Renovation.....finale

Finally things are getting in shape. The philosophy driving behind it finally is translated into real things. The idea behind it was functional, honesty(no faking or over-crowded or over-simplified) and timeless. Sorry folks, no pictures as I would like to retain this small part of our privacy(we are no celebrity). Though we have 20% to go, I'm happy with the effects. And everyone is happy with the end results. Everyone can see how the whole thing will look like when we finally have a small party later(may be coincide with American Independence day).

It's time to reflect on the investment issues. Here are my opinions of what I think there are worthwhile investments

1. Solar water heating system. Beside safety issue, on the longer term, copper piping is going to go up. The heating cost is going to go up as well. The sooner we get into this the better. Plus you can't cheat age, sooner or later you are going to need it.

2. LED lighting, most people think it is still pricey. Yes it is, with 5 years life span, the next cycle of replacement could be cheaper when it gets down to mass market(mainstream). Start to learn this technology early will be advantageous. In Japan, LED lighting has overtaken the conventional lighting systems. Their government is going for LED lighting systems in the coming Fukushima reconstruction project. Taiwanese is catching up and soon the rest of the world will catch up too.

3. Pendant lights. This is movable when you want to upgrade your next house.

4. Kitchen. Most people will not appreciate the furniture you put it but this one can retain good value(especially with good quality cabinet top) when you want to sell your house later.

5. Concealed electrical and air conditioners piping. I will make sure I have enough points so that I will not have to spend more money later on. I've thought of eubiq system (http://www.eubiq.com/index.php?id=3) but I think it's way over-priced. However, I think this eubiq system is an excellent choice to kill octopus with 100 legs around the messy entertainment system.

6. Plants. Certain plants will grow in value when it reaches certain maturity.

7. This is something money can't buy you ...... satisfaction of how you build up the whole project from ground up. The happiness that you see on everyone's faces. To be honest, I think I've over-ran my budget by 150% but I finally asked my right brain to take over my left brain. What the heck, for once, spend it without guilt! Damn, out you go with financial planner advice start with a budget before you start. Now after go through this, yes start with a budget but be prepared to have twice amount of reserve before you start, or else when you sell your shares during this period, it will cost you more!