Tips To Follow For First-Time Home Renovators

The excitement brought by home renovation often dwindles with unforeseen situations, such as stretched budgets, unrealistic goals, and poor choice of renovation materials. Fortunately, most of these problems can be entirely avoided by planning your home renovation. Regardless of the reasons behind the pressing need for a home remodel, the following renovation tips will help first-time renovators avoid unnecessary headaches, costs, and other problems associated with this process.

1. Set A Realistic Budget

Finances are probably the most challenging part of any home renovation project. Without proper budgeting, you might end up stalling the renovation process due to an unexpected shortage of supplies. Unfortunately, while budgeting is important to keep your costs and expenditures in check, finding a perfect balance between the amount allocated in the budget and your dream design is challenging. But you can learn how to manage finance for your home renovations with the help of online resources, such as this article over on tastefulspace.

As such, you should ensure that they truly understand the specific pricing of all the required materials and labor before getting down to work. While doing this, don’t base your pricing on popular renovation and remodeling shows. They can be misleading on costs, which significantly vary depending on your location and time of renovation. For accurate estimations, consult an experienced contractor for realistic budgeting. There are also other ways to finance a remodel if you don’t wish to dip into savings. For example, SoFi offers unsecured home improvement loans – which means your house is not used as collateral to secure the loan.

2. Decide The Scope Of Renovation

With a realistic budget, you should then clarify the exact areas to undergo renovation and in what order. This involves carefully weighing between your needs versus what you want. Making these decisions helps in determining the goals of the project and establishing the ground rules. It also helps schedule your renovation order.

Most homeowners prefer renovating their kitchens, bathrooms, living rooms, and the outdoors in different orders. Regardless, as you determine your renovation scope, consider the changes to be made to every room. For instance, when undertaking a kitchen renovation, the first thing to consider is functionality. The end goal is to make your kitchen open, airy, and inviting.

This means that you should focus on the arrangement between the countertop, sink, and refrigerators. Renovation experts recommend that these pivoting points in the kitchen should form an equilateral working triangle. That aside, consider the lighting, countertops, cabinets, and flooring.

On the other hand, the living room, which is also a focal point in most home renovation projects, has its own remodeling tips. Like the kitchen, mind the measurements, invest in good/modern furniture, choose your preferred color palette, and create a focal point. Similarly, the bathroom should have some guiding tips. For instance, you can begin by removing old bathroom fixtures, renovating the plumbing, and new floor tiles, vanity, and cabinets, among others.

3. Don’t Underestimate The Waste

Home renovation is among the biggest waste sources, accounting for 22 percent of construction and demolition waste. Therefore, you should have a proper plan to avoid or recycle waste generated during the remodeling exercise. Surprisingly, home renovation generates more waste than building a new home. Such waste often ends up in landfills, damaging the environment.

That said, you should keep waste in mind from the beginning to the end. It would help if you also considered several guidelines to reduce waste production during the process. Don’t hesitate to engage professional dumpster rental service providers for inevitable waste, who can dispose of the waste accordingly. For this, employ the services of an expert for an excellent home cleanup service.

However, if possible, reduce and reuse any waste materials from your home. It would help if you also considered closing the waste loop by using remodeling materials made from recycled contents. This includes glass tiles, latex paints, and carpets.

4. Have A Clear Vision

You should have a clear vision of the renovation process from the beginning. From the color palettes to tiles and appliances, you must pick these items before you start renovating. This eliminates the need to make several decisions once the renovation begins. Fortunately, you can take advantage of various information sources, including Pinterest, visits to showrooms, and material samples. If possible, purchase all the required materials beforehand.

5. Know Who To Hire

Choosing a good contractor is the key to a successful home renovation project. Therefore, be it a general contractor or individual subcontractor, ensure that you onboard the right team into your home renovation project. Fortunately, you can find the best individuals through various sources. Most homeowners prefer word-of-mouth recommendations from others who have undertaken this process before.

However, you should also conduct a full-blown background check on the contractor before hiring. While doing this, ensure that they are fully licensed, and have the necessary insurance certificates, financial standings, and more. Besides, ensure that the contractor fully understands your ultimate vision. For this, an in-person interview and deep preliminary discussions before formal engagements are important.

Bottom Line

Most homeowners, especially home improvement TV show enthusiasts, often generalize home improvement projects. While it might appear simple, you should think and handle the process practically. Also, expect to live in discomfort during the process due to excessive dust, noise, and exhaustion.