Expensive Renovation Mistakes To Avoid

Thinking of renovating your home? Renovation is an expensive business, so it’s important to research the costs before you start making any changes to your property. It’s likely that you’re going to need to get additional 3rd party companies in to help you out, and you’ll definitely need to consider things like skip hire and planning permission. All of these things add up, so if you want to get the most out of your budget, this post is definitely for you. If you want to make sure that you don’t fall victim to expensive renovation mistakes, keep reading!

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Taking out a high interest loan

Many people borrow money to fund their renovation projects – this is pretty standard as the cost of renovating a property is often extremely high. However, when doing this, you should avoid resorting to high interest loans as you could end up paying a lot more in the long run. It’s a good idea to shop around for different forms of loans to find the best interest rates for you. You may find that it’s better to remortgage your home using a lender such as Mortgage Co. Remember that having a good credit score could help you to access lower interest loans, so if you know you have a renovation planned in the future, now is a good time to start working on improving your credit score.

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Not shopping around for contractors

When hiring contractors to carry out your renovation, such as these professional complete home renovations Sydney locals love, make sure to shop around for quotes. The first contractor you look at may not always offer the best rates. In fact, it’s often better to collect multiple quotes as some contractors will be willing to offer a price match. Make sure to hire licensed contractors that have a good reputation – some contractors may charge cheap rates but may not be insured or may have bad reviews online, which could make them potentially less trustworthy. 

Overestimating your DIY skills

Doing your own renovation work could be a way of saving you money – providing that you know what you’re doing. You should be careful of taking on jobs that you don’t have the tools or expertise for. If it goes wrong, you’ll have to pay extra to get it fixed. Jobs involving plumbing and electrics should be approached with particular caution – not only could they be expensive to fix if they go wrong, but they could be dangerous. Jobs that could go wrong and make a mess, such as spray foam insulation should also be carried out by the pros, such as https://energywavefoaminsulation.com/, to ensure it’s done to the highest standard!

Not getting planning permission first

If you’re carrying out an extension or some form of external improvement (such as new windows), it’s possible that you may need to get planning permission. You should never carry out one of these improvements without getting permission first – if your local planning committee finds out, you could be forced to undo all the work and you won’t get any money back for it. Applying for planning permission generally isn’t too expensive and you’ll usually get a response quite quickly. It’s worth also checking with your neighbours if your renovation is likely to affect them in any way (such as infringing on their privacy or casting a shadow on their garden) – you want to be sure that neighbours will not protest against it after it has already been built.

Adding features that devalue your home before selling

If you have plans to sell your home in the near future, be careful of making improvements that could potentially devalue your home. Quirky features such as painting your interior walls lime green may be to your liking but could put off any future buyers, possibly resulting in your home being priced lower. If you have plans to sell in the near future, focus on improvements that are likely to increase the value of your home. This could include improving insulation and repairing damage.