Poll results: Your must-have home features

Large kitchens top Yourhomers' list of must-have home features, according to last week's poll. (Read the full story here).

Kitchens led with 38 per cent of votes, followed by stone or brick exteriors with 24 per cent, outdoor living space, 14 per cent, and energy efficiency, 10 per cent. Rounding out the list, with 3 per cent each, were home offices, main floor master suites, soaker tubs and two-car garages. The remaining two "must-haves", ceiling fans and community landscaping, received no votes.

This week, with the Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC) deadline behind us, I'm curious as to how many of you completed a renovation or made qualifying purchases? Let me know in the front page poll, and learn more about the credit on our HRTC page.

And, for some more weekend reading, check out: Colin and Justin's mid-century modern makeover, Tips to whip your space into shape from How Clean is Your House? and the latest in our 905 and Birth of a Condo series.

Renovating? Remember to update your insurance

With so many homeowners, myself included, having taken advantage of the Home Renovation Tax Credit, I've been thinking a lot about the projects and less about actually living in them.

So, a recent release from TD Insurance was a great reminder to take a second look at your home insurance to confirm your new upgrades are covered.

For example, if you've finished your basement but haven't notified your insurance company of the change, in the case of a floor or other issue, you may only be covered for damage based on your basement's original state.

Your upgrades may even save you money. For example, installing a home security system may lower your insurance premiums.

And, the TD release adds, if you're still renovating and have contractors working in your home, your home insurance can help protect you from liability if anyone injures themselves on the job.

How are you using the Home Renovation Tax Credit?

The February 1 deadline is coming so quickly! And Mr. Speedy and I still have a bit of wiggle room before we hit the Home Renovation Tax Credit's $10,000 spending limit (for a maximum credit of $1,350 - the minimum to claim is $1,000). While our knob and tube rewiring, and our various painting projects, have certainly made the credit worth our while, I've been daydreaming a few more projects that we can squeeze in before Feb. 1.

Mainly, my plan consists of a bathroom facelift. New paint, new flooring and a new light fixture are all qualifying projects!

While I love my clawfoot tub, and have learned to live with the bathroom's teeny-tiny size, I still haven't accepted the baby blue walls, faded country-style vinyl tile flooring and the worn medicine cabinet.

A coat of soft (and skin-tone flattering) grey paint, some sleek silver hardware and lighting and some fresh flooring in the form of modern peel-and-stick vinyl tiles (it's hard to believe they're not ceramic!) will help create a more relaxing environment and help bring it more in line with my personal style. A few floating shelves will cap off the design with a little bit of extra open storage, too. 

For more on the Home Renovation Tax Credit, visit our HRTC page for more project inspiration and to find out how condo owners can claim the credit.

How are you using the Home Renovation Tax Credit?

Poll results: Renovations

With the holidays approaching, I've been daydreaming about the renovations I would do if time and budget weren't an issue. A sleek, glossy white new kitchen and a second bathroom top my list. And, of course, in this fabulous daydream world, I would go on vacation and come home to a totally transformed space!

I know that, if given the choice, I would not be as brave as the family in HGTV's Family Renovation, who stayed put while transforming their bungalow into a comfortable home for seven plus a pooch.

And, in last weeks poll, Yourhomers largely agreed with me, with 71 per cent saying they wouldn't choose to live in their home during a massive renovation. The remaining 29 per cent say they'd stick it out. 

Of course, these days, when you think about renovating, you can't help but turn your thoughts to the home renovation tax credit (learn the basics here, and check out a recent story on the looming deadline!)

So, this week, as we near the February spending cut-off, the poll asks whether you'll be taking advantage of the program. Check out these suggestions on some ways to spend your tax credit limit. And please let me know in the front page poll! (Scroll down, on the left hand side.)

As always, here are a few more picks for your weekend reading:

- Colin and Justin create a tropical bedroom

- Find out how your family can share its holiday creativity on TV

- Learn why urban Kim Izzo chose to call the 905 home

- Read about a creative way to sell a house

- Check out some of the latest transactions in the GTA real estate market

Poll results: Holiday reno plans?

