Undergoing a treatment program for addiction or any other form of substance abuse can be overwhelming and isolating. Some people prefer to go through treatment passively without any form of active engagement with a particular program.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse says that people are more likely to overcome their addiction when they are active participants in a particular program. Simply enrolling in a program won’t produce any results.

This is why residential programs or inpatient treatment have better success rates compared to outpatient care. The commitment from being involved in a 24/7 treatment program increases the chances of that person maintaining their sobriety for a long time.

These programs consist of several aspects that work well with participants who are willing to be actively involved in their treatment. These include:

1. Individualized treatment. Having 24/7 observation of a person’s habits health makes it easier for therapists to form customized treatment plans.
2. Treatment’s timeline. In passive treatments, addicts are more likely to quit the treatment earlier on. Residential programs allow therapists to ensure that they stay in treatment for an adequate amount of time.
3. Continual Assessment. As mentioned in the first point, residential programs allow continual assessments. They can observe the participant’s progress and make necessary changes wherever needed.

The Benefits of Residential Treatment Program

Being active in a treatment program 24 hours a day and 7 days a week can be understandably quite daunting. However, residential treatments that focused on family involvement, community-based therapy, and teaching aids for post-treatment life, have many benefits.

It brings much-needed structure

Drug addicts and alcoholics tend to lack structure and a productive routine in their daily lives. Hence, introducing that routine can be extremely beneficial. It might seem restricting at the beginning, but it helps them direct their focus on trying to get healthier.

The main idea is to close any gaps where cravings take hold and grow. It also helps build boundaries that allow them to show willpower and overcome moments of weakness.

Supervision and Control

Continuous supervision in residential programs proves most beneficial during withdrawals. Whether if mental or physical withdrawal, it can be critical and even life-threatening. Having supervision ensures that participants have emotional support and counseling in those moments.

Many recovering addicts tend to relapse early in their recovery because they have access to the substance/alcohol. Residential treatment programs have a controlled environment. This means that access to drugs and alcohol won’t be a problem.

Community support

Recovery can be an isolating process. People are known to complain about feeling guilty, misunderstood, and alone during this time. The stigma of being in rehab doesn’t help too.

Being in residential treatment can help with this as everyone in the program will have their own struggles. Even though no two people will be in the same situation, they will understand each other’s pain and suffering.

Other than that, the therapists and professionals will maintain that feeling of community by being involved in each patient’s journey.

Focus

It might seem selfish, but the stress of obligations, family, friends, and work can all make recovery harder. The treatment is their opportunity to let go of some of these stresses and focus on their own health.

This doesn’t mean that friends and family aren’t important during the treatment. In fact, family involvement can help improve the chances of recovery for a patient. Attending family therapy sessions, learning about the patient’s struggle, and offering support with regular visits can be beneficial for the patient.

Bob Ross (1942 – 1995) was an American television host, art instructor, internet celebrity and of course, a celebrated painter. He has been in the highlight for years because there hasn’t been any artist in the history of art who has inspired more people to join this colorful world than him.

People may joke around about him because of his hippy swagger and cozy talk, but he managed to bring a lot to his easel. Granted, there will be miles and miles of difference in the work he does in comparison to artists like Clyde Aspevig. Truthfully, however, Bob Ross is closer to them than you think.

Additionally, it wasn’t just his art that inspired people. There were also people out there who simply loved to hear him talk! His team even got letters from blind people who said the reason why they tuned in was to hear him talk – simply because he gave them hope.

Anybody who can do this deserves a little more attention from the art community. We certainly dug into this person and here are some things we found out about Bob Ross that most people don’t know.

• 1. As A Kid His Bath-Time Toy Was  A Live Alligator

Bob Ross was a lifelong lover of animals- which is why he also had a knack for saving and nursing wounded animals. When he was growing up in Florida, he had brought a rather strange addition to his family – a live alligator! He did so because he was attempting to nurse the alligator back to health and kept him in the family bathtub!

Even when Ross grew up, he could always be seen playing host to a number of injured and orphaned animals. This also included an epileptic squirrel – which of course, lived in Ross’s empty Jacuzzi.

