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Remodel Instead of Moving Away from Your Empty Nest

When the kids have finally moved out, couples are often left with a big house and more space than they know what to do with. One of those bedrooms could become a computer office, but what about the other three? If you’re finding yourself overwhelmed with the amount of space you now have and don’t know what to do with, you may be considering moving. However, before you take the leap to find a new house, let’s talk about the possibility of a remodel instead of moving away from your empty nest.

Make a Pros and Cons List

It may sound silly, but it’s best to start with a pros and cons list. Write down everything you feel about your current living situation. Do you like the neighborhood? How’s the commute to work? Is there something missing from your current home that’s been driving you crazy? Put down all of the things that have been nagging you for the last 20 years so you can compare. If most of the cons are related to the house, rather than the location, you might be able to knock out most of the list with a remodel.

Remodel Instead of Moving

People are often under the impression that remodeling is more expensive than moving. This can come from the belief that you have to pay for remodeling out of pocket. However, remodeling is often much cheaper than moving. Here’s why:

  • Remodels can be funded by taking out home loans.
  • Moving out of an old home can lose you a significant amount of money if the building has aged poorly. Not getting back the same amount you paid for your home means having to take out more loans to buy a newer home anyway.
  • Moving to a new home means paying moving expenses, such as truck rentals, movers, storage fees, and more.
  • Remodeling can bring your old home more into the present, meaning that if you decide to sell later down the line, you’ll often increase the sale price by more than you spent on the remodel.

Plus, when you remodel your home, you can expand the parts that matter. Consider a expanding your kitchen or getting a second floor addition to a house that you’ve outgrown.

Rediscover Yourself as an Individual

While remodeling opens the door of opportunity for all kinds of upgrades, it also offers you a new opportunity to rediscover yourself. All of those rooms your kids grew up in aren’t entirely useless. Not only can that space be used to expand spaces like the kitchen or living room, they can also be turned into personal space for you and your spouse.

With your kids out of the house, you have the rest of your life to spend occupying yourself. You don’t have kids to haul to soccer practice anymore. What will you do with your time? It’s never too late to learn a new trade or pick up a new hobby. Having a little extra space on hand to help with that never hurts. So, consider sewing, crafting, baking, painting, filming, collecting, woodworking, and more. There are endless things to learn and having space to collect new tools and materials for those hobbies is a luxury many don’t have. Take advantage of it!

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What Is Involved in Getting a Custom Home?

Getting a custom home is something most people consider outside of their ability – even if they don’t know what’s involved. It’s one of those fancy and ambitious things that people equate with unimaginable wealth. The truth is, if you can buy a moderate-sized house, you can have a custom home built. Let’s run through the main points of what’s involved in getting a custom home.

Custom Designs

The first thing you need when you plan to get a custom home is a custom home design. It’s helpful if you already have an idea of what you want your floorplan to look like. However, you can have a design made from scratch if you’re willing to work with your designer. If they can figure out what things you need in a home, they can make a design you’re happy with.

Heidan Construction does design build for people all over Toronto. Design build means we do both the designing and the building. This is much more straightforward than having to commission a design from one company and then bring it to another to have it built. We know what needs you brought to us when you had your new home designed and we can ensure those needs are met all throughout the building process.

Getting a Plot of Land

The plot of land a house is on contributes to the cost in real estate. So, when you have a custom home built, you’ll have to buy a plot of land for it to be built on. It may feel like an additional cost when you’re buying it, but it’s not. You would have been paying for the land in the price of an already-built home as well.

Getting Home Loans

People often don’t realize it, but you can get a home loan for a custom home just like for an existing one. You don’t have to buy a custom home out of pocket. Getting loans can also help in paying for your new piece of property. This is something you’ll need to discuss with your bank, but is an important thing to know when comparing custom design prices with real estate.

Waiting for Construction

When your custom home design has been finalized, you’ll have to wait for construction. This is the biggest difference between buying an existing house and having one custom built. If you can get your current home sold and finalize the purchase of your new home quickly, moving into an existing home can be done in less than a month. Custom homes, on the other hand, can take over 6 months to build. That means sitting tight for a little while – but the extra time is worth it.

Moving into Your Beautiful Custom Home

When your custom home has been built, all that’s left is moving in. Moving in is a special feeling. Not only is it brand new – you being its first tenants – it’s made with your specific needs in mind. Nothing can beat the feeling of living somewhere made just for you. 

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4 Things Your New Pediatric Clinic Needs to Succeed

A pediatric clinic is an important fixture in any neighborhood. After all, healthcare is a universal need and ensuring kids grow up healthy and well taken care of is on any parent’s mind. If you’re planning to open a new pediatric clinic, you’ll want to know these 4 things a new pediatric clinic won’t succeed without.

