Homeowners Share 15 Upgrades They Didn't Think They'd Need, But Now Can't Live Without

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For most of us, there are aspects of our homes that we simply couldn't be without. It could be granite worktops in your kitchen, an extra-powerful shower, or the ceiling fan in your bedroom that helps you cope with those unbearable summer evenings. But what if you're buying a place with a view to fixing it up? Or what if you're planning to gut and completely renovate your current abode? In either case, you'll want to ensure that none of your time or hard-earned money goes to waste. In other words, you'll want to spend them on upgrades that you're going to love for years to come.

You may already have some idea of the things you want to include. If you don't, then trying to navigate the long and overwhelming list of potential upgrades can make it tempting to give up on the idea altogether. But, hang in there. To help, we've gone on the hunt for feedback from homeowners on the upgrades they've made to their homes that they now couldn't live without. For some, it's a central vac system. For others, it's an induction stove. Many homeowners agree that it's worth upgrading your insulation to ensure your living quarters are kept comfortable, and especially if you have a cat, then the consensus seems to be that you and your feline friend are unlikely to regret the addition of underfloor heating. There are plenty more ideas below, so, assuming that you don't yet have a boiling water tap, stick the kettle on, take a seat, and find the inspiration you need to kickstart your dream home renovation.

Making cooking faster, easier, and especially ideal for homes not connected to mains gas, an induction stove frequently nears the tops of the lists of upgrades that homeowners simply couldn't be without. They offer a serious upgrade to standard electric cooktops, largely thanks to superior heat control. Induction cooktops are also inherently much safer than regular glass-top and electric stoves, since modern induction units will only switch on if there's a pan on the stove. What's more, whereas gas can release pollutants into your home whenever you switch on the stove, induction cookers emit precisely zero.

If you're looking for a way to achieve decent cooking control, and you're unable to opt for gas (or would prefer not to have it), then as one Redditor explains, "Induction is absolutely the way to go. More control, cheaper, incredibly fast." Another in the same thread seconds this, saying "It's MILES better than any glass top I've ever used. We also couldn't get gas. My husband talked me into spending the money and I'm so glad we did."

A central vac represents a serious upgrade for homeowners, and for several reasons. The first is that, instead of lugging a traditional, heavy vacuum cleaner around your house, a central vacuum provides sockets in strategic spots around the home that you can simply plug your lightweight hose into. Some systems even allow you to tuck hoses away in the walls, so you needn't actually carry anything anywhere!

As well as saving your back, a central vacuum is also a boon to pet owners, whose furry friends might occasionally overwhelm the abilities of a regular vacuum cleaner. This is because, generally speaking, central vacuums are more powerful than traditional appliances. Even without pets, they can help to keep your home significantly cleaner and freer of dust than homes without them.

Others over on Reddit tend to agree. As one Reddit user puts it, "Nothing beats a central vacuum! The power is unmatched by portable vacuums." Another agrees, elaborating, "I also love that the dust and allergens are sucked into the tank in the garage, and only having to empty the tank every 6 months is great."

If you're tired of waiting for the kettle to boil whenever you have guests come over for a coffee, then you're probably wondering: is it worth adding a boiling water tap to your kitchen? The consensus seems to be that it is, and that's because these appliances are more than just convenient. They're also much more energy efficient than regular kettles, meaning they can potentially help you to reduce your energy bills.

Unsurprisingly, homeowners seem to absolutely love them, explaining that they're fantastic for a range of uses, like filling a French press, making soup, and starting pots of boiling water for cooking methods like poaching and blanching. "You do need space under the sink for the cylinders," says one Redditor, "but we use boiling [water] all the time for cooking and hot drinks." In other words, it's more than worth the trade off, and many other contributors agree that once you have a boiling water tap, you'll wonder why on earth you ever put up with a kettle.

The absence of decent heating is most keenly felt in the bathroom. This is especially true in the winter, when you need to dry yourself as quickly as you can, lest you allow the water to freeze on your skin. If this sounds familiar, then it'll come as no surprise that heated flooring in the bathroom is almost always worth it. It takes the sting out of the chill and heats your room every bit as effectively as a standard radiator, yet it does so without taking up space on the wall.