• 2. Believe It Or Not, He Was A Military Man

Before he became a painter, Bob Ross had spent almost 20 years in the United States Air Force – where he retired at the rank of Master Sergeant. Ross even said that he was the guy in the army who would make someone scrub off the latrine and the make the beds. He even admitted to screaming at people when they were late. When Ross had retired though, he had allegedly made a promise to himself not to scream at another soul again. This was, therefore, the beginning of his soft demeanor.

‘The Joy of Painting’ Managed to Become a Worldwide Hit

Not only did Bob Ross’s show manage to be carried by 95% of all the TV stations across America, but it had an avid viewership of 93.5 million homes. The show had also managed to break its national followership and was broadcasted in Turkey, South Korea, Switzerland, Belgium, Germany, and the United Kingdom!

• 3. He Worked for Free

Bob Ross’s ‘The Joy of Painting’ had run on from 1983 to 1994 on PBS. So did this mean that Bob Ross was able to benefit with fat stacks of cash? Well as it turns out, not quite. Bob Ross had, in reality, agreed to do this show for free! So where did his income come from? Well, he made his living from Bob Ross Inc. which sold teaching classes, how-to video tapes and art supplies while also going over trade show circuits.

This brings about the question as to how he managed to find the time to tape The Joy of Painting? Well, apparently Bob Ross recorded these seasons as fast as he could paint. Ross had banged out one entire season with 13 episodes in as fast as 2 days. By doing so, Bob Ross was able to free himself to get back into teaching.

• 4. Bob Ross Didn’t Sell Any of His Paintings

In an interview with New York Times in 1991, Bob Ross had claimed that he had made over 30,000 paintings since he was just 18 and was stationed in Alaska by the Air Force. When Ross had died of Lymphoma in 1995, most of his works had either ended up with the PBS, or were donated in charity. This is probably why most of his works are simply floating around all over the world.

While most of his works weren’t sold, Ross did manage to sell some of his souvenir gold pans while he was stationed in Alaska. At the time, however, he only managed to get $25 a pop for his gold pans which featured the Alaskan scenes painted over the bottom.

• 5. He Didn’t Really Love His Fro

It is very hard to imagine Bob Ross and not immediately image his giant and bushy mushroom cloud of hair which seemed to explode off his head. Well, supposedly Bob Ross hated this haircut but his uncanny knack for marketing would keep from trimming it off. He knew that without his fro, his conservative look would really undermine his business. This is why Ross stuck to his permed visage – which was also emblazoned onto all the tubes of paint that he sold.

• 6. Bob Ross Was A Student of William Alexander

In the second season of The Joy of Painting, which was featured in 1984, Bob Ross had decided to dedicate the show to his teacher. William Alexander was the person who got Bob Ross started and had even filmed a promo with his student. Here he said that he handed his mighty brush to well-deservingly mighty man – Bob Ross.

And with that, this new era of art had begun. There had even come a time in his art career, where a man named Alexander Art told him that the demand created by The Joy of Painting was too difficult to keep up. This is where Art had suggested that Bob Ross begin his self-branded line of art supplies.

Wasn’t that a lot more than the afro-supporting punch line of artist jokes? If you wish to dig some more about Bob Ross and his life, you can find more information here.

Are you thinking about starting yoga? This is skyrocketing in popularity amongst people of all ages, and it is easy to see why. Yoga is a superb activity because it can have a positive impact on many areas of your life, including your physical and mental health. It is also an activity which you can easily do at home by yourself, or it can be more social by attending classes.

Yoga is a brilliant activity, but it is also one which can be daunting when you first start out; it can be hard to know where to begin. With this in mind, here is a guide to how you can start yoga without hurting yourself.

What You Need

As with any physical activity, it is important that you have the right clothing and equipment to get started. This should include:

• A high-quality yoga mat
• Supportive, comfortable, and breathable clothing
• Trainers (although you can also perform barefoot)
• A water bottle
• Gym towel

Research Online

It is then a case of doing research online so that you can get to grips with the basic poses and find out more about the various benefits that yoga can bring. If you are going to perform yoga at home then you need to make sure that you have enough space and find a respected online beginner’s guide.