Visibility

The first thing a new pediatric clinic needs is visibility. If you have preexisting branches of the same clinic, ensure your new branch is well advertised within them. Put up an eye-catching notice within other branches alerting people to the new branch. There’s a good chance that many of your existing patients and their families live closer to the new branch than the one they currently visit. You should also update current business cards to include the new branch and its phone number.

While branch visibility within your existing network of patients is important, what’s more important is expanding your reach. Building a new branch means taking on more patients. The #1 thing that brings in prospective patients to a new pediatric clinic is an attractive clinic building.

When a new building is constructed in a a suburban or commercial area, the locals take notice. If you intend to build an entrance sign that’s separate from the building, install your sign before construction is finished. This will give locals time to spread the word that a new pediatric clinic is being built.

Your finished clinic being attractive and modern is the final, key step to visibility. Heidan Construction is well-versed in medical clinic construction. However, we also have a focus in modern design. We’re the perfect company to provide eye-catching brilliance in the form of a shiny, new, clinic office space.

Welcoming Interior

While curb appeal is important for a new pediatric clinic, so is interior appeal. When a new or prospective patient steps into your clinic, their first impression is everything. This is especially true for a pediatric clinic. Children make snap judgements very quickly. If your interior doesn’t immediately satisfy them, they may decide they don’t like your clinic at all. While parents make the final say in what clinic their kids go to, a child committed to complaining or one who’s intimidated by your interior is one who can convince their parents to take them elsewhere.

Ensuring the color design is friendly but professional is a balance that many people fail to strike. Toddlers aren’t the only ones your clinic will serve. We can create a design that appeals to toddlers and teens alike.

Child-Accessible Building

When designing a medical office that’s specifically meant for children, it’s important to make the building child-accessible. This means placing windows low enough for children to comfortably look out. It means including sinks at a lower height in restrooms. We should also be providing gender neutral bathrooms with changing spaces that any parent can use. Your new pediatric clinic should never prove to be an obstacle for parents or children.

Comfortable Waiting Area

And, finally, we can’t forget the importance of a comfortable waiting area. While any medical clinic or doctor’s office should have a waiting area, pediatric waiting areas come with extra needs. There should be enough space for small children to entertain themselves, but also for adults to sit and relax for a while. While many adults show up to adult clinics by themselves, nearly every patient at a pediatric clinic will have someone with them who has to wait.

Give us a call at Heidan Construction if you need someone to design and construct your new pediatric clinic in Toronto. We know what makes a medical office successful and we look forward to putting that knowledge to good use.

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What 3 Things Make Patients Return to a Clinic?

Keeping patients happy with your medical clinic is the #1 most important way to keep them coming back. After all, there are plenty of other clinics around. What makes yours so special? If you don’t know the answer, it’s time to create one. There are 3 big things that make patients return to a clinic. Make sure you have all 3!

1. Professional Management

The first think people notice about a medical clinic they like is professional management. A patient may return to a clinic with professional management, even if the building is a bit outdated. What this means is:

  1. Ensure scheduling is appropriately timed.
    If you find your clinic is consistently behind on taking in patients who arrived on time, change your scheduling practices. If each of your doctors has a patient scheduled every 15 minutes, change that to 20 minutes. You may get a few less patients per day, but your reputation will improve and your existing patients will be happier with the care they’re receiving.
  2. Handle cancelations and rescheduling with compassion.
    Whenever possible, allow cancelations and rescheduling for free. Some clinics charge fees for cancelation, but this is a poor management choice for an industry founded on caring for people who may be disabled or lower class. You’ll retain more patients if you’re lax about these things.
  3. Support patient-first policies.
    Patients should always have the choice of how they receive care. Insist all of your doctors put the patient’s desires before what they may consider their needs. Inform patients and then allow them to decide what’s best for their treatment, unless explicitly asked to make an executive decision.
  4. Make your clinic accessible.
    Clinics and medical settings are here to treat those who are sick, injured, or disabled. Ensure your clinic is physically and mentally accessible and you’ll retain more patients.

2. Friendly Staff

A clinic that’s professionally managed is great, but to make patients return, you also need a friendly staff. A doctor who’s able to convey accurate medical advice is worthless if they disrespect their patient and make them uncomfortable. The same goes for a desk clerk who’s rude or unfeeling toward people looking to check in or get information about the clinic.

3. Comfortable and Attractive Building

Finally, last but not least, one of the most important things needed to make patients return is a comfortable and attractive building. When a clinic is full of friendly people who are competent at their jobs, but the building is dingy, they’re at a disadvantage. Leave your patients more than just satisfied. Make them happy with your services.

Older buildings may be suffering from years of wear and tear. Even well-maintained, old buildings look outdated and unattractive. Ensure patients are greeted with a comfortable and modern interior and they will come back. Plus, having your medical office renovated, remodeled, or rebuilt means a prime opportunity for recommendations. Doctor’s office recommendations are one of the biggest ways a patient pool will grow. If someone has a good experience, they’ll pass it on. What better way to start a conversational recommendation than being able to say, “My doctor’s office just got renovated. It’s so nice!”

