Suburban LogoCustomer Testimonials • Customer Service • Search



Call 24 hours 563-391-4000 or toll free 1-800-717-3066


11 Must Read Articles > Low-Cost Remodeling To Sell Your Home Fast
By JR Girskis

If you’re looking to sell your home quickly but are on a limited budget, there are dozens of easy ways to improve the look and feel of your home to increase your chances of a quick sale. You can do most of this work yourself over the period of a couple of weeks, and since you’re in charge, you can give your home the look you want to make sure it sells as quickly as possible.

1.Give every room a fresh coat of paint.

This is one of the easiest, most affordable ways to give your home a brand new look. You can hire someone to do the job, or if you’re skilled in this area, you can do the work yourself. Don’t feel you have to stick with colors you’ve used in the past. Choose colors that brighten up your home but are not too bold. You’ll want to create a space that is inviting and warm but not overbearing. Choose colors that will stand the test of time: subtle beiges, yellows, and sages are always good choices. Visit your local library or bookstore, where you can find books that offer innovative painting and finishing techniques that will bring new life to your home.

2.Install new flooring.

If your old carpet or wood flooring has seen better days, consider installing new flooring. Choose durable yet affordable materials for your flooring. Cheap carpet and wood flooring will only make your home look cheap. If your carpet is stained but still in good shape, all you may need is a thorough steam cleaning. You can hire someone for the job or you can rent a steam cleaner and do the work yourself. If your wood floors are scratched, you may not need to replace them. Instead, consider hiring someone to buff and wax them. Shiny wood floors can enliven any home and increase your chances of a quick sale.

3.Install new lighting fixtures and/or ceiling fans.

Replacing your out-of-style lighting fixtures—or adding new ones—is a relatively inexpensive way to update the look and feel of your home. Choose affordable, quality fixtures that provide warm, soft glows and make the space feel homey and comfortable. In rooms without air conditioning or good ventilation, consider adding ceiling fans. Many quality ceiling fans can be purchased for less than $100. Classic styles are always your best bet, as you’ll want to choose fixtures that appeal to the broadest possible range of homebuyer. If in doubt, check out the lighting fixtures and ceiling fans in the homes of your friends and relatives. Take note of what you like and don’t like and what will make the interior of your home look the most appealing to potential buyers.

4.Add storm doors.

While many homeowners believe storm doors will make their house less beautiful, these days storm doors come in so many styles and patterns that it’s nearly mind-boggling. In fact, adding an attractive storm door to your home can actually improve your home’s curb appeal. You can choose from a wide range of materials and frames and even add decorative or etched glass to your storm door. The addition of a quality storm door can greatly increase a home’s energy efficiency, and a storm door usually costs about one-fourth of the price of adding a new entry door to a home.

5.Weather strip doors and windows.

Most homeowners can weather strip their entire home in less than a day. Usually it’s just a matter of adding self-adhesive foam and/or sweeps to your windows and doors. Weather stripping just one door can reduce a home’s energy consumption by up to 15% and is an extremely affordable way to increase your chances of selling your home in a timely manner.

6.Spruce up the place.

You may have heard or read about firms that update the furnishings in a home to create certain looks or feels, thereby increasing the home’s chance of selling quickly. If you can’t afford to hire a firm to do this, or would rather not spend the money, talk to friends or relatives to see if you can borrow furnishings, framed paintings, or other household objects to use during the time you are trying to sell your home. Your friends may have beautiful pieces in storage that they never use, and they’ll probably be more than happy to lend these items to you. Often just some good-looking, quality furniture and decorative items are all you need to make your home look and feel comfortable and warm. Think of your home as a stage you must set; the items you borrow from friends and family members are the props that will bring new life to your home and help you make a timely sale.

For furthur reading please see our Learn the Basics Homepage.
 


Proudly serving the Quad City Area; Scoot County, Rock Island County, Bettendorf, Davenport, East Moline, Moline, Rock Island, Sterling, Rock Falls, Muscatine,
Clinton, Dewitt and surrounding 90 mile radius. Copyright © 1997-2009 by Suburban Construction, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Iowa Illinois Home Improvement • Quad City Vinyl Replacement Windows • Iowa Vinyl Siding Contractors • Egress Windows • Illinois Gutter Cap
Learn the Home Improvement Basics - Frequently Asked Questions Service Area Coverage


