With the start of a new year, promises and resolutions abound. While many people may have personal goals for 2014, why not strive to make some positive changes on one of the most important investments you’ll ever make; your home! Here’s a great starter list of what home owners should try to accomplish this year on their homes…
Lose Weight: A good place to start trimming your energy use is your HVAC ductwork. Ducts are notorious energy-wasters. Sealing and insulating your ductwork can improve the efficiency of your heating and cooling system by as much as 20%. You’ll make your home more comfortable, and a more-efficient system helps extend the life of your furnace, air conditioner, or heat pump.
Quit Smoking: The EPA lists indoor air quality as one of the top environmental health hazards. 
That’s because indoor air is full of potential contaminants, such as dust, mold spores, pollen, and viruses. You can help eliminate harmful irritants in your home by changing furnace filters regularly, using low-VOC paints when you repaint your rooms, and using localized ventilation in kitchens and bathrooms to remove cooking fumes, smoke, and excess humidity. Just make sure all your ventilation systems exhaust air to the outside of your home!
Get Out of Debt: 
Create a yearly budget for home improvement and maintenance to help prevent overspending and encourage you to put aside money for major replacements. Protect your home finances by knowing how much you’ll probably spend each year. The average cost of yearly maintenance and upkeep are about 1% to 3% of your home’s initial price.
Get Organized: No excuses, that clutter has to go! Start by creating more storage space so you can stash stuff easily. Put up a high shelf between the walls of a narrow hallway, and tuck storage in out-of-the-way nooks, such as under-stairs spaces and between wall studs.
Drink Less: The average household uses about 400 gallons of water each day, or almost $700 per year in water and sewer costs. Making a few simple changes, such as installing low-flow showerheads and toilets, can trim up to $200 from your annual water bill.
Less Stress: If you want less to worry about, install low-maintenance materials such as fiber-cement siding, LED light bulbs and ceramic tiles, which are all designed for durability and long, trouble-free service.
Get a head start on these and let the savings amaze you…good luck on making 2014 a great year for both you and your home!
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