Get Help with Your Clinic Design

If you need help with your clinic design, contact us at Heidan Construction. We have exactly the experience you need to improve your existing office design or create a new one. Never heard of design build? Read more about it here to see if it’s the right fit.

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Recover from Extensive Home Damage by Remodeling

Extensive home damage can come in many forms. There’s flooding, pests, a fallen tree, fires, and so much more. Recovering from extensive home damage isn’t easy, financially or emotionally. In the end, there are two ways to move forward and recover from extensive home damage: moving or remodeling. Heidan Construction is here to give you some insight into why remodeling may be the best way for you to move forward.

Moving Comes with Its Own Pains

Moving away from the source of your pain can seem like the best solution. However, it’s important to remember that moving comes with its own pains. If you have kids, they likely have friends in the neighborhood. Moving may mean switching schools or saying goodbye to friends they’ve had for years. For you, it may mean getting a new job or getting a longer commute. Moving can seem like the easiest way to get away from the pain of watching your home fall apart but, in fact, remodeling comes with an even better opportunity.

Remodeling Facilitates Healing

Watching your home fall apart from any kind of disaster can be the height of misery. Our homes are our safe havens, where memories are made, children are raised, and love thrives. To see it all fall apart can be quite traumatic. This can make many of us jump at the chance to move away, hoping to wipe away the trauma of it all. However, it can actually be more emotionally beneficial to stay and remodel.

When you see your home destroyed, there’s a loss of control and safety. Getting to see your home rebuilt is a way of taking control of the situation. It allows you to remain in charge of your living situation in a more meaningful way than moving somewhere else. Plus, when it’s all remodeled and looks just how you remember it – perhaps a bit nicer – it can help you to feel less like your home was ever taken from you. After all, a home is just wood and paint. The safety it brings is often more from the family inside of it.

Remodeling Brings Opportunity

While many would prefer to have their home rebuilt or remodeled to look the way it was, others may find opportunity in remodeling. Has there always been something about your home that drove you crazy? Now’s your chance to change it. With a whole remodeling crew at your beck and call, you may as well knock out that unwanted wall and put in the kitchen island you’ve always wanted. Use the opportunity, not just to heal, but to move on from a home that wasn’t quite right for you.

If you’re ready to recover from extensive home damage by remodeling, give us a call at Heidan Construction. We look forward to helping you and your family recover from disaster and bring to life a home ready for many more years of use.

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Improve Your Quality of Life with a Complete Home Remodel

The affect your home has on your overall quality of life can be quite astounding! It’s amazing how much stress can add up when there are twenty little things about your home nagging at the back of your mind. Maybe there’s something that isn’t quite broken, but isn’t working how it’s supposed to. Or, perhaps there are growing accessibility issues as you get older. Take matters into your own hands and improve your quality of life with a complete home remodel from Heidan Construction.

Fix What’s Broken

The first step to improving your home is fixing what’s broken. Therefore, if you give us a list of all of the things in your home that need repair or replacement, we can make it happen. Say goodbye to that dripping faucet or the cracked step on the back porch. It’s the little things about our homes that we notice and store away in our minds. Even without a complete home remodel, a string of updates to the broken parts of your home will improve your quality of life drastically.

Refresh Paint and Flooring

Next on the list of things people underestimate are paint and flooring. Imagine for a moment that nothing in your home was changed except the flooring and paint. The entire place would feel nearly brand new! It’s incredible what a difference it can make to have a smooth, new surface under your feet and a wall that’s free of chips and discoloring.

If your kitchen and bathroom floors are outfitted with cheap vinyl sheeting, consider luxury vinyl tile instead. LVT is made of similar materials to vinyl sheeting, but is thicker, longer lasting, and higher quality. Plus, it can be designed and textured to feel and look just like hardwood or stone tile.

Update Your Kitchen

Arguably the most important room in the house, the kitchen is next in priority. If you ask most people, if they couldn’t have a complete home remodel, if they could only have one room remodeled, they would choose the kitchen. Kitchen appliances break down and go out of date within a decade. Cheap, laminate countertops get chipped, dented, and lose their edging. Cabinet shelves begin to warp and hardware comes loose. There are so many ways a kitchen can get worn down with daily use over many years. Let us reimagine your kitchen to the exact style you prefer.

Improve Your On-Suite

A newlywed couple moving into their first house rarely has an idea of what they really need in a home. However, once you’ve been in a house for a certain number of years, you get attached. If you have kids, you no longer feel like uprooting to move somewhere better. It’s a story many of us have lived. After all that time living somewhere that didn’t fit your needs, let us update your master bedroom and on-suite. You deserve a getaway within your own home. Let us give that to you. Give us a call at Heidan Construction when you’re ready to start the process and improve your quality of life with a complete home remodel.