The humble laundry room is emerging as an influential part of the home for today’s buyers and renovators. Upstaged by new kitchens and bathrooms, many buyers rarely gave a thought to the laundry room beyond its practical function – until now. New interior designs and increasingly sophisticated washing machines have put ways of doing the wash at the front and center of many buyers’ thinking when viewing a home. Revamping your laundry room and making it a center or storage and organization can be a worthwhile upgrade before you put your home on the market. The room has become a hot button for buyers.
If you have a laundry room that needs a facelift, here are eight tips for a great renovation project.
- Quality appliances: You can’t go wrong with installing excellent appliances. American and European brands are winners. Buyers love to see a front-loader washing machine next to a dryer.
- Faucet favorites: The combination of a quality faucet and basin is critical to the success of a laundry. A swivel faucet is essential. You might also want to consider one where the hose can be pulled out and retracted. If you’ve got a dog, it makes washing them a breeze.
- The look: Give your laundry room some style. You’ll find inspiration on the internet from sites like Pinterest and Houzz. If you’re selling your home shortly, keep the same colour scheme as the rest of your home or use neutral colors and tiles.
- Storage savvy: The laundry room is often the dumping ground for items that don’t belong anywhere including sports equipment that is out of season. So, focus on storage solutions to keep your space clutter-free.
- Closet caper: Staying on the storage theme, you probably keep mops, brooms and vacuum cleaners in the laundry room. Consider installing a thin vertical cupboard to put them out of sight with specialised grip fittings to hold them upright.
- Workspace: A striking aspect of a modern laundry room is bench space. If you can supplement that with a fold-down ironing board attached to the wall, that’s even better.
- Stay dry: A rail above head height to dry shirts and dress on hangers is another popular inclusion because not everything can be thrown into a tumble dryer.