This week was a bit reno-centric here on Yourhome.ca. We learned that the renovation tax credit - which is still waiting on the final stamp of approval from the government - is a hit and that Canadians feel now is the time to be tackling those home improvement projects. For some renovation inspiration, check out our home improvement special section.

Meanwhile, I shared my holiday renovation plans and asked how many Yourhomers had similar stressful schedules planned - turns out nearly three-quarters (69 per cent) are equally optimistic. The perhaps more sensible 31 per cent will be focusing on their cooking, cleaning and shopping while the rest of us are slapping on that last coat of paint during the holiday crunch.

This week's poll asks whether The Genworth Mortgage Insurance First-Time Homebuyer's Monitor (read all about it here) found that 25 per cent of renters would give up their car for home ownership, and the same amount of homeowners would sacrifice their vehicle to keep paying the mortgage.

And, for some lighter fare this weekend, check out Colin and Justin's chocolatey family room makeover, get inspired to tour the Distillery District, swoon over some gorgeous, if pricey, faucets, find out why cleaning is sexy and get decor advice from green queen Samantha Pynn.

It's reno time?

I know Mr. Speedy and I have felt spurred along by the Home Renovation Tax Credit to complete our reno projects before the Feb. 1, 2010 deadline.

(UPDATE: Just wanted to clarify that the HRTC is still subject to parliamentary approval - the bill (C-51) is still in committee, and is expected to be voted on in December.)

And, according to an Ipsos Reid survey for the Royal Bank of Canada released yesterday, we're not alone.

The survey found that a majority of Canadians plan to claim the tax credit (up to $1,350), and says almost half have decided to tackle more projects because of it, with Ontarians spending an average of $12,428 on home improvements this year. (Read the full story).

Remember that the work must be of "an enduring nature" and "integral to the dwelling" on an owned, personal dwelling to qualify - covering everything from big projects like installing a furnace or renovating a kitchen to laying new floors, painting, or installing a chandelier. And make sure you keep those receipts!

The survey also found that the time to renovate is now: fewer Ontarians are planning renovations over the next two years: 67 per cent this year compared to last year's 71 per cent.

Another key finding is that most renovators - 76 per cent - are paying for their projects out of savings (up from 70 per cent in 2008) instead of dipping into credit.

So, for those of you pushing to get those projects done - kitchens and bathrooms are at the top of revamping lists - here are some great resources to help inspire you and get you ready to grab that hammer (or hire a pro):

Federal Home Renovation Tax Credit website

HRTC fact sheet

Ipsos Reid/RBC survey results

Making your renovations pay off

Choosing the right stove to heat your home

Green your renos

Fall home maintenance

DIY could mean don't injure yourself

Now's the time to renovate

Suburban homes worth renovating

More on the Home Renovation Tax Credit

Share your holiday renovation plans

Holiday reno stress?

The holidays mean friends, family and entertaining. It also means whipping your home into shape before guests arrive! This will be our first Christmas in our new home, so I'm feeling a little pressure to make it picture perfect in time for the holidays.

That means, among other things:

- Painting three bedrooms, along with potentially painting the hallway, kitchen and bathroom
- Replacing two light fixtures
- Glamming up my faux fireplace
- Getting a guest bed for the guest room
- Assembling the last book shelf and unpacking the rest of our books
- Tackling those last five or six boxes that have been hanging out unobtrusively in the guest bedroom closet

And, of course, filling the place with holiday decorations and festive cheer.

Can Mr. Speedy and I get it done? Maybe, but probably not. So I'm trying to prioritize, and keep repeating to myself that the only thing that absolutely needs to be done is a guest bed, so that said guests will have a place to sleep. Everything else will just be icing on the cake.

What about you? Do you feel pressured to complete a few projects around the house before the holidays? Let me know in the front page poll, and share your plans in the comments below. For more renovation inspiration, check out our articles on renos that pay, green renovations and safe DIY tips. 

Last week's poll, inspired by one artist's cool Spiderman makeover for his son's room, asked if readers would create a themed bedroom for their kids, with 29 per cent saying they would. Twenty-one per cent said they wouldn't do a superhero space or princess palace, and the remaining 50 per cent said they don't have kids.

