Remodeling Tips

Buying and renovating a home is a great way to get precisely what you want, but it can lead to a lot of mistakes if you are a first-time buyer. Home renovation has plenty of potential pitfalls, but you can overcome some of them if you plan carefully. These home renovation tips can help.

1) Do Your Research

Before you buy a house to renovate, make sure you do your research. Renovating your new home and making it truly your own can be a great way to get more for your money, but sometimes the renovation costs make it challenging to achieve your goal. Consider getting estimates for the renovation costs while you’re in the negotiation for the home’s purchase price, and make sure you will be able to afford both.

Always have your home professional inspected, particularly if it is in rough shape. You want to be able to renovate without spending a fortune on foundation work or electrical upgrades to make the home safe.

Finally, make sure the renovation you’re planning is possible in the property you chose. Sometimes, homeowners will have big dreams to tear down walls that end up being supporting walls or remove the flooring that would be better refinished and left where it is, so talk to your contractor before you buy.

2) Know the Right Order

One thing that many first-time buyers ask is, “What order do you renovate a house?” While there are no set rules to answer this question, tackling renovation work logically will help make the process go smoothly and avoid the need to re-do any aspects of the job.

• Removal and stripping of flooring, walls, and other features
• Improvements to any of the home’s structural elements, like floors and walls
• Improving plumbing, heating, and wiring to make the home safe
• Plastering, painting, and flooring
• Bathroom and kitchen renovation
• Decorating the home

This order will help you get through the renovation and get to your move-in date as quickly as possible.

The order of renovation also depends on how quickly you need to occupy the property. If you’re going to renovate while you live in the home, you’ll need to plan around your family’s needs, perhaps doing one room at a time instead of the whole house at once.

3) Count the Cost

Another thing that first-time homeowners must do when planning to renovate a newly purchased home is count the costs. Some rooms are more expensive than others to remodel, for instance. If a house needs a complete kitchen makeover, you can expect to pay around $14,000, while if it needs a master bathroom renovation, the cost drops to about $8,000. These are the most expensive rooms in a home to remodel, so if the home needs renovation here, make sure the purchase price accounts for these additional costs.

4) Understand the Timeline

When you purchase your first home, you will feel excited to move in. Yet, many things have to happen before you can even start the remodel, let alone move into your new home. For example, you must choose a contractor, and that contractor must apply for all necessary building permits. No work can start until those permits are in hand, and in some communities, that can take several weeks to accomplish.

When you consult with a contractor about your remodeling plans, be sure to ask about how long it will take. If you have several stages of your remodel, find out how long it will be before you can safely move into the property. The answers to these types of questions will help you decide if the home is worth your investment or not.

5) Realize that Some Walls Must Stay

Home renovations often involve changing the space’s floor plan, but you need to understand that some walls have to stay. While open floor plans may be appealing, if a wall supports the home’s roof, it can’t be taken away. So be sure you talk to a structural expert before making assumptions about removing walls in your home.

Buying a home that needs some renovation can help you save money while getting a home that exceeds your expectations, but it is also a great way to end up in over your head. If you consider this route to buying your first home, take these tips to heart, and do your research thoroughly. Only when you know that everything is properly in place should you move forward with your new home purchase and renovation plans.

Need help buying a new home, as well as making renovations? Then be sure to contact Henderson Properties, a full service real estate agency in Charlotte, NC!