Renovating a home is on the rise thanks to HGTV, the DIY Network, and other home renovation stations. For many people, remodeling a home provides a great way to get a more affordable home in crazy real estate markets like in Southern California or outside of Washington, D.C. Others renovate to make a home feel more personalized, and yet others simply want a modern look and feel. No matter your reasons to renovate, there are some important things you need to know before you get started.
Things You Need to Know Before you Renovate a House
Hire Professionals for Certain Things
If you plan to DIY at least some of the project, it’s important to know what your strengths are and when you’ll need a contractor. It’s one thing to patch a hole in a wall, it’s a whole other thing to construct the frame of a wall to code, put it in the right place, drywall, mud, and paint it. While you might be skilled enough to do parts of the project, use professionals for things like plumbing, electrical, and even structural components if you want to save yourself from future headaches.
It Will Cost More Than You Plan
No matter how well you stick to the budget, it will almost always cost you more than you planned. This is why it’s critical to add at least 10% to your home renovation budget to account for those extra expenses. You never know what could break or go wrong when you’re doing construction projects in a house. Additionally, it also helps to have a buffer in case you need to make any last-minute changes. Having the budget in place to account for these changes will make all the difference in the world.
Construction Companies Hate Last Minute Changes
Seeing your home remodeled gets exciting, when the contractor finally starts to put all the pieces together it can get even more wonderful. Don’t let this excitement cause you to call and make constant little changes. While they may seem like no big deal to you, changing out the color of your walls last minute means you’ll need to order new paint and can delay the project much longer than any of you would like. It’s best to keep changes to a minimum once you’ve approved the finishes and the details of your home renovation.
You Need Permits
Some smaller projects might be able to get done without contacting the permit office in your county. Others will require permits to complete. Things like taking down walls, moving electrical, and even insulation removal might require a permit to complete. When you’re doing a renovation with a contractor, they should help take care of these for you. If you are DIYing parts of the project, pay close attention to the projects that may require you to get a permit.
You May Need To Make Compromises
Not everything you want will work in your house. There are some things that, structurally, are near impossible to do, or would require you to essentially build a brand new house. With that said, be realistic and be willing to make compromises to get the things that are essential. Renovating a house is a huge undertaking and there are so many different moving pieces that will need to come together to help your house get complete.
Give Yourself a Healthy Timeline
With that said, don’t fool yourself into thinking that your house will be fully remodeled in a month or two. Depending on the supplies needed, the workload of the people doing the renovations, and how much time you can spend on it per week, some whole house renovations take 4-6 months to complete. This is especially true for projects that have additions or need special permits to complete.
When you’re renovate a house, whether it’s your own home or a fix and flip, you need to go into it with your eyes wide open. Having a good plan in place at the beginning, ordering supplies right away, and keeping changes to a minimum will help to mitigate any big extra expenses. Additionally, understanding that in real life, most projects take longer than they do for T.V. can help you manage your expectations and frustrations if the project takes a while to complete.