And, for some more weekend reading, be sure to check out what happens when Colin and Justin channel a country vibe, find out what Colour Confidential's Jane Lockhart has to say about the hottest hues for your home, get the skinny on making your garden gorgeous for autumn and check out some gorgeous glass to spice up your home decor.

POLL: Re-decorating plans?

I've felt a hint of fall in the morning air lately, a sure sign that it's back-to-school season and time to start moving my activities indoors. And, with evening cocktails now happening in my living and dining rooms instead of on the back deck, of course my mind has turned to decorating the place.

While Mr. Speedy and I are still just settling into our new home, I suspect many of us may be giving our interiors a second glance this season, wondering what updates we'd like to see before the Home Renovation Tax Credit is up (in February), or even what projects we'd like to complete before friends and family start rolling in for the holidays (yes, I know, mentioning them this early is sacrilege. But, in my defence, the shops are stocking presents and decorations already!).

So, before jaunting off on my farewell-to-summer holidays, our last weekly poll asked what Yourhomers were planning to renovate or redecorate this fall.

More than a quarter, at 26 per cent, said they had no renovation/redecoration plans for the upcoming season.

But, for those who do plan on renewing their home this autumn, most are looking to their bathrooms, at 24 per cent, kitchens, at 20 per cent, bedrooms, at seven per cent, and living rooms, four per cent.

None of our voters plan on tackling their dining rooms (not a single vote!), while 19 per cent have other spaces in mind. What are your home-related plans for the fall? Share them in the comments below - I'd love to hear all about it!

Our new poll looks at one of my other loves, technology (read the full story here), and how you're using it in the home. Have you replaced your cookbooks with a laptop or netbook? (For me, it's about 50/50). Let me know in the front page poll.

And, for those of us not lucky enough to be away at the cottage this weekend, make sure to check out this dreamy purple living room by Colin and Justin, an excerpt from Sonia Day's new book, a blue bin cheat sheet from Trash Talk, and the details on Colin and Justin's after the Heist tour, in support of the Canadian Cancer Society. 

My colour match fail

Sometimes, when working around the house, I try to be clever and limit the amount of work I need to do.

Oftentimes, this results in more work for Mr. Speedy and I.

Case in point: my attempt at colour matching the paint in two of our rooms. We liked the shades used in these rooms when we moved in, and they weren't totally destroyed in the re-wiring.

Being ever the thinker, I decided that if we could just match the colours, we'd only need to repaint two walls (one in the dining room and one in the living room), saving ourselves some work.

We used the colour matching tool at the local hardware store, then tried to match it to paint chips we brought with us. It looked perfect in the store. On the wall, not so much, as you can see here in the dining room.

The colour is close, but we'll definitely have to repaint it all. Same with the living room, too.

I've learned my lesson: any attempts at shortcuts are only going to create more work. And, I've got loads upon loads of painting to do! But, as a bonus, at least Mr. Speedy likes the new colours better than what we had inherited!

A renovation confession

As Mr. Speedy and I move forward on redecorating and settling into our new home, I feel like I need to make a confession:

I am a lousy painter.

The only thing I've ever painted is the exterior of a barn in my parent's backyard. And, a few weeks after that paint job, an enormous tree fell on it. It landed dead centre and flattened the thing — but, I must say, the walls still looked nice.

Fast-forward a few years and I'm now trying to prime all of the many patched holes in my house.

My combination of inexperience and a slight perfectionist tendency may be making it tougher. Mr. Speedy reassures me that small visible brush strokes and the slightest of bumps can be easily sanded away, but I still feel guilty, as though I'm making the house less pretty.

I also feel slightly like I'm failing. After all, all the decor mags say anyone can paint, and I can't be that much more inept than the majority of the population, right?

So, here's hoping that practice makes perfect. I've got a lot of spots to cover, then walls and ceilings to repaint (with the help of Mr. Speedy, of course, who is thankfully more able than I — and he's got the benefit of a long reach for all those tough spots) and I can't keep spending half an hour on a small one-by-one foot spot (or let my perceived failures on that spot keep me up at night).

This weekend, we'll be tackling the remaining primer spots and then we'll try to banish all that persistent drywall dust. Keep your fingers crossed that this prepares me for the real deal — painting with colour — in a few weeks!

(Shutterstock image)