Raise Home Market Value | Increasing House Value by Remodeling Your Kitchen & Bathroom

Raise Home Market Value | Increasing House Value by Remodeling Your Kitchen & Bathroom

The kitchen has long been the most important room in the house; it’s where everyone in the household eats, socializes, grows closer and ultimately spends most of their time. When planning to sell your house, there are a few main improvements that can raise home market value in the eyes of potential buyers. It’s important that you check on which home improvement projects can maximize your Return on Investment (ROI) and help in increasing house value when selling your house. Despite the current economic conditions within the housing market, Remodelers Magazine’s 2009-2010 Cost vs. Value Report ranked a minor kitchen remodel in the top 10 home improvement projects concerning return on investment. Most of the other projects that made the list were less expensive exterior door and window replacements that are considered “need-to-do”, where as a kitchen remodel is more of a “want-to-do” project. In this blog we’re going to tackle the task of minor kitchen remodels and which kitchen components return the most advantageous and financial yield.

A minor kitchen remodel can consist of many different components, it generally includes, updating the appliances, installing new countertops, updating the cabinets/hardware and replacing the flooring. All of these components will help to raise home market value for you. A smart homeowner will strategically choose which changes are made to their kitchen when attempting to raise home market value by kitchen remodeling. Recently, appraisal expert Leslie Sellers ranked upgrading appliances as the number-one home improvement project for increasing house value by remodeling, followed by countertops and cabinets. Luckily for all of us in California, the Pacific states region outperformed the rest of the nation in ROI percentages, despite higher costs. For example, on the West Coast, a minor kitchen remodel averages a cost of $23,210, with a return of 94.8 percent. In the Great Lakes region, however, the same project costs $21,899, with a return of just 69.4 percent. Upgrading from laminate to natural stone or quartz countertops dramatically changes the look and value of your kitchen and helps in increasing house value. An elegant stone countertop will improve the appearance as well as make the kitchen last longer in terms of durability. Going Green by installing efficient faucets, lighting, and appliances is another huge selling point because it lowers the cost of living for a buyer when they move in. As the focal point of the design, cabinets have a heavy influence on the overall kitchen value. Fortunately at Bradco we have many cabinet options specifically designed to fit any budget and maximize the return on our customers’ investments.

Unfortunately, many homeowners have to lower the asking price for their homes in order to close the sale. Buyers have many houses to choose from, and a newly remodeled kitchen is often the wow factor needed to increase house value and sway someone into buying a particular house. Brent Moore, owner of Moore Home Remodeling summarized it well: “You might not get all your money back but if you have the better kitchen you might sell it faster and therefore that’s money in hand.” If you’re still in a financial position to be able to afford a remodel, then it’s still a good investment to raise home market value by remodeling your kitchen, especially if you’re looking at selling your house within the next 5 years. Here at Bradco our designers are a great asset to you when selling your house – they can work with you and recommend a customized minor kitchen remodel that will help you to raise home market value and maximize your ROI.

For a well made cabinet the following components are key

Before you buy cabinetry, here is what you want to know.

a) The cabinet box should be build of plywood and not of particle board.
b) The drawer box sides should be built of solid hardwood such as maple or Lyptus. The drawer box bottom should be made of plywood and it should be connected to the hardwood sides by a “dado”. A “dado” is a groove cut into one piece of wood into which another piece of wood will fit snugly. In addition to inserting the plywood bottom into the dado joint the connections should be glued so that the drawer bottom does not rattle.
c) The drawer box should be dovetailed and not stapled.
d) The d rawer glides should be full extension under mount and of high quality.
e) For regular size drawers the rating should be no less that 75 lbs weight capacity and for bigger drawers such as pots and pans 110 lbs eight capacity should be used. Most drawer glides of high quality have a soft close mechanism. A good cabinet box should have at least ½” plywood back and ¾” plywood sides. The hinges should be of high quality and a soft-close function is an added bonus. Ask for NO added “urea formaldehyde” materials and low or zero VOC paints and stains.

