5 Tips for a Cheaper Home Remodel

Written by Posted On Wednesday, 21 February 2018 17:56

Whether you’ve just moved into a new home and want to make the place more to your liking, or you’re selling your old one, but want to make some changes to make it easier to sell, you’ve decided to make some changes in your home. Whether it’s some small changes in the guest bathroom, or a full-on remodel of the whole place, you know it’s going to be a costly process, so you’re looking for some ways to save a little money without cutting corners.

 

Luckily, there are some great tips from professionals around the country to help you out. For a cheaper home remodel, just follow these tips:

 

1 Change a few small things

 

According to The Balance, one of the cheapest ways of fixing up your house is changing small things at a low-cost: for example, changing your door knobs, handles, and hinges, thereby giving your house a new look without spending much, hanging more mirrors, or changing your lampshades. Basically, once you’ve gotten rid of a lot of extra stuff in your house you don’t need, and you’re dealing with the bare necessities, you can look around and decide what small changes will actually make a difference.

 

The average homeowner in 2017 spent nearly 60 percent more on home projects than in 2016--which means that sites like Facebook and Pinterest are going to be full of exciting examples of ways to change a few small things in your household to make it look new.

 

2 Go to a ReStore

 

If you’re doing a lot of the construction work yourself, or a carpenter or builder friend is helping you out with it, then you might want to go to a ReStore, a store created by Habitat for Humanity that sells “new and gently used furniture, appliances, home accessories, building materials and more to the public at a fraction of the retail price,” with money going to a good cause. Contractors usually won’t use these building materials, but that doesn’t mean you can’t if you know what you’re doing.

 

Considering that 91 percent of plastic isn’t recycled, this is the perfect way to give back to the world while also using old materials--which means less waste for everyone.

 

3 Don’t move the plumbing

 

However tempting it can be to move the plumbing around so that you can add a shower to the guest bathroom, or create a new area for doing the laundry, this is going to be one of the most expensive renovations--and it’ll prove to be a huge headache, too, as you’ll have to hire professionals to tear down your walls so that they can get to the pipes. Let’s not even talk about the possibility of flooding.

 

Think about it this way: when a company’s doing a rebranding, they don’t change who they are essentially. Their online content is going to remain the same, as are their products, but they might invest in a new logo design or in custom flags to place outside their store. According to Architectural Digest, rearranging the layout of a sink, shower, or toilet can double or triple your renovation costs--so unless you’re planning on staying in your home forever, and need these changes for very practical reasons (such as a new child coming into the family), we recommend you stay away from moving the plumbing.

 

4 Focus on the surfaces for a modern look

 

According to domino.com, when it comes to changing your house from drab to fab, and making it look like it actually belongs in 2018, it’s worth investing in changing up surfaces. This is going to be slightly more costly than repainting a wall or hanging up a mirror, but it makes a difference. In the kitchen, countertops are a good place to start; in the bathrooms, re-doing the tiles; in your bedrooms (and this is a bit cheaper), layering a new rug, buying a new comforter, or painting an accent wall can make all the difference.

 

HomeAdvisor.com states that the national average cost of remodeling multiple rooms is $39,198, but when it comes to using this hack, you’re going to be spending way less than that.

 

5 Paint

 

Finally, the easiest way to make your home look more beautiful is simply by painting. You don’t want to go too crazy, of course, if you’re looking to re-sell your home, so it’s a good idea to read this article on the color wheel and paint schemes from Apartment Therapy. Just because you’ve loved the idea of an all-pink house since you were a kid, that doesn’t mean that other people share that idea.

 

Considering that doing this DIY will cost you $200-$300--compared to $380-$790 with a professional--then you should definitely do it yourself to save some cash.

 

As you can see, there are some easy, creative ways to save money while remodeling your home. Do you have any tips for our readers?

Rate this item
(0 votes)

Agent Resource

Limited time offer - 50% off - click here

Realty Times

From buying and selling advice for consumers to money-making tips for Agents, our content, updated daily, has made Realty Times® a must-read, and see, for anyone involved in Real Estate.