. Remodeling a manufactured home will increase the value and make it more appealing to potential buyers. If your property is on rental basis, remodeling could increase your rental income by as much as 50% depending on how much remodeling has been done.
- Status- Remodeling your home will add a touch of class and create an impressive image. It will improve an old looking home to become an amazing modern home.
- Eco Friendly-You could have bought your mobile home before the green revolution Now that you are adequately informed about green homes, you might want to make it ecofriendly and minimize operational costs. It will also help you conserve the environment.
2. Who are the occupants?
Your remodeling could be guided by the occupants of the house. You can remodel for the following groups of people.
Family
Remodeling could be as a result of your family’s lifestyle. Probably, you bought the house while on a tight budget and it may not have included features you would have wished for. Now that you have a flexible budget, remodeling is a good idea. Or your family has grown bigger by the years and you could do with more space in the living room.
It could also be informed by the desire to have a better kitchen or a spacious master bedroom. Whichever the reason here, the final product after remodeling should address these needs.
Buyer
If the ultimate goal of remodeling your home is to sell it, you need to consider the target market. This will largely influence the returns you get after selling your home or even how fast you manage to sell it. If you are targeting modern families, you should add features that entice them such as Wi-Fi cables, spacious entertainment rooms and walk-in closets for their clothing.
If you are remodeling for a young family, consider safety especially when working on the staircase. However, if you are targeting senior people and the elderly, you could consider adding an elevator to access upper floors or a fire place to add some warmth during the winter.
Tenant
If you are remodeling to increase your rental income, you will need to take some time to understand current market trends in housing. Check around your locality on what attracts people or what they look for in a rental house. While doing this, ensure the remodeling will not sky rocket the rent.
This may leave your houses unoccupied for a long time, leaving you with huge losses. Go for remodeling ideas that will add value to your tenants.
3. Are you ready?
We would all wish to turn our old fashioned mobile homes to splendid looking modern houses. However, we are often restricted by personal limitations. Before you set out for your remodeling exercise, check out the following:
Budget
Money can hinder us from carrying out a number of activities and remodeling is not an exception. The reason we always start and stop when money comes into the picture is because we are not financially ready to incur an expense or we are simply not informed of the expected costs. We can make this burden easier by working with a budget that we can comfortably accommodate.
To achieve this, you need to make a list of everything you need to buy, including the small items that you consider non issues. Once this list is complete, you should walk to the stores that stock them, or search for them online. Do a good window shopping and compare prices without compromising on quality. Once you have your list ready, look at the total amount against the budget for the exercise.
Labor
You will need a professional to work on your remodeling. Check around your area and even online for a reputable service provider who will take up the project. Discuss all the costs involved and sign a contract on the terms of payment.
Restrictions
Before you begin working on your mobile home, consult your lawyer for any laws barring certain remodeling. If need be, obtain an approval document to allow you carry out the exercise
Professional support
To achieve the desired results, you may not be able to fully assess and make recommendations for the changes you wish to have. Talk to professionals such as designers and architects who will help you make an informed decision on the changes that you wish to achieve.
Time
Remodeling will require your time and personal presence. Before you start off on this journey consider whether your current lifestyle accommodates the exercise. You will be required to inspect the work from time to time and give approvals or recommend various changes during the remodeling stage.
You may also be required to buy the needed materials quite often. This will definitely occupy your time. If you consider delegating, you could end up with a different version of the original idea.
Now that you have answered these three important questions you can consider the following remodeling ideas.
10 Mobile home renovating ideas
1. Storage
When remodeling your mobile home, consider adding more storage space. Adding storage space will help keep your home organized. You are not likely to run into cookware in the living room with proper storage facilities installed in the entire home. Ensure the bathrooms have cabinets where you can store toiletries and shampoos. Display them in the glass cabinets, neatly to achieve that aesthetic effect.
For the kitchen area, you could install deeper cabinets to allow adequate space for all the items in the kitchen. This will ensure all your storage containers are neatly arranged in the cabinets. It will also create adequate space for all your foodstuff.