The green movement is on the go but what is there to a green cabinet?
The first thing you need to worry about is the chemicals that are used in the most conventional cabinetry. The worst chemical added is called “urea-formaldehyde”. This chemical is found in the glues that are used in the production of cabinetry and also in the plywood, MDF (medium density fiberboard) and particle board. It is a proven carcinogen. Even low levels of this chemical can cause irritation of the eyes, nose, throat and skin. It especially affects smaller children and pets. Urea formaldehyde is proven to cause cancer of the nose and throat.
There are cabinet manufacturers that produce cabinetry which is free of this chemical. Another nasty component in cabinetry to watch out for are “volatile organic compounds” also knows as VOC. Major sources of man-made VOC’s are solvents such as paints, stains and clear coatings. Long term exposure to VOC’s can contribute to “Sick Building Syndrome” and respiratory, allergic and immune problems are associated with exposure to VOC’s.

Make sure that the cabinets you purchase are free of both Urea Formaldehyde and VOC’s. Many cabinet makers will promise you that they are, do not just take their word for it have them prove it to you. Your health and well being is too important. If the environment is of concern to you, and it should be, than you want to make sure that your cabinetry is produced by an FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) approved and certified cabinet maker. If the cabinet maker claims that they have an FSC certification, ask them for the number and check them out on the web at www.fscus.org and click on “certificates in the US”. A cabinet maker must be certified by the FSC organization in order to produce FSC certified cabinetry. It is not enough that they purchase FSC certified lumber to make your cabinets. Their production practices must also be certified in order to ensure that they are limiting their impact to the environment and not adding any non-certified materials to the construction of your cabinetry.

Top 5 Tips To Green Your Home

By now we all know we have to take action to make our home a greener environment, but most of us don’t know where to start.

1. Green Kitchen and Bathroom Cabinets -
No we don’t mean your cabinets have to be the color green. But they should be free of toxins. Harsh chemicals and in particular, formaldehyde, have been know to cause a large variety of illnesses, including asthma, seizures, and even cancer. Look for cabinetry that is free of formaldehyde, uses low- or no- VOC (volatile organic compounds) paint, and is made from sustainable wood resources. We have our own line of custom, formaldehyde free cabinets made from 100% sustainable wood sources?

2. Stop drinking bottled water -
We know that clean water is good for our health, but buying bottled water is actually very bad for the environment. Bottled water takes an enormous amount of energy, not just to produce, but to get the product to the consumer. The cost of transporting the 3.4 billion gallons of bottled water to Americans is staggering. It’s nowonder that gas prices have sky rocketed. By purchasing bottled water you not only pay for it at the checkout counter, but you also pay for it at the pump and at home as energy bills keep rising. To top things off, research indicates that bottled water is often no healthier or safter to drink than tap water. Reverse osmosis systems, such as the one from Everpure® provide the highest level of filtration. Look for a system that has been issued the highest ratings from NSF International.

3. Conserver water -
The bathroom is the number one source of wasted water in the home, but now the advancement in toilet technology is astonishing. With dual flush systems such as the ones by TOTO® and Caroma®, as seen on Oprah and The View, you can conserve water by selecting a little flush or a big flush.

4. Buy handmade -
It might seem obvious, but we often overlook the amount of energy that is required to make products. By purchasing handmade products like the tiles from Eli’s Tiles for your kitchen or bathroom, you not only get a one of a kind product, but you are also protecting the environment.

5. Buy recycled products -
Products made from recycled materials are a great way to show how eco-savvy you are and prevent extra waste from ending up in our landfills. Recycled aluminum sinks are an excellent way to spruce up your bathroom and do something good for the environment. If you can’t find a product made from recycled materials, then choose products that can be recycled such as fixtures from Mina that are made from 100% stainless steel.

What Is Sustainable Wood

What Is Sustainable Wood


There is no clear cut definition of what sustainability is. The World Commission (Bruntland 1987) has broadly defined sustainability as “development that meets needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Luckily, when it comes to wood and forestry, there is a clear definition:

“the capacity of forests, ranging from stands to ecoregions, to maintain their health, productivity, diversity, and overall integrity, in the long run, in the context of human activity and use.”

What does that mean? It means trees should not be cut down faster than what is necessary to keep the earth safe and habitable for humans.

