Remodel and Refresh Your Way into the Home of Your Dreams
Get inspired with homeowner success stories and expert tips
By Chelsea Lin and Jennifer Pinto January 2, 2019

This article originally appeared in the January 2019 issue of Seattle magazine.
This article appears in print in the January 2019 issue, as part of the Remodel & Refresh cover story. Click here to subscribe.
Anyone who has driven Seattle’s residential streets and noticed how many are now lined with shiny new complexes and contemporary, boxy homes knows that Seattle is building like mad. But it’s not just new buildings going up—we’re also remodeling at an unprecedented rate. Maybe it’s the fact that the median home price, despite the recent flat-line, has risen to a point where it’s no longer tenable to trade up. Maybe it’s our collective love of all things HGTV. But according to the American Housing Survey by the U.S. Census, Seattle area homeowners have doubled the amount of money they’re spending on remodeling—both professional and D.I.Y. projects—in the last couple of years.
Sometimes those jobs are as simple as updating a room with a couple rolls of chic wallpaper; other times, homes are being taken down to the studs. A key word of wisdom from architect Henry Lo—one of the experts we polled for remodeling tips that you’ll find throughout the articles below: “Go in [to any remodeling project] knowing that you do not have enough money to do everything you want to do.”
Take a cue from our experts and homeowners featured in the articles below; we hope they’ll inspire you to turn your current home into your forever home.
This Wallingford Kitchen Remodel Lets the Sun Shine In
A Magnolia Home Refresh Without the Construction Mess
AIA Home of Distinction: Inside a View Ridge Midcentury Makeover