Of course, budget is likely to be a concern when installing something as luxurious as underfloor heating. If you're able to afford $1,000 or more on this upgrade, or you're going to the trouble of renovating your bathroom anyway, then as one Redditor says, "there is no reason NOT to do it." You're unlikely to regret the extra expense, and according to another contributor, your feline friend is also sure to be glad you sprung for it. "My cat now lives in the bathroom. She has multiple heated beds, but she chooses there."

Offering a distinctly European way of keeping yourself clean, a bidet may seem like an unnecessary decadence in the bathroom. However, it would seem that among the homeowners across Houzz and Reddit who have tried them, most seem to recognize the improvement in personal hygiene that a bidet offers versus traditional toilet paper. As one commenter over on Houzz, who admits that they were initially skeptical, says, "don't knock it until you've tried it."

These bathroom upgrades are also well-rated on Reddit. A "Bidet with heated seat, self-cleaning, auto lights, and auto lid open and close. You won't know how you ever lived without one," explains one Redditor. Another says that it's possible to get a bidet attachment, which, for them, means "I'm no longer dreading washing my 3 boys' laundry."

You may already have fallen in love with a particular tap — perhaps a cheeky little brass number that catches the sun as it spills through the kitchen window. But have you thought about the water that comes out of it? If not, then consider adding a filter.

Like any home upgrade, there are a few things to consider before installing an under-sink water filter. However, you should know that they are almost always considered to be worth it. Demanding zero energy, these reverse-osmosis filters deliver contaminant-free water to your taps. They filter out lead, chlorine, fluoride, and other impurities, leading to water that isn't just healthier, but that, according to some, genuinely tastes better.

"I got a virgin pure water filter and it's changed my life," says one homeowner over on Reddit. "I wish I didn't get it because now I'll be a slave to my water filter for the rest of my life." Another, who installed a reverse osmosis water filter system in their home, says, "It makes water taste so good. I didn't realize I'd become a water snob after we got it though."

Lighting timers allow you to automate your home's lighting. They're definitely an upgrade in homes that don't yet benefit from them, and for a couple of reasons. When you're not home, a well-lit home in the hours of darkness can deter potential burglars from trying their luck. Automated lights are also handy for homeowners during the winter, shining a light on things when you arrive home from work. Instead of fumbling around for your keys, and trying to remember where the kids left their toys in the hallway as you work your way along to the light switch, your timers ensure that everything's already illuminated for when you arrive home.

You could also achieve this by installing smart bulbs around your house. By connecting these to your WiFi, and thus to your smartphone, you can automate your home's lighting schedule, putting control at your fingertips while setting a schedule for your lighting that ensures you can see what you're doing on those long wintry evenings. "The lights on timers are amazing," says one Redditor. "I love coming home [and] not having to turn the lights on in the dark, especially in winter." Another says that they "Love having a warm glow in the evenings."

If you're buzzing around the house sorting a week's worth of laundry, having your whole house equipped for audio has got to be better than cranking a single speaker up to 11 and hoping you'll hear it upstairs. "I love doing the laundry and putting it away and having my music throughout the house," says one Redditor. Another user says, "It's super nice to be able to do all sorts of chores without the music ever going away."

With modern smart home technology, keeping the music playing around the house has perhaps never been easier, putting control in your hands via your smartphone. More than that, the technology that's available today means that we don't actually need to have speakers "hardwired" into our homes to enjoy house-wide hi-fi. As one Redditor explains, you can just as easily do it by synchronizing a network of smart speakers. Yes, you'll need to purchase a series of smart speakers, like Echo Dots, which is unlikely to be cheap. But it'll be cheaper than having hi-fi speakers integrated into your home. What's more, if you use these Echo Dot Wall Mount Holders with cable organizers, you can incorporate them into the rooms of your house as unobtrusively as professionally-integrated speakers.

This is another one of those upgrades that's worth taking the time for if you're already redoing your kitchen. According to the homeowners who've installed them, the effect of under-cabinet lights can, especially in darker kitchens, be nothing short of transformative. They shed light on dull and dingy corners, and if the cabinets on your walls are depriving your counters of light, they can help make cooking and prepwork both safer and easier to see.

"Really can't go back to cooking without them," says one Redditor who installed under-cabinet lights in their kitchen. If you're remodeling your kitchen, another says that "it's easier to install them and not use them than to want them and not have them." In other words, if you think you may have use for them, then now is absolutely the time to fit them. "Trends aside, they're awesome!" explains another enthusiastic contributor. "We installed them a few years ago and 10/10 recommend."

