Homeowners can plan and hope for years before they end up buying their first home. But home ownership isn't the end of the story — in fact, it's just the beginning of a grand and sometimes stressful journey. Homes need to be protected with insurance and cared for with routine maintenance. Things get broken and need to be fixed; walls need to be repainted and floors need to be replaced.

And you shouldn't stop there. Keeping up with your home's pressing maintenance and repair needs is one thing, but actively improving your home can be quite another. When you take the time to invest in improvements and perfect your living space, you'll get more out of your home while you live there. Plus, you may also end up increasing the value of your home when you choose to sell your home or create value in its equity that you can use in another way.

Here's what you need to know about improving your home.

The how and why of home improvement

The term "home improvement" may make you think of DIYers and personal projects. That's is certainly one aspect, but it’s far from the whole story when it comes to home improvement.

The reality is that you don't have to be a DIY fan to get into home improvement. Home improvement is about making your home more perfect for you: improving the space, making rooms more productive, and creating more comfort in your house. You can ( and often should ) hire professionals to do this for you. You'll be in charge, of course, but you won't have to swing a hammer or pull a saw yourself.

Home improvement is also a savvy investment. Homeownership is about having a beautiful space to call home, of course, but it's also a financial commitment: owning a home and paying a mortgage is an investment and can take nearly half a lifetime to pay off. Ideally, home owners want their properties to increase in value through the years. For that to happen — or even for the home to just hold its value — the home's maintenance and repairs must be taken care of. Occasional renovations and remodels can keep a home up-to-date and increase its valuable to potential buyers. A true home improvement projects can do just what the term implies: it can improve the value of the home. Here, again, it makes sense to turn to a professional: a high-quality, professional home improvement job is going to do more for the value of your home than a less-than-perfect DIY effort.

In short, you don't have to be a DIY person to improve your home. You just need a phone and the number of a trusted contractor.

Improving your home's appearance, inside and out

One great way to improve your space is to update its look. Re-painting, replacing wallpaper, or replacing siding can go a long way toward making your space look fresh and new again.

On top of that, experts in exterior house painting in Massachusetts explain that seemingly cosmetic projects can actually have a huge impact on the long-term condition of your house. Paint and siding do more than just look pretty: they help insulate the home and protect its raw materials from damage. When you neglect painting and other projects, you could be neglecting your house itself.

Superior and efficient home comfort

Your home may have heating, air conditioning, and other basic home comfort systems, but those systems may be out of date, lacking energy efficient technology. An Affordable Air and Heat system can be an important aspect of your home, creating comfortable living temperatures, as well as saving homeowners a lot of money with efficient heating and cooling — and, therefore, lower energy bills.

You don't necessarily need a whole new HVAC system to improve your home. Talk to trusted contractors about repairs, maintenance, and improvements to your existing system. Or talk to experts in insulation about keeping your air-conditioned air in and the outside air out.

High-value renovations

Remodeling and renovation projects are among the more ambitious home improvement projects that you can consider. They may seem like serious undertakings, and they certainly can be, but don't assume that they don't make financial sense! Certain types of home improvement projects can have a bigger impact on your home's value than others , and remodeling jobs can be big financial gains.

Kitchens and bathrooms, for instance, are areas that are very important in a home yet tend to date quickly. Remodeling such spaces can give your home's value a real and immediate boost. Consider those as options for your next home improvement project.