Beginner’s Classes

While some people prefer to start in the privacy of their own home, it is actually better to attend a beginner’s class so that you can benefit from direct instruction – it is also a highly social activity. Yoga can be dangerous so you should always make sure that you are learning from a qualified instructor. If not and you end up injuring yourself true to their negligence, then you could look to claim compensation from accident claims UK lawyers.

Warm Up & Down

One of the most common ways that people injure themselves when practicing yoga is not warming up. A good warm-up will get rid of any stiffness in your joints and muscles so that you can progressively increase the difficulty of your poses. It is also important to warm down afterward to prevent muscle soreness and help with relaxation.

Knowing Your Limits

Much like any physical activity, it is very easy to injure yourself when you overdo it. This is why you need to start at a beginner level and gradually increase the difficulty of the poses so that your body can adjust with time. Not only this, but if you start to feel uncomfortable pain during yoga for whatever reason then it is important to stop – otherwise you could suffer an injury which could set you back a long time.

Hopefully, this information will help you to start practicing yoga safely and with confidence. It can be daunting at first, but once you start to get the hang of it and notice the positive impact that it has on your overall wellbeing, then it will inspire you to continue and develop your abilities. There is an enormous community when it comes to yoga and immersing yourself in this will also help you to learn, improve and connect with like-minded individuals.

There is just something so appealing about travelling to an exotic location and getting a tattoo that represents your journey. However, there are some trends to getting inked that you should avoid like the plague, because they are a disaster for more reasons than one. Control your impulse, don’t get drunk or high out of your mind before going to the tattoo parlour, and avoid making the mistakes mentioned next.

Facial Tattoos

Unless you are a professional fighter or a gang member, tattoos on the face are not going to work out well for you, especially as you get older. Even if you are any of the two mentioned above, we would still tell you to reconsider this decision of getting a tattoo on your face!

Random Letters from an Unknown Language

Japanese Kanji tattoos can definitely look cool, but unless you are absolutely sure what it means, don’t get one. The same goes for tattooing yourself in any foreign language that you do not understand because the translations can be hilarious for everyone else and a lifelong joke on you. The tales of people thinking the Kanji on their arm meant courage or warrior, which ended up meaning absolutely meaningless things such as noodles, are not as uncommon as one might want them to be!

Copying a Celebrity Tattoo

If there is anything worse than copying the random tattoo from the internet off an unknown person, it would have to be copying the random tattoo off a celebrity. While it’s still an awful mistake to copy tattoos from strangers because it robs both you and the stranger of the chance to be unique, celebrity tattoos are worse because everyone already knows them and their tattoos, which will instantly make you lose your identity. As creating an identity is part of what getting inked is all about, this would practically make no sense at all.

What Options Do You Have If You Want to Remove a Tattoo?

In case you have already made any of the blunders we just mentioned, or you have some other tattoo that you just can’t have on yourself anymore, all hope is not yet lost fortunately. Simply visit www.counterpunchlaser.com and book an appointment with them for a laser tattoo removal or fading session. The licensed staff, their methods and the lasers themselves are the best in Brisbane, so rest assured that after just a few sessions at Counterpunch, that artistic mistake won’t have to be a part of your life anymore.

When getting any tattoo from anywhere in the world, there are a few principle ideas that you should never forget about. First and foremost, hygiene and reputation are extremely important when it comes to choosing a tattoo artist, as they are more likely to stop you from making mistakes in the first place. Finally, the tattoo should have something to do with you and not someone else, because the only constant in your life until the day you pass away is your own self.

If you want to add an extension to your property, you need to be prepared for lots of research and planning before you get started. If you haven’t yet made your final decision on whether it’s the right option for you, here are five advantages that a home extension can bring, helping to add value to your property and giving you more space to relax and unwind in.

Creating Space

If you’re looking to add extra space to your property, a home extension may be the way forward for you. Whether it be adding an extra room to your house, or even installing your own home studio, there are all sorts of avenues that you can take to give you some much needed room. For inspiration, companies like Bibo Build are a great place to start, as they allow you to customise back yard studios which are council pre-certified, meaning you have one less process to deal with.