Soft close drawers and cabinets keep you from accidentally slamming them shut, protecting the contents contained within as well as the doors of the units themselves. And, before you brush this one off as an unnecessary expense, hear us out. It might sound like a luxury you simply don't need; however, you should know that soft-close drawers and cabinets are tough to live without once you've had them. More than that, they're widely regarded by professional home designers as one of the most worthwhile kitchen upgrades for the price.

As one Redditor freely admits, the idea "seems superfluous." However, they go on to explain that "we got used to it in our last apartment and started slamming everything in our new home until we swapped out hardware." Another, over on Houzz, cites "soft close drawers (and lots of them) in the kitchen" as part of their "couldn't live without" list.

Upgrading your insulation can feel like one of the least exciting home upgrades. After all, whether you're spraying foam into the cavities of your wall or in your loft, it's not something you'll get to look at day-to-day. However, given that insulation makes your home more efficient, easier to heat, and cheaper to keep warm, improving it is almost always a good idea. It's rarely regretted by those who do it, and it's among the most profitable home improvements, offering a return on investment of up to, and often over, 100.

You don't need to be selling your house to benefit from new insulation, either. In fact many on Reddit cite angst at themselves for not having improved theirs sooner. "Attic insulation is such a huge improvement," says one Redditor. "I noticed a difference in my house on the same day it was installed." Another says that upgrading their insulation, as well as sealing the air gaps around their home, are together the best upgrades they've ever made to their home. "Not even remotely close," they explain, saying that their home is now comfortable, with "dry air and low energy bills."

Upgrading your landscape has a number of benefits. The first is that you'll get to enjoy looking at it each and every time you pull up on the drive; another is that your neighbors are sure to look enviously from their side of the fence at your beautifully manicured garden. If you like to entertain, quality landscaping allows you to take pride in your home and show it off to its best advantage whenever guests come over.

With this all in mind, it's no surprise that many say landscaping is one of the best upgrades they've made to their homes. One on Reddit, who for years didn't see the need to spend big on professional landscaping, says, "I didn't put effort into it until I was thinking about selling." They then paid a crew to come out and work their magic, and when they arrived home on the first day and saw how beautiful everything was, they immediately regretted putting it off. "I was mad at myself for not doing it sooner."

This may seem like an extravagance; however, automatic shutters can be incredibly convenient, especially in homes with lots of windows, or with shutters on large or hard-to-reach windows. "I can open and close them with a remote," says one Redditor. "I have floor-to-ceiling windows in many of the rooms in my house, so this has been a massive life upgrade for me that I couldn't think of doing without."

Another user, who has set their shutters to open and close automatically at sunrise and sunset, remarks how "smart home" features like this are some of the greatest upgrades they've made to their home. "It all started with some door sensors," they explain. "I must admit, I got a bit addicted to this stuff."

Several homeowners over on Houzz remark on how frequently they use their porch. The usage reasons vary — from sipping coffee in the morning and relaxing after work, to watching the kids play out in the garden. "We use it constantly," says one, while another explains that a porch is "something that you will never regret having, but may always regret not having!"

That's sage advice, and certainly worth bearing in mind if you've been wondering whether your home would benefit from a porch. Even if you already have one, a homeowner on Reddit explains that it's possible to further enhance it by adding a motorized roll-up screen. This, they say, will help to protect you and your family from insects. Also, they explain that "On excessively windy days, it greatly diminishes the wind and keeps rain off of us. On nice days, it gets rolled up into the top with the click of a remote."

Automating your plant watering with drip irrigation and sprinklers is especially worthwhile in hotter climates. Instead of unwinding the hose every morning and dreading the day you forget to water them, you can set your irrigation system to work automatically and leave the hose in the corner where it belongs. It's even possible to add irrigation to your smart home network, allowing you to tailor your garden's watering needs according to the weather — whether or not you're even home!

Smart or otherwise, automatic irrigation is frequently referenced as the most invaluable home upgrades by those who've sprung for it. They include one particularly zealous homeowner on Reddit who, due to their belief that "dragging hoses sucks," has run drip irrigation to no fewer than 49 trees, plus all of their plants and shrubs.