Home renovation is key to improving your living space.
In fact, homeowners are actively investing in home improvements and repairs, totaling a staggering $452 billion. This shows
In this regard, by partnering with skilled home renovation contractors, your project can proceed seamlessly. This not only enhances the value and comfort of your home but also ensures quality workmanship and timely completion.
In this guide, we’ll provide valuable tips on how to plan and execute your home renovation project effectively. Let’s get started!
Why Go for Home Renovation?
Renovating your home offers many benefits that may have slipped your mind. Here’s a refresher:
- Cost-Efficient Revamp
Revamping your home allows you to save money, as buying a new home comes with additional costs (read: real estate agent fees, closing costs, and moving expenses). Plus, if you’re fond of your neighborhood community and your house’s bones are strong, there’s no need to move elsewhere.
- Personalized Project
You can speak to your renovation contractor and easily tailor your home to fit your style and needs with a renovation. Collaborate with the contractor for the design, layout, and materials to ensure your home reflects your unique taste and lifestyle.
- Sentimental value
Renovating your existing home keeps your memories alive—whether it’s being born in the house, starting a new family of your own, becoming a pet parent, and so on.
- Eco-Friendly Upgrade
Choose renovation over demolition to reduce waste and minimize the environmental impact that comes with constructing a new home. This way, you can contribute to sustainability by utilizing existing resources and structures.
- Future-Proof Investment
You can boost your home’s value with renovations for a potentially higher resale value when you decide to sell. Additionally, it helps attract more buyers in the future who are seeking modern, updated homes, which expands your pool of potential buyers and improves marketability.
- Outlet of Creativity
Renovating your existing home also allows you to flex your creative muscle—whether it’s for bathroom renovation, basement revamping, or a kitchen upgrade.
A 7-Step Guide on How to Renovate Your Home
If you’ve never undertaken a home renovation project of any kind, renovating your home can be daunting.
Use this step-by-step checklist and give yourself a solid head start:
Step 1: Ask: Why Do You Want to Renovate?
Is your home out-of-sync with your current habits and lifestyle needs? Maybe you need to revamp your kitchen for functional purposes. Perhaps your bathroom doesn’t qualify to be spa-like yet.
No matter what your end goals are, define your purpose for home renovation before you get to the grunt work.
Step 2: Take Time to Plan and Organize Your Home Renovation Project
Once you’ve identified your goals, it’s time to prioritize them as per your needs. Make sure to factor your budget and calculate the cost at this stage as well. Incorporate the following costs within your estimated budget:
- Interior renovation costs
- Exterior renovation costs
- Labor costs
- Material costs
- City permit costs (if any)
It helps to set a realistic budget while assessing your income and savings. You don’t want to put a financial dent in it, or else the home renovation project will feel more chore-like than cathartic.
Pro tip: Set aside 10–20% of your budget for unpredictable expenses like a plumbing disaster or an electrical mess.
Step 3: Hire an Experienced Home Renovation Contractor
With your plan in place, get a second opinion. Do your homework and narrow down two to three local and experienced home renovation contractors known for their good reputation, impressive portfolio, and positive customer reviews.
Your contractor will also help you assess the labor, permit, and material costs based on the plan you outlined in step 2.
Step 4: Get onto Pinterest and Create a Mood Board
Get excited because now comes the fun part: Getting onto Pinterest, TikTok, Houzz, Instagram, or any platform of your choice to strategize the design and aesthetics.
You can even turn to your favorite TV shows, movies, magazines, etc. for inspiration—no holds barred. Irrespective of the platform you choose, take into account your home’s architectural style. From modern and farmhouse to Scandinavian and Mediterranean, the world is your oyster!
Here are a few ideas to find your intrinsic design style:
- Look at Your Wardrobe: You read it right. Your clothing style often reflects your design preferences, which you can extend to your home’s renovation by way of complementary color palettes, textures, patterns, and even furniture designs. For example, if you love bold prints and vibrant colors in your clothing, you might feel more at home in an eclectic and bohemian-inspired living space. Thinking outside the-box goes a long way in defining your home’s character.