Saving Money

Instead of going for the easy option and moving home, a home extension can be a cost-effective way of creating more room in your home. When you factor in the stress and expense of moving home, simply staying put and extending your property can be a fantastic alternative. If you’ve found your home is no longer big enough to fit you and your family in, making adjustments and creating space can be a fantastic way to meet your lifestyle requirements and needs.

Adding Value

A home extension can be a fantastic way to add value to your property, which can be hugely beneficial if you ever wish to move. Instead of hoping that a lick of paint will entice potential buyers, adding an extra room to your property may see the value of your home increase significantly. While it may seem like an odd idea, an extension to your home can be an incredibly wise decision and make the moving process that little bit easier.

Make It Your Own

There are various reasons why you may want to extend your home. Whether it be to add an office, a room for your ever-growing family, or simply to extend onto one of your current rooms, one of the great things about getting an extension is that you can make it your own. From the shape of the room, the type of wallpaper you want in it, as well as the furniture, make sure to put your home design cap on which can help you create the room of your dreams.

You May Not Need Planning Permission

For those who aren’t in the know, getting an extension to your home is typically classed as a permitted development, meaning that you will not need to obtain planning permission. As one of the main reasons why people are put off extending their home is because of having to get planning permission, this is just one less worry that you have to think about.

Whether you’re thinking of adding a home extension to add value to your property, or simply to create more space for you to enjoy, there are all sorts of advantages that you can receive when extending your home. Make sure to have a plan in place before work gets underway, as well as creating a budget to help you work out the financial costs of your project.

A green lifestyle is important to adopt regardless of where you live or your age demographic. After all, it is through safeguarding the environment that both the current and future generations can continue to live in a world that is thriving. The consequences of not doing so results in damaging the world’s ecosystems and eliminating the natural resources that everyone depends on for the sake of survival, such as water.

The good news is that there are always countless habits you can adopt that will not only improve your carbon footprint, but also help the environment at large. This article is here to shed more light on this topic.

Saving water and reusable water bottle

Learning how to save water properly is one of the easiest ways that you can live a greener lifestyle. For starters, make sure to take shorter showers, turn the tap off when you aren’t using it, stop purchasing plastic water bottles, and so on.

Waste reduction

Waste reduction is a problem given the amount of plastic that is bought and thrown away, the landfills that are continuously on the rise, and the fact that not all garbage is recycled. The smallest difference you can make is to reduce the amount of waste that you produce, but above this, you need to simply do more research and become educated on the topic.

For instance, it’s important that you know exactly what your city does to reduce waste, as this in itself will affect the state of the environment. Already, there are places that have adopted the best septic tank services, and this is incredibly beneficial for the environment due to the fact that they are more eco-friendly than the regular sewage treatment system. A septic tank will always eliminate waste through a natural filtering process.

You can start to make a change by becoming more knowledgeable in this field, and even spreading the word to your friends and family about the importance of doing so.

Avoid fast fashion

Fast-fashion has become increasingly popular, yet it simply adds to the waste that you produce. As an alternative, why not visit more second-hand shops or thrift stores? The chances are that you will find clothes are much more unique, are not as expensive, and you know that what you are purchasing is long lasting.

Save energy

People are heavily reliant on energy everywhere, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t lessen just how much you use. You can easily purchase light bulbs that use less energy, or you can even invest in solar powered panels as your main source of light.

Moreover, even turning off the light switch when you leave the room can start to make a difference to your energy usage. Not only are you helping the environment, but you will lessen your monthly energy bill as well.

The smallest habit, such as turning off the lights when you are no longer in the room, can start to lessen your carbon footprint. There are countless other ways you can live a more sustainable life, but the tips mentioned thus far are certainly your starting point for what you can do. In fact, you may even wind up influencing your friends or family to do the same! The more people that start to demonstrate that they care, the more changes that you can make within the city that you live in on a larger scale, as well.