Iowa Illinois Home Improvement Contractors Disclaimer: The replacement vinyl window, roofing contractor and vinyl and steel siding installation information presented within this website is for informational purposes only. Please contact us or see our huge showroom to discuss your particular vinyl window, sunroom or siding needs. Specialists of quality replacement windows, siding, sunrooms, roofing, gutter cap, heater cap, entry doors, storm doors and estimates are always free. Who is Suburban Construction? Brian Girskis launched Suburban Construction in 1985 and the family-owned and operated company is growing strong some 25 years and two generations later. His son, J.R. Girskis, is the company president and the third generation was born a few months ago. The Davenport-based company supplies and installs windows, siding and doors for the residential market. In 25 years, Suburban has completed more than 24,000 jobs. “We are always focused on the customer,” said general manager Darin Wilson. “Without the customer, we don’t have a business.” The company was honored as a 2007 Dealer of the Year by Associated Materials Inc., or AMI. “Suburban Construction is a company that definitely goes over and above servicing their customers,” Wayne Fredrick, executive vice president of AMI Sales, said. Working with a large customer base allows Suburban to purchase and buy goods for substantially less then its competitors, Wilson said. “We’re one of the only companies in the nation that offers a lifetime warranty on the product after we install it,” he said. The company doesn’t make money if things go wrong after the installation so crews make sure the job is done properly, he said. With energy conservation such a huge concern, products offered have the Energy Star rating so homeowners see savings on their energy bills. “With today’s home market being so inconsistent, it’s easier to have someone come in and give you a new home on top of your current home rather than having to pack up all your stuff,” he said. For example, by installing new insulated siding, Wilson added, an older home can essentially be turned into a new residence. Founder Brian Girskis still keeps a hand in the business. He was in the manufacturing and wholesale end of the industry in the 1970s and 1980s and distributed material to companies similar to Suburban. “I saw they weren’t generating any repeat business. I learned what not to do from those other people,” Girskis said. “Most of our business is referral business and that’s what we want to keep.” The office and showroom originally were based in downtown Bettendorf. Girskis relocated the company to Davenport in 1995. His decision to specialize in windows, siding and doors was based on two factors: getting better buying power that is passed onto the consumer and building something of value, Girskis said. “We try to do a Cadillac for the price of a Chevy. I’m very satisfied but we’re always looking to do better,” he said. Products Suburban Construction specializes in: Replacement Windows from AMI – Suburban Construction and quality windows by Associated Materials Incorporated, set the standard by which other replacement windows are measured. Innovation has resulted in a collection of windows that are designed and engineered to provide beauty, performance, ease of operation, virtually no maintenance, and increased energy-efficiency. You want a fair price. Don’t be misled by others offering replacement windows for a cheap price. Often times, this is a low-end window you might use for a garage, not your home. Usually, this cheap price doesn’t include measuring charges, custom sizing, replacing rotten wood, insulating inside weight cavities and around perimeters, or covering the outside window trim with maintenance-free aluminum and sealant. At Suburban, you always get a complete installation without any hidden costs. Gutter Cap is a must for the bitter midwest winters! Ice and snow build up in gutters, causing gutter seams to break! In addition, the weight of heavy snow causes gutters to loosen while the back up of ice behind gutters causes moisture damage to fascia. · The Gutter Cap combines surface tension with “capillary action!” This patented design allows rainwater to adhere to the dome of the cap while leaves and debris blow OFF the roof. · Your existing gutter is a free flowing drainage system with Gutter Cap. · Gutter Cap saves you the time, hassle & DANGER of cleaning Gutters…plus saves you upwards of thousands of dollars in damage each year! Some vinyl siding has a reputation for being flimsy, which not only make is awkard to handle and install, but caused problems with sagging and uneven walls long after installation. The Freedom Vinyl Siding from Suburban Construction is designed to help eliminate wavy lines and uneven walls. This leads to the production of a superior finished quality that really lasts. The Freedom Viny Collection is Designed with optimal performance and outstanding beauty. Loaded with premium features, Freedom Premium Vinyl Siding boasts a premium thickness. Freedom Premium Vinyl Siding from Suburban is the best investment you can make in your home and is perfect for every siding project. Wood doors aren't very energy efficient. They also crack, swell, warp and rot, leading to frequent maintenace. Steel doors are more durable, but they easily dent, ding and rust. And if a door's parts aren't designed as a system, they won't work well together or stand the test of time. A fiberglass door simply outperforms wood and steel doors. It won't crack, swell, rot, dent, ding or rust - so it's virtually maintenance free. And only Therma-Tru fiberglass entryways offer full door systems designed, built and tested to the industry's highest standards. You may consider the addition of storm doors to be an unnecessary expense, and may even believe that adding storm doors will decrease the beauty of your home or bring down its market value. Many realtors agree, however, that the addition of storm doors can actually improve your home’s market value, as storm doors will help, in general, to improve your home’s energy efficiency. Energy zoning with triple pane freedom maxx 10 windows can help save you great money. Sun Clean Glass® is a new self cleaning glass technology created by PPG industries. It uses a durable transparent coating that is fused to the surface of the glass with high temperatures during the production of the glass. This glass is available in almost all Suburban Construction replacement windows with one goal in mind, that you spend less time cleaning your windows and more time doing the things you love.

Download Windows Media Player 11

Download QuickTime