2. Lighting
This may not be considered as a big factor when remodeling. However, when lighting is properly done, it transforms a dull home into a tastefully finished one. Consider different types of lighting for your home and get creative. You could add lighting to your garden or driveway for a nice touch.
The sight of a well-lit wine cabinet in your living room will add a personal statement and make it a focal point and good lighting in your dressing room will make it easy for you to check your clothing or even help you when using make up.
3. Floors
The floor of your mobile home adds a touch of class. Nothing makes a house boring like a plain looking floor. Whether the house is built with the latest materials or has modern exterior finishes, a plain floor will devalue your home and make it look archaic. To ensure you achieve a classy look for your home, go for cozy and trendy floor designs.
You can opt for beautiful tiles or wooden and ceramic floors. A wooden floor, for instance, will not only add value to your home but will also create a warm appeal. If you decide to go for tiles, be sure to select colors that will add harmony to your home. Talk to your contractor to give you the actual number of tiles required. Buying them all at once allows you to choose the desired designs and colors.
4. Space
Give your home some breathing space by adding more rooms or decluttering the entire house.
You may have accumulated unnecessary items in your home over the years. To achieve a better looking home, take out all the unused items and donate or dispose.
Go through your wardrobe and check clothing that has not been used for over one year. There are people who may do with them. Bless the needy with these clothes. If you have too much furniture in your living room, reduce the furniture.
This will create more space and add value to the living room. You can also increase the space of your dining area by bringing down some walls. This creates an open plan set up and gives you more space to move around.
5. Add an attic
If your family has grown in size and you are struggling with sleeping areas, an additional floor will be ideal. Mobile home designs allow you to make these adjustments easily and within realistic budgets. The extra floor will also increase the resale value of your home in case you decide to move on from it.
6. Landscaping
A well-maintained exterior passes a message of how the interior looks like. This is what greets the visitors or occupants of your home. To ensure you have an amazing looking exterior, landscaping will be important. Use shades of white to paint the drive way and the pavements. Well-manicured lawns will add a classy finish to your compound.
Ensure everything is well maintained throughout the year. For the hedges, have them regularly trimmed to keep them in great shape. A bushy hedge is a health hazard and also a turn off.
Choose a mixture of flower species for your garden to enjoy the beauty of their colors throughout the seasons. To complete your landscaping, trees around the compound will be ideal. They will keep the compound cool and also add an aesthetic finish to your home.
7. Upgrade your kitchen
The kitchen area is an important aspect of your home. Having a congested and dark kitchen will be a fertile ground for brooding roaches and all manner of insects. Having a spacious and hygienic kitchen is a dream of every homeowner. To achieve the best results when renovating your kitchen, work with the following ideas:
- Changing the type of appliances in your kitchen can instantly transform the overall look. Get rid of old looking and energy consuming appliances and replace them with stainless steel. When shopping for these appliances, check out star rated ones. They will help you conserve energy and can slash your energy consumption.
- Change the appearance of your kitchen by selecting bright colors. Shades of white will give you amazing results. It will also be easy to keep your kitchen spotless clean.
- Sinks. Invest in big sinks to make cleaning efficient and easy. To make it even better, include cold and hot water systems in your sink. This will make it easy for you to wash greasy pans and dishes.
- Counters. Make it easy to work in your kitchen by installing working counters. You can adjust the design of the kitchen to accommodate more counters. For the counter tops, you can either use marble or granite. A combination of both can also be used to achieve a distinctive finish. Expansive kitchen counters make it easy to prepare meals and work more efficiently.
8. Upgrade the master bedroom
The master bedroom is usually the largest room in your home. It defines your taste and creates a personal appeal. To make it more inviting and cozier you can work with the following remodeling ideas.
Furniture
Your bed is among the biggest pieces of furniture in this room and it is the focal point of the room. It is also the most important piece of furniture here since it serves as your resting place during the night. To add an appeal to your master bedroom, choose a king-size bed and go for quality material. Ensure it is strong enough to give you a comfortable rest.