Whatever your child’s ambitions, you want to see them grow and flourish and do what they love. If your daughter loves dancing, this is certainly something to be encouraged from an early age. Dancing has many amazing benefits for the body and can help your daughter to socialize too. Dancing is great exercise and is a great skill to have. Whether your daughter wants to do dancing in her spare time, or pursue it as a career, encouraging her love of dance and being supportive is essential as a parent. If your daughter loves to dance, here is how you can encourage her to pursue her passion.

Be Happy with Her Decisions

You as a parent need to be happy with your daughter’s decision to dance. Everyone paves their own path and whilst you may have wished for your daughter to be in a different career, if dancing is what she wants to do with her life, then you need to support this decision. The more you push her back as a parent, the more she will want to rebel. The best thing we can do as parents is to support our children and be there for them whether they succeed or don’t. If this is what she loves, you can make sure she is good at it and gets to where she wants to go. Always be supportive, no matter what your views are. There are many people that lead a fulfilling lifestyle as a dancer and do this as their main career. There are many jobs that you can get as a dancer and your daughter could always have a part-time job until she makes it.

Take Her to Lessons

If your daughter loves dancing, dance lessons are a must to take part in competitions and refine her skills. There are many forms of dancing out there, so finding the right class might take some time. It may be that your daughter loves many different forms of dancing. Helping her to find her niche is the best way to encourage her love for dancing. Some dance classes provide a little bit of every form of dance, whilst others are very specific, such as ballet classes. It can be costly sending your daughter to dance lessons so if you are struggling with money it may be that you need to seek a class that isn’t too expensive. It is also important to find a dance class with great teachers, so look around and speak to other parents before making a decision. For more information on dance classes, visit this page.

Help Her Practice

Your daughter might need help practicing and she needs someone to show her new moves off to. As her parent, you can help her to practice and watch her learn. This is a great way to boost her confidence and show you care. When someone loves something, they want to share it with their loved ones, so encouraging her to practice before big shows will improve her confidence. This is also a great bonding experience and if you love dancing too, you can practice together, and you can give her tips. Even if you can’t dance at all, let her be your teacher and practice with you.

Be Her Number One Fan

Most importantly, you need to be her number one fan. This means coming to watch her in shows, supporting her when she is struggling with a routine and being there when she fails. Unfortunately, she might not win every competition she takes part in but being there for her and supporting her will ensure that she feels good despite not winning. Instilling into her at a young age that it is her performance that is key and that winning isn’t everything is super important so that she doesn’t become down and lose her confidence in situations where her dance troupe doesn’t come first in a competition. You can also support her by taking her to classes and buying her the clothes and shoes she needs to perform. Many parents also help out with dance classes, helping the children get ready for performances, so if you are good at hair or makeup, perhaps see if your daughter’s dance class need any help when it comes to their next big show. As a parent, you can also encourage her to apply for shows if she wants to be performing on stage. If she is serious about dance, encourage her to post her performances on social media (depending on her age, of course), especially if she is making up her own dance routines. In this day and age, this is a great way to get noticed.

Always Look for New Clubs and Events

Being on the lookout for any dancing events will provide your daughter with further opportunities. Whether this is a new dance class or a dancing convention, these opportunities are not to be missed if your daughter loves dancing and wants to make something of herself. There are many dancing conventions in which dancers compete, and this can be a great way to get your daughter’s name out there, or just to let her see what she could be capable of in the future if she isn’t ready yet. If your daughter is older and finishing school, perhaps think about enrolling her onto a dance program if this is something she is seriously considering as a career. There are many dance programs out there, so finding the best one for you and your daughter can be a minefield. Luckily, OnStage Blog has compiled a list of the top 25 dance programs in the U.S. at the moment.  

Encouraging your child’s ambitions will help them to become the best person they can be and love what they do. The more you support your daughter and provide her with opportunities, the more she will love and cherish you and the better she will become at dancing. Being there for her ups and downs is important as a parent, be her number one fan and she will appreciate it for the rest of her life.

You may have the desire to move for many reasons, but there’s a lot to consider before you relocate your family someplace new. Review the following list of ideas before you opt to switch residences so that you’re sure it’s the right decision for you.

