The high cost of housing across major cities means many people can’t afford to move in to sparkling new properties as their first home. Many buy older properties and then gradually transform them into their desired look and feel with renovations. This piece offers a quick guide to ensuring proper renovations.
Have a budget in mind ahead of time
It sounds fairly obvious but many people go into house renovations without predetermined budgets, instead choosing to take things as they come. Entering the renovation process without a budget can lead to financial difficulties. As a rule of the thumb, do not spend more than 10% of the cost of the property on renovations. Of course this is subject to your location and state of the property. If you intend to resell for a profit in the not too distant future, you should equally find ways to keep renovation costs down.
Do not borrow
Hold off on renovations if you don’t have adequate funds. Borrowing money to renovate can be expensive and complicated. The best situation is to renovate from your savings, bit by bit. You will keep costs down whilst deriving some satisfaction. Again, the practicality of this depends on the state of the house but only spending money on the most urgent renovations first whilst leaving everything else to be gradually completed in future is a way to avoid borrowing for renovations.
The essentials first
You can’t change everything in your new home. If you have carefully analysed your property options before the purchase then there won’t be need for such an overhaul anyway. However, you need to properly channel your renovation budget to deal with the basics first. Why start with changing an old fireplace when there are broken doors around the house? Here are some of the absolute basics to start with.
Take a look at the painting
Does the painting on the exterior and interior look decent or do they take away from the aesthetic appeal of the property? Consider calling in a painter to give it a fresh look right away, if the painting is worn or dirty.
Clear debris
From old trees to boxes left lying around by old occupants of the home, there could be garbage to deal with when you first move to the new property. You can dispose of the garbage on your own but it may be best to call in a removals company to handle things. This is especially important if there are different categories of garbage that needs clearing. A good removals company knows the best way to remove all kinds of garbage and where best to dump them.
Change locks
Tempting as it may be to scrimp on funds and continue using old locks, this is dangerous. The old occupants may handed over keys to a few people in the past and there will be no way to get them all back. There is also the risk of living in a home with dated locks that are easy to bypass for burglars. Call in a locksmith to change locks around your home starting with entrances that directly lead into the property.
Shake up the plumbing system
Do toilets flush properly? Are there leaking pipes? Does the plumbing work look old, rusty and dilapidated? Plumbing renovations are important when you purchase an old home as there may be blocks you or the landlord does not know about. The thoughts of dealing with sewer water two weeks after moving into your home doesn’t sound appealing. Or does it?
Author
Raymond Jones