How to Prepare for Your Home Renovation: 5 Tips

Ed Clarke / Social Health Today

Are you planning a home renovation? Renovating your home is a great way to make your space more welcoming and functional, but it can be a lot of work! Good planning is essential to ensure your home renovations go smoothly and produce your desired result. From considering your home renovation options carefully to hiring the best contractors, McLean Living magazine is here with some important tips to help you plan a successful home renovation project.

1. Consider Building a Home Office

Once you’ve searched the local market and found your dream home, it’s time to start thinking about whether you want to add a home office renovation to your plans. Designing a home office will give you somewhere to work when you need to bring work home from the office. And if you ever want to become a freelancer or start a business, Jalios notes that having a dedicated and distraction-free workspace will be a boon to your productivity.

Not ready to sacrifice your guest room for a home office? Try to design a home office that doubles as a guest room so you can still give visitors a private space of their own when they spend the night. A sofa bed is ideal for convertible guest rooms. When you purchase office furniture, look for multi-purpose storage and desk solutions that can fold away when they’re not in use. Go online for inspiration and ideas for decorating your area, such as with a mid-century modern room aesthetic.

2. Research Home Warranties

If you invest in new appliances during your renovation work, these might come with warranties. But what about the existing systems and appliances in your home? Investing in a home warranty is still a great way to save money on potential repair or replacement costs since a home warranty will offer additional protection over that of your homeowner’s insurance, which typically doesn’t cover breakdowns or repairs to home systems and appliances. You can save hundreds to thousands of dollars with a home warranty, especially if you anticipate the future breakdown of major systems like plumbing, HVAC, and electrical.

3. Take Advantage of Estimating Apps

Creating an accurate home renovation budget is essential. Consider using contractor estimating apps to estimate the cost of your own renovation projects. For example, if you’re having electrical work done, you can use electrical estimating software to find out how much your project will cost before reaching out to contractors.

Creating your own estimates will also prepare you for negotiations with contractors when you’re deciding who to hire for your project. Get at least three bids for your project, paying attention to small details like how organized and precise your contractor is when creating estimates.

4. Hire the Best Contractors

Hiring a contractor is not a matter of going with the person or team with the lowest quote. Gordon Reese Design Build explains several reasons why the cheapest contractor could create problems for your renovation project:

• Inefficient planning due to inexperience
• Poor quality of work
• Added costs for changes and fixes
• Lack of proper insurance
• Home safety dangers
• Issues with timeline and completion
• More dust, mess, and noise

Hire high-quality contractors with a good reputation in your community. Asking around for referrals is a great way to find contractors who will tackle your project with expertise and stay within your budget.

5. Establish a Renovation Timeline

Setting a renovation timeline will help you know what to expect throughout your renovation so you can adjust your family’s schedule accordingly. Schedule each element of the project, from planning to the final finishes. Keep in mind that planning and budgeting alone can take four to eight weeks. Expect another two to four weeks to get all the building permits you need. You’ll also need to account for the time it takes to order building materials and demolish existing walls and structures before the work even starts.

Renovating your home is an exciting and challenging process. Make sure you know what to expect before jumping in! Consider investing in a home warranty, using contractor estimating software, and including a home office design in your renovation plans. When it comes to renovation work, you can never spend too much time planning!

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