For a great look, you can choose mahogany color schemes or shades of light brown. This will create a warm effect in your bedroom. Apart from the bed, you can consider adding other pieces of furniture. You can add a beautiful couch where you can enjoy your glass of wine before going to bed. A table will also be a great idea.
However, ensure you do not clutter the bedroom with too much furniture. This will override the very reason for the furniture. Keep it simple and elegant.
Walk in closet
If you find it difficult to keep your clothes and shoes organized, a walk in closet is all you need. It helps you stay organized and adds class to your master bedroom. It also adds value to your home and will increase return on investment should you decide to sell it.
Color
Color has the power to instantly change the overall outlook of your bedroom. If you have had this dull grey or plain white for centuries, it’s time to get creative and change the outlook of your master bedroom. If you are not sure about the color to choose, talk to a designer about this.
They will help you choose what’s best for you. However, if you do not wish to involve a designer, you can play around with bold warm colors such as shades of pink and fuchsia.
Bedding
The choice of bedding will complement the bed and the entire outlook of your bedroom. Go for colors and patterns that reflect warmth and your personality. You don’t have to strictly stick on a single theme.
A mixture of warm and contrasting colors will add elegance and beauty. Also, ensure you have a number of them to change regularly to attain a hygienic environment in your bedroom.
9. The Bathrooms
The bathrooms are equally important parts of your home. As part of remodeling your manufactured mobile home you can consider adding an extra bathroom or improving on what you already have. For great results on renovating your bathroom, you can work with the following ideas;
- Bathtubs. Switch from the traditional showers and make your home cozy by adding a bathtub to your bathrooms. The idea of soaking yourself in a warm soapy bathtub is inviting and relaxes your body. Talk to your service provider to guide you on the best bathtubs for your home. If your current mobile home has a toilet and bathroom all in one space, consider separating them by adding more space.
- Lighting. Improve the status of your home by improving the lighting of the bathroom. Work with a combination of lighting to achieve a beautiful effect for your bathroom. You can go for intense lighting on the mirrors and less intense lights for the rest of the bathroom area.
- Mirrors. Incorporate classy mirrors in your bath area. Shift from the traditional rectangular and square types of mirrors and go for more dynamic shapes. You can shop online for different types of mirrors that can be used in the bath area. This will create an aesthetic value for your bathe area.
- Sinks. If your current mobile home does not have a sink, incorporating one in your remodeling will turn it around. If you already have sinks in your bathroom, consider improving them. To achieve great results, you can work with the trendy sinks that come in different shapes and designs. These include counter top sinks and oval shaped types of sinks.
10. The Living Area
This serves as the entry point of your house and is what greets the people coming to your house. Remodeling it tastefully will create a great impression and add a personal statement. To get it right with the living area, work with the following remodeling ideas:
Furniture
The outlook of your living room can take a different look if you change the furniture. If the current furniture is old and dilapidated, no matter what remodeling is done, the look will still remain old and boring. Start by working out a theme that you wish to achieve for the living room.
Get furniture that is trendy and unique for a splendid finish. For your seat covers you can incorporate different patterns and colors for a warm and inviting look. Ensure you do not add clutter when adding furniture.
Lighting
For amazing lighting, choose chandeliers to add aesthetic value. Also, consider adding different types of lighting on the walls to help illuminate the living area. When choosing your lighting, always remember to go for energy saving bulbs to help you save on energy consumption.
Rugs and Curtains
Carefully select rugs and curtains that complement the living area. Good choice of quality rugs will create a warm effect to your entire living area. Your choice of curtains should complement the living area and create a personal statement. When choosing the colors and patterns for your curtains, ensure they are in sync with the rest of the room and achieve the desired effect.
Final Thoughts
To ensure you get it right in the entire process, engage the right contractor to carry out the job. Research on the best contractors in your locality and check out ratings from their websites. You can also talk to friends and family to recommend you professional contractors.
So what are you waiting for? Get down to business and start your journey to turning your dull old mobile house into a beautiful and cozy home.
Are there tips that we left out? Please feel free to add them in the comment section below. We are always glad to hear from you.