If you’re new to the home remodeling game, then you’re in for a treat. But while you may have grand illusions of flipping your home within a set amount of time to transform your personal space, the reality may be far from your expectations.
When planning a home remodel, it’s important to investigate your renovation needs and set clear goals that you can meet within a realistic time frame. Before you get your feet wet, consider these helpful guidelines to begin on a small or large home renovation project:
- Set a budget in advance. It helps to research the market and get quotes from a number of contractors, like professional painters, electricians, builders, and more. You can use this information to create a realistic, helpful budget that you can try to stick to throughout your home remodel to avoid spending unnecessary cash. As a word of caution, try to overestimate your budget to provide a cushion in case contractors run late, costing you extra in labor.
- Set a timeline. Once you’ve received quotes from the home contractors of your choice, you can use that information to set a more reasonable timeline to match your renovation budget. Once again, you need to leave a cushion in your time frame as many experienced house flippers can tell you that contract projects hardly ever run according to plan. Use the timeline as a general guideline to ensure that your remodel doesn’t take months longer than expected.
- Lower your expectations. While this may not be the advice that you were hoping to hear, it may be time to adjust the dial on your lofty goals for your home renovation. Unless you have an unlimited budget with unlimited time, you may need to reign in your expectations regarding the materials that you use to remodel your bathroom, what type of countertop you install in your kitchen, and how many rooms you add onto your house.
- Check referrals in advance. Instead of hiring a contractor based only on word-of-mouth, ask for several references and don’t be afraid to call for more information. If you can find a contractor with several happy customers, then you’re ready to begin a major renovation that could turn your home upside down!
As a helpful rule of thumb, experts recommend planning to spend up to 10% extra on the total budget of a renovation project. You can use this over estimation to set aside the necessary funds for a large remodel to eliminate the stress of unexpected delays or additional material costs.
