Finally being able to start a home renovation project you’ve always dreamed of being able to do can be very exciting. Unfortunately, it’s very easy for these projects to spiral out of control. Since these aren’t projects most homeowners do very often, many homeowners end up making mistakes along the way that end up making renovations a lot more stressful and expensive. Learn from their mistakes and avoid these common errors:
Don’t Rush Into Things
A good home renovation project takes a lot of thorough planning. You’ll want to take time to plan out exactly what you want to get out of the project, find a great contractor, decide what types of materials you want to use, and so much more. Jumping into a project without taking the time to plan things out first often ends in frustration for everybody involved. If you change your mind about something once work has begun, even if it seems like a simple change, it might end up costing you extra money and cause extra work for the contractor.
Don’t Hire the First Contractor You Talk To
Talking to several different contractors takes time, but it’s time very well spent. Not all contractors will approach a job in the exact same way, so you’ll definitely want to get estimates from a few different contractors before making a final decision. Take the time to check references, look up reviews from past customers, and make sure they really are licensed and insured. By taking the time to get a few different quotes and do your homework, you’ll be making sure you hire the right contractor for the job.
Don’t Pick the Cheapest Options
There are many times in life where it’s perfectly fine to save some money and go with the least expensive option possible. Home renovations are not one of those things. When it comes to home repairs, going with the cheapest possible route often ends up costing more in the long run.
Remember, there’s a fine line between “inexpensive” and “cheap” and sometimes it’s worth paying a little bit more. If you get a quote from a contractor that’s considerably lower than some of the others you got, there might be a very good reason for that: the contractor might not be licensed or insured, their bid might exclude something important like trash removal, they might not have a lot of experience, they might do shoddy work, or they might use low-quality building supplies.
Don’t Skip the Permits
Not all household repairs and renovations will require permits from your city, but if they’re required, don’t try to skip them and hope that nobody will notice. Ultimately, building permits exist to help protect you and your home. If someone finds out that you had work done on your home without getting a permit, they might report you and the city could force you to remove the work, which means you’d have to pay to have the job done all over again. Even if you go several years without anyone knowing you’ve had un-permitted work done on your home, it could be uncovered during an inspection when you decide to sell your home, which would require you to fix the problem before the home can be sold.
Spending a little extra time on your home renovation projects often pays off in spades. By learning from other homeowners’ mistakes, you’ll be well on your way to keeping your home renovation projects on track.
