When you walk into a home with high ceilings, the difference that extra height makes is immediately apparent. Rooms feel larger and airier, and the home itself feels more elegant. This is especially true in basements, which oftentimes feel cramped, dank, and claustrophobic, even when they have standard height ceilings.

While it may not be in your budget to upgrade to eleven-foot ceilings, even raising the ceilings by a single foot can make a huge difference. Most standard homes come with eight-foot ceilings; upgrading to nine-foot ceilings can make your home feel more luxurious. 

In addition to high ceilings, one way to make a home feel larger without increasing the footprint is by making the windows larger. Natural light makes everything feel more open, airy, and spacious, and large windows can blend your indoor and outdoor spaces. And in the summertime, who doesn’t love taking advantage of the natural daylight hours as long as possible?

If possible, upgrade your home to larger size windows in every area you can. You should also opt to place your curtain rods close to the ceiling, rather than at the top of the window. This will make your windows seem larger and your ceilings seem higher without making any additional upgrades.

It should come as no surprise that hardwood floors are on the list of recommended home improvement upgrades. Wood floors are a classic, providing the sort of timeless elegance we all strive for in our homes. They’re long-lasting, and unlike carpet, they can be refinished, rather than having to be replaced, when they get worn out.

If you plan to get hardwood floors, you should be aware that you’ll need to do some work to maintain them. Always clean them only with mild soap and water or a specialized hardwood floor cleaner. You  should wipe up spills as quickly as possible to prevent warping.