What may help you come to the most ideal conclusion is to sit down and write a pros and cons list for moving or staying where you are currently. Lay out all the information on the table and give yourself time to think through your options before making a final decision. Change can be good, but you have to be prepared for all it entails so that you can adjust nicely to your new surroundings.

The Cost & Your Selling Options

Consider the cost of moving and your selling options before you pack up and go to a different home. Selling a house at auction versus a private sale, for instance, is worth reading more about so you can know the logistics and benefits of both before concluding what you want to do. Also, make sure the housing market is good so that you don’t struggle to sell your home once you put it on the market.

Where You’ll go

You’ll also want to consider where you’re going to go before moving house. For example, you’ll want to think about the neighbourhood, schools and what stores or shopping is nearby before you commit to a new location. You should have a good idea of where you want to head and a financing plan in place to help make the transition smoother and more successful.

Your Needs

You’ll also want to think about you and your family’s needs and requirements before you move house. It may be that you’re moving because you need more space and bedrooms or because there are better schools where you’re heading to. Either way, make a list of what your necessities are before you decide to sell and relocate your entire family.

Furnishing & Decorating A New Space

It’s also a big and costly job to furnish and decorate a new space. Especially, if the new house you are moving into is larger than your current residence. Therefore, make sure you’re prepared to do so both physically and financially before you buy a new house. While this can be a fun project, it can also be tiring and time-consuming so plan ahead and make sure you’re up for the job before taking it on.

Your Job & Friends

You should also consider what opportunities there are for jobs and to make friends in a new location prior to you committing to moving. You’ll want to confirm it’s going to be easy to find new work when you relocate or that you’re able to keep your same job if you move. In addition, if having friends and friendly neighbours your age is important to you then scope out the new areas in advance before putting money down on a house and moving to a different town or city.

No one likes dark spots under their eyes.  They make you look tired, older, and in extreme cases, can affect your self-esteem. That’s why it makes sense to invest in treatment that can help you permanently get rid of these spots. However, even as you do so, you need to be careful not to fall into the trap of quacks. There are so many of them, selling counterfeit products that can only add to your mystery. To help you get the best treatment possible, here are the top tips to investing in under eye care.

1.   Research on the best doctors

Before you rush to seek treatment for dark spots and other under eye issues, make sure you are getting that treatment from a reputable doctor.  Finding a skin care facility that has reputable doctors is not difficult. You just need to make good use of the internet, and look for a facility with good customer reviews. One such facility is Skin Club. They are renowned for their skin care treatment. For instance, if you have tear trough and dark circles, their tear trough fillers can help you out. From their customer reviews, they have a good reputation in dealing with such issues, among many others.

2.   Research on product ingredients

All under eye treatments are not the same. What really matters is the ingredients that make up a product, and that is what you should focus on, when shopping for one. For instance, if you are dealing with fine lines under your eyes, the best treatment would be one whose ingredients stimulate collagen production. That’s because, it is a decline in collagen production that causes these lines, which later advance to form wrinkles. In essence, the key thing to look for is a product that deals with the root cause of the problem, and not just the symptoms.

3.  Invest in sunscreen

Unless you spend most of your time indoors, the sun can be a significant contributor to saggy skin, and that includes under the eyes. To protect your skin, make sure you apply sunscreen whenever you intend to spend some time out in the sun. It doesn’t cost much, and is an amazing investment, if you want to maintain a firmer looking, smooth skin under the eyes.  Just make sure to buy your sunscreen from reputable dealers.

4.    Live a healthy lifestyle

No product or treatment out there can beat a healthy lifestyle. To ensure that the products you use work efficiently, make sure to eat a balanced diet, exercise, drink lots of water, and best of all, sleep well. These are things that you can’t replace with any medical products. For instance, getting at least 8-hours of sleep a day can help replenish your skin, and when coupled with a good skin care regiment, you will never have any dark spots under the eyes. Not only does a healthy lifestyle help your skin, but it also helps you feel good about yourself. This helps reduce stress, which is a key contributor to under eye skin issues.

Whether you’re looking to sell your property in the very near future or are looking to add value gradually for when the time comes to put the house on the market, there are many ways you can increase the price of your property and its appeal to potential buyers.

