Remodeling an Old House on a Budget
If you’re looking for into on Remodeling an old house on a budget, you’ve come to the right place! Nothing brings new energy and value like a quality remodel for your home. However, renovation projects take time and financial investment to accomplish. Nonetheless, there are actually many different kinds of projects that you can do on a more modest budget. Here we will share all the tips and secrets to help you accomplish your home renovation dreams while on a budget.
Start with Low Cost, Low Labor Tasks
When it comes to Remodeling an old house on a budget, you want to start with projects that are cheap and easy, but that also make an impact on the look and feel of your home. So, the question is, what kinds of projects are manageable to accomplish on your own and don’t require a lot of expensive materials to get done?
The following is a list of tasks that meet this very criterion:
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- Deep Cleaning: You might think cleaning isn’t really a remodeling project. However, oftentimes old houses don’t get a good thorough cleaning for years or even decades! We tend to clean the areas that we use most and we tend to clean in the same way over and over. The problem is that certain areas go uncleaned for quite some time. In fact, as time goes by, we tend to become unaware of the build-up of dirt and grime to those areas that we don’t think about regularly. Still, a really thorough deep-clean makes a big impact on the overall quality of your home. So, a good first step when it comes to remodeling is to start with a thorough top to bottom cleaning.
- Get Rid of Possessions: Along those same lines, simply cutting down on junk and build-up of unused possessions can have a transformative effect on your home. Bring a little Marie Kondo into your life and you’ll be amazed at how much better your home feels. While it can be very satisfying to pour money into a complete, professional renovation project, getting started with a thorough spring cleaning and junk clear-out can impact you in a similar way emotionally and objectively for the aesthetics of your home.
- Change Things Up: by taking a fresh look at the interior design of your home, you can find creative ways to change the look and feel of different rooms without taking a sledgehammer to the walls. Take some time to scroll your favorite platforms such as Pinterest for inspiring ideas for new interior designs. These can be less expensive ways to make your home look like new without making big investment changes.
- Lighting: without too much trouble and for a reasonable price, you can enjoy a transformative effect by getting new light fixtures throughout the home. In fact, wall scone lamps, for example, can be purchased for about $25 a piece. Quality and cheap fixtures can be skillfully placed to great effect. You may have to get your hands dirty and stretch your ability a bit if you need to use some electrical skills to install such fixtures, but, if need be, you can always hire a contractor or electrician for just a limited project help.
- Painting: most people don’t get terribly excited about do-it-yourself painting, but it’s hard to argue with the visual impact that a fresh coat of paint can have to liven up a worn-down space. Try to get excited about the project and involve others (who are willing) to help you tackle your home painting project. Once again, it’s very helpful to browse through different images online or through your favorite social media platforms to help you imagine what can best be implemented in your own space.
Save Money While Working with professionals
When you’re ready to up the ante and invest in professional assistance with your home renovation project, there are still many different strategies you can implement to save money along the way. Remodeling an old house on a budget and hiring professionals is possible. In fact, this is such an important topic that we’ve broken down into even more individual tips for you:
- Work Out Your Budget with Precision: it’s very important for you to know exactly what your budget is while having a bit of a range for what you’re willing to spend. The general advice is to have about 80% of your budget to spend on a project while knowing that it is common for home improvement projects to have some extra costs along the way. However, try to find a general contractor with the reputation of staying to their client’s budget or even under budget. It might seem strange that having a budget in mind beforehand is likely to save you money, but when you aren’t specific on what you can pay with the professionals you work with the costs tend to rise!
- Communicate Clearly and Plan Ahead: When working with professionals, it’s important to have your goals clearly stated early in the process. And it’s important to continue communicating with the contracting team throughout the project. When you and your contractor are on the same page, it cuts down the risk of having things done that is different from your expectations. When mistakes like that happened, it usually costs you time and money. However, when you have a clear plan of what you want and how you want it done and you communicate that to your contractor, this helps the process to go smoothly and helps you to stay at or under budget.
- Do What You Can to Cut Down on Labor: Oftentimes, you can ask your contractor ways for you to be involved to cut down on the cost of labor. For example, perhaps you are willing to pull up carpeting yourself prior to having new flooring installed, or maybe you have some skills in the deconstruction process and you’re willing to do that part of the project yourself. Think about what you are willing to do and discuss these matters with your contractor during the planning phase of the remodel.
- Ask for Advice from your Contractor to Save Money: Once you have a contractor that you trust, you can take advantage of their expertise to find many creative ways to save money. For example, the professionals in this industry have insider knowledge about ways to find cheaper materials that still meet the quality expectations from yourself in the contracting team. Plus, a skilled contractor knows ways to procure Materials at lower costs in general. Just ask your team for ways to save money and explore those options creatively. You might be surprised what you can get done when you think outside of the box and you take advantage of skilled professionals.
Choose a Pro Team for your Pro Project
Hopefully, these ideas have inspired you with practical ways to Remodeling an old house on a budget. If you’re looking to get help from a high-quality, respected contracting company in Tucson, there’s no better choice than Pro Remodeling. We take pride in meeting our client’s goals while staying at or under budget. Give us a call with any questions you may have or set up a free, no-obligation home appointment to discuss your project. We look forward to being a part of your home renovation dreams.