Why use sustainable wood?

In general, wood is a more eco-friendly choice. Carbon dioxide (CO2) is the leading gas contributing to the greenhouse effect. Trees “breathe” CO2. They store the carbon-C and release the oxygen-O2. Most cubic meters of wood have about 0.8 to 0.9 tonnes of CO2.

1 tonne CO2 = 556,000 litres or 556 cubic meters (about the volume of a 3 bedroom house)

On average, 1.1 tonnes CO2 emissions would be produced for each cubic meter of a manufactured material such as plastics or other materials that aren’t eco-friendly. So by selecting wood over a less eco-friendly product you are essentially saving 2 tonnes of CO2 from being released into the atmosphere.

In addition, if you select wood from a sustainable source that wood is being replaced by new growth.

What kinds of woods are sustainable?

Bamboo - Grown on immense plantations in China, Vietnam, other Asian countries and is over 1/8 of the forests in India. Bamboo is fast-growing and is ready to harvest in 4-6 years! Due to its fast rate of growth, it utilizes much less fertilizers and pesticides. Technically it’s grass and not wood, but is more durable than many hardwoods due to its pore structure – it’s the same as wood. Its light in color like ash or maple.

Cane - Like bamboo, it is a grass, but is stronger and more flexible. It is indigenous to the Phillipines and like bamboo it is also 100% sustainable.

Mango - Chances are you’ve eaten a mango, afterall it is the world’s #1 fruit! Mango trees provide fruit for 15 years, after that, they stop. So the wood is harvested and new trees are planted.

Maple - It is a relatively fast growing tree; growing 18” or more per year.

Lyptus - Lyptus hardwood products are an excellent option when selecting an exotic species grown to sustainable forest certification standards. Offering all of the benefits expected of a tropical hardwood, Lyptus hardwood is ideal for cabinetry, millwork, furniture and flooring applications.

What are the worst woods to buy?

Obviously, buying wood from endangered species is not a good idea. Luckily, in the US it is prohibited so your chances are very slim.
Stay away from slow growing trees such as Oak, Redwood, Beech and Colorado Spruce. However, these are great trees to select when landscaping your home! Medium growth rate trees such as red oak, birch and red-bud have medium growth rates and should be okay when purchased from sustainable resources.

The Forest Stewardship Council is an international not-for-profit organization that has created a set of standards that finds solutions for existing bad forestry practices and promotes responsible management of the world’s forests. By purchasing products with their label, you are supporting environmentally responsible management of the world’s forests.Forest certification systems are being implemented around the world. The five largest systems operating in North America are the FSC, SFI, ATFS, CSA, and PEFC.



For more information, about formaldehyde-free cabinets made from sustainable wood, contact Bradco Kitchens & Baths at (323) 936-3457 or visit their showroom at 6011 West Pico Blvd, LA 90036 (at the corner of Pico and Crescent Heights.

Is Your Kitchen Making You Sick?

