For many, New Year’s represents a new beginning – and the same thing can certainly apply to your home.

Perhaps you want to make your home cleaner, greener, or just more beautiful.
 
Here are 5 top tips for getting there:

1. Reduce the Clutter

Perhaps the most effective and inexpensive way to make your home feel different is to clear it of clutter. Many of us acquire more and more stuff each year. Unless if you purge regularly, cabinets, drawers and closets get overcrowded – preventing you from finding the things you enjoy the most. Apart from the benefits to you, most designers agree that clutter makes your house feel and look dirty.

2. Review the safety of your home

Are your smoke detectors, CO2 detectors and other safety devices in working order? If you have a chimney, has it received its maintenance? When is the last time the furnace was looked at or your dryer vents were cleaned? Taking care of these items now can save headaches (or worse) down the road.

3. Cut down your energy bills (and your environmental impact)

You don’t need solar panels or other expensive upgrades to make a difference or cut down on the bills. Not sure where to start? Look for lights that routinely stay on, appliances that stay plugged in, and monitor the temperature of your home. Changing a few habits can help the environment and your pocketbook.

4. Create a weekly cleaning schedule (and stick to it!)

Want to create and keep a new look for your home? Then you need to create a cleaning schedule and stick to it. You can divide your chores up across a few days, or have one big cleaning day, but the key is to clean weekly and build habits that will be good for your home.
Have a home fit for entertaining

One of the best things about having a great looking home is being able to share it with those you care about. De-clutter, clean, and maybe consider a few updates to the areas that you use the most – such as your kitchen. After all, you deserve some sort of reward after all this work.

If you are looking to improve your home for the New Year, then these resolutions will be invaluable.