- Recall Your Favorite Vacation Spots:Here’s another favorite that most people forget about. Recall your best holidays. Maybe you have pictures of that ratan chair you saw in a bathroom in Bali. Or perhaps, you loved the intricate tile work on the streets of Turkey. Take a stroll down memory lane and get inspired for your home decor.
- Consider Your Hobbies: An untapped area of interest, your hobbies can give you clues to the aesthetic you’ll enjoy living in. For example, if you love hiking and nature photography, you might be drawn to earthy tones and natural textures in your home decor. Or if you’re a fan of vintage cars, you might appreciate a retro-inspired interior with mid-century modern furniture. The idea is to experiment with your lifestyle needs.
- Think about Your Favorite Era in History: Whether it’s the sleek lines of mid-century modern or the ornate details of the Victorian era, historical periods can influence your design choices. Let’s say you’re drawn to the elegance of the Roaring Twenties. In this case, you may want to opt for art deco accents in your decor. Alternatively, if the rustic charm of the American frontier speaks to you, a farmhouse-style interior could be the perfect fit.
Once you find designs you love, create folders and boards to organize your ideas.
Step 5: Create a Renovation Plan
Yes, we’re back to the technical stuff. Depending on how extensive your renovation project is, you’ll need a roadmap for every milestone. Here’s how to create a blueprint to help you get to the end:
- Take a tour of your home and list areas that need improvement. For instance, do you need a home office first or does your kitchen need an upgrade? Put everything down on paper.
- Prioritize home areas based on the current and upcoming season. For instance, if there’s a leaking roof and you’re well into the rainy season, your damaged ceiling will need immediate attention.
- Ask your renovation contractor to create a preliminary design and send to you. Whether they use design software or provide hand-drawn sketches, you need to see what your home will look like in the end.
- Enquire with the contractor if they’ll research the municipality’s building regulations and codes or if it’ll fall on your plate.
- Get inputs from your family, friends, and contractor at every step of the way.
Step 6: Be Flexible
As is the case with any project, some kind of derailing is expected—be it weather issues, holidays, family problems, etc. Don’t let a slight delay dampen your spirits. You must be mentally prepared to navigate through the hurdles and stay focused on your end goal.
Here are a few tips you can make your own:
- Allocate extra time and budget for unexpected delays
- Keep open lines of communication with your contractor to address issues promptly
- Keep track of project timelines, budgets, and tasks to stay on top of your roadmap
- Stay positive and remember that setbacks are a normal part of any project
- Get your family onboard and keep discussing the changes with them so that they’re prepared too
Step 7: Get Ready for Inspecting Your Home Post Renovation
Your home renovation might be complete but the work is far from over. You’ll need to do a comprehensive home renovation inspection:
- See if the lighting and fans work in all the rooms.
- Activate the HVAC system.
- Operate faucets and appliances, and inspect for leaks.
- Ensure your doors as well as drawers operate without any creaks.
- Inspect walls, floors, and surfaces for cracks that may have occurred during installation or transport.
A post renovation inspection helps assess for performance issues and ensures your home’s safety.
Give Your Home a Fresh Start with NYCO Renovations—an Expert Home Renovation Company
It may be tempting to do the home renovation yourself but you may lose interest or momentum as life gets in the way. Plus, some tasks, like electrical or plumbing work, should be done by professionals or you risk your family’s safety.
Luckily, true-to-form home renovation companies can help transform your living space. But only if they truly understand your vision, have the expertise to execute it flawlessly, and prioritize your satisfaction every step of the way.
If you’re looking for a seasoned home renovation company, look no further than NYCO Renovations. We can help you get the home you want with collaborative planning and qualified professionals. From installing wallpapers to revamping your basement, no project is too big or small for us.
Get your ideas on board and we’ll help execute them, one room at a time!