Is Your Kitchen Making You Sick?
If you were one of the many high school students that participated in the frog experiment, then you probably remember the smell of formaldehyde. This same chemical that is used to preserve the frogs can be found in many consumer products. While illegal to sell in the European Union and many Asian countries, products containing Urea-formaldehyde continue to be sold in the US.
Urea-formaldehyde is the leading cause of Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS), also known as Environmental Illness. Over 15% of the population suffers from MCS but most have no idea. MCS develops gradually as a person is repeatedly exposed to chemicals. It is difficult to detect because unlike most diseases there isn’t a test you can take.
To make matters worse, MCS is usually misdiagnosed because damage can occur in any system of the body. In particular, it affects any of the body’s systems that are currently in a weakened state. For example, if someone has been repeatedly exposed to cigarette smoke or smog, then the lungs are in a weakened state and most likely, the Urea-formaldehyde will have a heightened affect on the respiratory system. Since any system can be affected, symptoms can be as mild as headaches, fatigue, sleep interruptions, memory loss, diarrhea and skin rashes or more debilitating symptoms such as panic attacks, asthma, seizures, autism and cancer.
Urea-formaldehyde is the most prevalent of the dangerous petroleum based chemicals (also known as Volatile Organic Compounds or VOC’s) found on the market and has become the leading cause of MCS. The kitchen is the number one source of Urea-formaldehyde found in the home!
Industry standard cabinets are constructed with wood containing fUrea-formaldehyde. These products release formaldehyde gas for up to 8 years. Newly constructed & remodeled homes usually have levels 2-3 times higher than the government’s acceptable limit even 3 years after the construction. Numerous Hurricane Katrina victims living in newly constructed homes have developed MCS, thus prompting the EPA to declare that “there are no safe levels of formaldehyde exposure.”
Food stored in or near these cabinets can absorb the “off-gassed” formaldehyde, contaminating even the healthiest of foods. Extreme heat or humidity, like cabinets near a stove or dishwasher, can emit even more formaldehyde. The kitchen is the heart of the home, it should be a safe place to breathe, eat & live.
To reduce exposure to formaldehyde, make sure that you purchase formaldehyde free cabinetry, such as the custom cabinetry from Bradco Kitchens and Baths. If you are purchasing a product that does not state that it is formaldehyde free, it probably isn’t. Companies that have taken the effort to provide safe, non-toxic products want you to know it and advertise it.

So you want to know what is LYPTUS

The eucalyptus plantations supplying the lumber mill are now owned and managed by Fibria — a new company formed in September of 2009 as a result of the merger between Aracruz Celulose and Votorantim Celulose e Papel (VCP). The Aracruz Produtos de Madeira S.A. (APM) mill which produces Lyptus lumber is a joint venture between Fibria and Weyerhaeuser. The Fibria plantations are a mosaic of eucalyptus and native tropical forest which were previously agricultural and grazing lands. Over 30% of these plantations are managed as permanent native forest dedicated to environmental protection. Original species native to the area over 100 years ago have been reintroduced into this ecosystem. The Fibria plantations supplying the APM mill are certified to Brazil’s national sustainable forestry standard, Cerflor. This standard has been endorsed by the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC), a European based international organization that endorses credible sustainable forestry programs. PEFC is the largest global forest certification system and has more than 200 million hectares of certified forest under 35 independent national certification systems.

Eucalyptus trees grow quickly and may be harvested within 14 to 16 years of planting. Lyptus® forests are 11 times more productive on a per hectare per year basis when compared to a temperate forest, which may take 80 to 100 years or more to mature. Lyptus forests also produce 30 times the volume of lumber per hectare per year when compared to an unmanaged temperate forest. Like Weyerhaeuser mills in the United States, the APM mill uses virtually every portion of the log, converting it to lumber and other usable by-products; residuals are used as bio-energy for the kiln drying operations.

Fibria Forests — Plentiful, fast growing:

• Fibria maintains its own seed bank and nurseries.
• Fibria forests total 1.3 million hectares, of which 461,000 hectares are native reserves dedicated to environmental protection, in six Brazilian States: Espírito Santo, Bahia, Minas Gerais, Rio Grande do Sul, São Paulo and Mato Grosso do Sul.
• Since 1967 Aracruz Celulose had planted more than 7 million seedlings of native species (that are indigenous to the region).
• Aracruz Celulose was honored in 1984 with the Marcus Wallenberg Prize from the international scientific community for advancements in the field of forestry.
• For the third year in a row, Aracruz Celulose was included in the select rank of companies on the New York Stock Exchange’s Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI World) 2007/2008 that highlights the best corporate sustainability practices in the world.

