Renovating your home is a big project that has to be taken seriously. Unfortunately, after a few years of living, your house won’t stay the same as the day you’ve built it. Whether you want to redecorate your home or go for a full renovation, you need to follow some principles in order to avoid unnecessary costs or fundamental build mistakes.
In today’s article, we highlighted some of the biggest mistakes you need to avoid when it comes to renovating your home, so let’s jump into it.
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Renovating too soon
People always fall for the same mistake of renovating a house just after they’ve moved in. At that point, you don’t know the flow of the house, and you need more information about what to change or not.
For example, you need to know where are the choke points, which way the rain slants or the sun hits. Such things can only be noticed if you live in the house for a couple of months.
After you know what’s wrong with your house, you’ll be able to make a better plan for renovating.
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Underestimating Renovating Costs
House renovation can turn out to be a costly project depending on the things you want to update. So, you need to plan your budget the right way in order to avoid unfinished projects or running over budget.
The best way is to add at least 20% of what you think your renovation will cost.
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Not Consulting With a Designer From the Start
Your renovation plan will determine the workflow of the project. This means that changes later in the projects will result in more costs, missing deadlines, and sometimes the changes are not possible.
That’s why you need to hire a designer that will make your whole renovation project from the start. It will be much better to hire an interior designer or architect to do the entire project, rather than starting on your own and meeting dead ends.
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Expecting Everything to Go Smoothly
Many people get frustrated with their renovation project just because not all things go according to plan. This is a common thing, especially when you deal with an uncommon house where you don’t know what to expect unless you take stuff down.
There is a difference between new construction and renovating a used house. Much more planning goes into new construction, and the project is more controlled.
So, be prepared for the unexpected and don’t get frustrated when things don’t go your way.
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Hiring the Wrong Professional
We all want things to get done as soon as possible, especially if it is your home that you’ll live in. However, this doesn’t mean that you need to speed up the process and hire the first professional that offers to take on the job.
Finding the right professional for your project requires time and effort. It is also a good idea to ask for references.
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Making Too Many Changes When the Project Starts
If you hire a constructor to take the renovation project, they will put your ideas on paper and make a plan and schedule for every part of the renovation process. Changing things up along the way will only make things difficult for them and postpone the finished result.
Even small changes like moving the light switch can sometimes cost you more than $1,000, so make sure you are happy with your plan before they begin working on your house.
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Not Paying Attention to Quality
Since house renovation is a costly project, many people decide to go with lower quality construction or materials just to minimize their cost and meet their budget. This is a mistake that must be avoided.
You have to understand that stuff like door hardware, faucets, kitchen cabinets, or appliances are used constantly. In order to increase their lifetime and avoid jumping on a new renovation project too soon, you need to take quality seriously.
In fact, you can save money by buying high-quality materials rather than buying low-quality products and changing them when they start to malfunction.
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Replacing Windows
You have to think long and hard before you decide to replace your windows. After all, they play a crucial role in your house’s isolation, and if they are original to the house, they should be resuscitated.
If somebody tells you that you’ll increase your energy savings by replacing your windows is either looking for money himself or misinformed.
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Working on Too Many Rooms At Once
If you decide to renovate your entire house, it is crucial to split the project into different segments. Taking on the entire house at once can lead to more problems and sloppy work, rather than focusing on each room individually.
Also, taking many rooms at once will expand your costs, which means that it is much better to start each room when your budget allows.
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Being Your Own Contractor
You might feel knowledgeable about construction, but taking on your house renovation project is a huge no-no. Sub-contractors have more experience with materials, construction, and most importantly, they offer accountability.
Additionally, they have relationships with G.C’s that will suffer if they don’t get the job done the right way.
Sometimes things might turn out great, especially if it is a smaller project, but you will be at risk.
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Buying Big Furniture
When shopping for furniture, you might see something that you love and want to purchase for your home. However, many people don’t think about how they’re going to fit that furniture through the front door.
So, before you make any purchases for big furniture, find out if it can actually fit through the door or if it can be disassembled.
Final Words
House renovation is a hard job that requires a lot of planning, knowledge, and money.
If you’ve ever seen the TV show Rehab Addict, you would know LA Lakers LeBron James got involved in a house renovating project that was supported through his Family Foundation.
And even he struggles to keep up even though they have almost unlimited resources. If you want to know more facts about LeBron and the Lakers test your knowledge with BetAmerica quiz.
It is a necessary thing to do that will bring back your house to life, and it is very much worth all the trouble.