Renovating your home is a lot like starting a new health and fitness plan – you become aware of your limitations rather quickly. This can be a humbling experience, even if you have many years of past ventures successfully under your belt.
After all, not all houses are the same. Renovating an old farmhouse with a completely uninhabitable barn is nowhere near the same as sprucing up a relatively modern townhouse, and certainly not an inner-city flat. While they’ve all been designated as “real estate,” and perhaps even “your home,” it’s important to note that what worked for one abode may not work for another.
This isn’t a post designed to demoralize you however, we’re certain that the plans you have in place are pressing, creative, and most of all, necessary for the future of this space. No matter if you hope to flip the house or live there for many years, nothing can compare to a heartfelt and creative vision for what your property could be.
That said, from time to time, it’s good to learn what not to do just as much as what to do. This is especially true if you’re trying to renovate for the first time.
In this post, we’ll help you with exactly that:
Perform A Full Home Inspection
It’s very easy to plan what you’d like to do with your home, it’s another thing to understand exactly, to the precise dimensions, the base you have to plan from. A full home inspection can help you reveal any issues or obstacles to your plans. The last thing you want is to knock down a wall that was integral to your internal wiring or plumbing.
A home inspection can also help you identify any issues that may have taken shape, like damp that led to rot in your basement, or perhaps even property borders that may not have been defined correctly in your sales deed. When you’re able to see clearly, you can adjust any repairs needed, or subsume those tasks into your renovation planning.
Keep Specialists On Hand
Unless you’re specifically qualified in certain practices, it’s important to have those specialists on hand to help you with your renovation. For example, getting a quote from a respectable plumbing company can help you determine exactly how much it will cost to reorient your bathroom before you begin tearing out the fittings.
Specialists can also provide you pertinent advice to help you structure your renovation plans with more confidence. If you’re renovating enough space, you may even decide to use the skills of an architect to provide the plans and specific dimensions, giving you the blueprint to work from, designed in collaboration with your own intents. This might be an expense, sure, but it’s more than worth measuring twice and cutting once than suffering the alternative.
Give Yourself More Budgeted Rope Than You Need
It can be tempting to start your renovations the moment you have just enough budget to get started. This might not be the worst idea, but of course, it’s good to give yourself some wriggle room here.
It might be that the weather has been so bad that your roofing specialists simply cannot work until your house dries out, or perhaps the price of raw materials (like wood or certain fittings) has increased without your expectation. Small expenses can surprise you too – for instance hiring industrial vehicles you can use to knock down an outhouse may also come with a security deposit rather than just the rental fee. You get it back of course, but you have to pay that now.
As such, make sure you have just a little more in your bank than you need. It may help you out in a pinch, and odds are you’re going to use it.
Vet Your Suppliers
It’s essential to vet any trades services or suppliers you use to ensure you won’t be left with a bad job after paying your bill. What warranties do they offer? Do they have a website, with testimonials and reviews? Can you get an in-person recommendation from someone you know and trust?
Vetting suppliers with a little pre-check can help you avoid being stung by a rogue trader, which unfortunately can still happen in 2023. When you find a reliable service, you’ll feel happier returning to them for the work that needs doing, allowing speedier future renovations. Moreover, you may be able to support a new business, or potentially even get a discount on services if you offer to advertise them, perhaps with a sign that will stay outside your property for 90 days when the work has been completed.
With this advice, you’re sure to prevent home renovation strategies before they even happen.
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