Paper or plastic

It is about time that soon Los Angeles shoppers won't hear the "Paper or plastic?" question at the checkout line. The Los Angeles City Council voted to ban plastic shopping bags from stores beginning July 1, 2010. Shoppers can either bring their own bags or pay 25 cents for a paper bag. The ban is meant to reduce waste in the city of Los Angeles, which uses about 2.3 billion plastic bags a year. The vote also puts pressure on the state, which is considering a bill that would ban plastic bags in 2012 and charge at least 15 cents per paper bag. It is justified that paper bags would also be subject to a fee because they require an enormous amount of energy and millions of trees to produce. The answer to "paper or plastic?" is "thank you neither -- here's my reusable bag!" However the Los Angeles ban will only go into effect if the state fails to impose a 25-cent fee on every shopper who requests a plastic bag. Last year, San Francisco passed the nation's first bag ban, which took effect in November. Let’s hope that the ban would spur consumers to begin carrying canvas or other reusable bags, reducing the amount of plastic that washes into the storm drains and the ocean. It is estimated that in the county of Los Angeles every year 6 billion plastic bags are disposed of. No question, they harm marine life and litter neighborhoods Councilman Ed Reyes, who proposed the bag ban said. "We're trying to do it in a way where we can educate and inform the public of what we're doing." Reyes said the ban will minimize cleanup costs for the city and reduce trash that collects in storm drains and the Los Angeles River, Only about 5 percent of plastic bags and 21 percent of paper bags are recycled in California. Already in 2008 Los Angeles County supervisors had a similar proposal on the table but they backed off to ban plastic shopping and grocery bags when Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, along with Supervisor Gloria Molina voted against the amendment. There is however strong opposition from powerful lobbyists hired by interest groups. Banning plastic bags will not solve the litter problem, said an attorney who opposes the regulation of plastic bags.” We’ve had enough of politicians accepting the misinformation that's spread around the Internet about plastic bags," said Stephen Joseph of the Save the Plastic Bag Coalition, which represents bag manufacturers. Joseph said the city motion gives "a free pass" to paper bags, which he argued are biodegradable but consume more materials and natural resources to make. The American Chemistry Council (ACC) has unleashed lawyers, lobbyists and PR firms against local efforts to kick the plastic bag habit. But this attempt to protect industry profits could backfire. Today’s consumers are well aware that plastic bag pollution is growing, and it impacts our oceans bays and rivers. Plastic never biodegrades in a marine environment, but it does leach poisons into our water. Wildlife often become entangled in plastic bags and mistake pieces of plastic for food. Scientists have found plastic particles are more abundant than plankton. That's hard to believe, until you realize that in California alone, we use 20 billion plastic bags each year, and at least 1 million end up in San Francisco Bay annually. One of the most dramatic impacts of the plastic bag pollution is on marine life. According to Planet Ark, an international environmental group, about 100,000 whales, dolphin’s seals, turtles and other marine animals are killed by plastic bags each year worldwide, Last September, more than 354,000 bags -- most of them plastic -- were collected during an international cleanup of costal areas in the United States and 100 other countries, according to the Ocean Conservancy. Countries that have banned or taken action to discourage the use of plastic bags include Australia, Bangladesh, Ireland, Italy, South Africa, Taiwan, also has banned the bags. The Brazilian government enacted a ban on plastic bags in October 2007. The little known East-African country Eritrea banned plastic bags outright in 2005. Plastic bags will be completely outlawed in France by 2010. Paris banned non-biodegradable plastic bags in large stores in 2007 in order to reduce city pollution. The Indian government enacted a plastic bag ban in June of 2005. The ban was enacted in response to localized flooding caused by plastic bags clogging waterways, as well as to prevent sacred cows from ingesting plastic bags. Tanzania banned plastic bags in 2006. Mexico City's thousands of stores went green this year as amended ordinances on solid waste now outlaw businesses from giving out thin plastic bags that are not biodegradable However, the United States Environmental Protection Agency says paper bags are worse for the environment than plastic. Plastic bags require much less energy to manufacture ship and recycle and because of this plastic generate less Greenhouse gas. Plastic bags cause less air and water pollution, they compress to a small size in landfills. They argue that it is a sterile method for transporting food products and preventing food borne illness, that its light weight nature requires less energy consumption during transportation compared to paper with a 7:1 advantage. Many studies comparing plastic bags versus Paper bags show that plastic bags have less net environmental effect than paper bags, requiring less energy to produce, transport and recycle; however these studies also note that recycling rates for plastic are significantly lower than for paper.
The solution, carry a reusable shopping bag with you, recycle any paper or plastic bags you might be given from a retailer , do not take a bag if you can easily carry the items in your pocket or handbag and consider buying items with less packaging.