Windows & Doors

Home improvements increase your home enjoyment, but they also affect your home’s resale value – upgrading your windows and doors can yield a 50 to 75% return on investment at resale*.  These tips will help you plan for your window and door improvement needs with a focus on resale value:

Plan – Consider important factors such as climate, cost, and style when planning your window and door upgrades.  Seek professional advice to help determine what options best fit your needs and budget.  Most companies provide a service that includes fitting, delivering, and installation.

Prioritize – Decide what features are most important to you.  Wooden doors and windows are great for their natural warmth and appearance, fiberglass and vinyl are ideal for superior durability and maintenance, and steel is your best bet for added strength and security.

Style – Choose doors and windows that fit the character of your home.  Casement windows and patio doors enhance viewing areas while adding more natural light, bay windows help create a focal point and enlarge a room’s appearance, and wooden doors can be custom made with unique designs and patterns.

Security – Add transparent polyester strips (PET) to glass for extra security. This window film can easily bear the pressure of intensive strikes by rods, hammers, and rocks.  Choose a metal or solid hardwood entry door no less than 5cm thick to help prevent against break-ins.

Sound – Ensure your windows and doors are insulated for sound as 90% of exterior noise enters your home this way.  Using laminated safety glass, secondary glazing, or placing a wider airspace between glass panes will help reduce outside noise significantly.

Lighting – Maximize the natural light that enters your home by installing windows or doors with glass panels on the south side of your house.  This will allow sunlight to enter your home in the winter and prevent direct sunlight in the summer, so you can limit the unnecessary heating and cooling of your home.

Efficiency – Be aware that 30% of energy in your house is lost through windows and doors. Prevent heat loss in the winter and heat gain in the summer by using double or triple glazed glass panes and by purchasing windows with a low-e coating or inert gas fills.  Steel and fiberglass doors have cores of foam insulation that give them better energy efficiency than wood. 

Maintenance – Keep your windows and doors in good condition.  Replace caulking and window glaze every few years to prevent drafts and condensation, and update the stain or paint on your door to keep it weather resistant and looking like new.

Upgrading your home’s windows and doors is a great way to enhance its entryway and curb appeal.  When it comes to reselling your home, the more people like the outside, the more they will want to see the inside. Depending on the quality of installation, materials and maintenance, your new windows and doors carry a minimum life expectancy of 10 years and 25 years respectively.