There are specific projects which have been proven to boost the value of a property. However, it is essentially up to you on how much you are looking to spend and the amount of work you can take on for the renovation.

If you are keen on working your way up the property ladder, you will need to pay close attention to how to make a good investment later on down the line when it comes to selling. Here are several projects you can look into to dramatically increase the value of your home.

• Resolve structural issues

Before you can think about redecorating or remodelling the interior of your home, you need to ensure that all the fundamental structural problems are taken care of first. The likes of subsidence, leaking roofs, cracks to the walls, or collapsed floors should be the priority as to where your renovation budget is spent first and foremost. Although fixing these issues can be costly, they are essential if you wish to add value and gain the attention of potential buyers. Although some buyers are looking to carry out renovation projects when on the hunt for their ideal property, too much concentration on the structural issues can be off-putting, so don’t limit your market by refusing to take care of the basics.

• Convert your loft

A typical loft conversion is far cheaper than building an extension, so if your attic is empty and there is plenty of space to make use of, renovating the interior would be a great way of adding value to your home. Although this will be another costly investment, it will certainly pay off when it comes to selling up.

Lofts can be used to create another bedroom, playroom or even an office when space is limited within the rest of the home. Unlike extensions, loft conversions don’t usually require planning permission, as you’re using existing space within the property. However, there may be occasions when you need to apply for planning permission if the conversion is visible from the front of the property, so it’s always worth checking, just in case there are any legal implications to be aware of.

• Getting rid of interior flaws

Although a few minor flaws within the interior of the property won’t necessarily lose value, they may put many potential buyers off, meaning you will be forced to settle for a much lower value than the initial asking price. Typical defects such as cracking paint, mouldy sealant in the kitchen and bathrooms, dripping taps, loose tiles and broken windows can be easily fixed by a DIY job or seeking the assistance of a professional.

• Add a pool to the garden

Did you know that installing a swimming pool in the back garden could boost your house value by up to 7%? Be aware though, that there are a lot of maintenance costs to bear in mind after the initial cost of installation! Therefore, it wouldn’t be a good idea to invest in a pool for the sole reason of selling up, but instead, enjoy it for a few years beforehand while you’re still living in the property, so it becomes a worthwhile investment.

According to Houselogic, installing a pool has even more chance of adding value to the home if you live in a higher-end neighbourhood where potential buyers are looking for luxury features. The pool also shouldn’t take up the entire garden space. Instead, you should still have enough room to be able to walk around freely and add garden furniture without difficulty. One of the most popular choices of pools is known as gunite pools, which can be easily customised to a selection of shapes and sizes, lengths and depths. Find out more about gunite pool cost today.

• Adding an extra bedroom

One great method of adding value to the property would be to add another bedroom to the living space. As mentioned, you could decide on converting the loft or adding an extension, but these options aren’t always necessary.

You could change up the existing interior by splitting the space by removing and adding walls which is an extremely cost-effective way of integrating another room to the home. However, be sure that there is a suitable balance between bedrooms and bathrooms, as buyers may be on the lookout for a suitable floor plan when it comes to accommodating guests.

• Re-design the kitchen and bathrooms

A well-designed kitchen is one of the fundamental aspects potential buyers look for when viewing a property; therefore, if your kitchen is outdated and doesn’t feature all of the necessary amenities, you may struggle to sell your home. Consider aspects such as its shape, function and position in the home and work out whether any structural changes need to be made.

Similarly, buyers are also on the lookout for contemporary and hygienic bathrooms that will add a touch of luxury to the living space. In most cases, it would be wise to rip out the existing bathroom entirely if it is several years old and start over, but if you have recently renovated it, you can still keep it looking fresh by painting the walls a neutral tone and ensuring you incorporate as much natural light as possible.

Here are a few necessities your bathroom should feature:

• At least one shower, as this is an essential feature that most buyers require
• Check the plumbing system and decide whether you need a mains pressure, combi, or gravity fed system
• Replace tiles that are chipped, stained or an out-of-date colour, which may be off-putting to the buyer
• Add a few mirrors to enlarge the space, especially in very small bathrooms