House Renovation Ideas
House Renovation Ideas – The biggest fear when remodeling is going over budget. And for a good reason. Even if you follow the essential advice we’ve been giving you for years – build in a 20 percent cushion to cover any surprises, get references from contractors and check them, banish the words “while you’re at it.” are” out of your vocabulary…it’s difficult Don’t spend more than you want, even if you want to write a check for a million dollars.
But why reduce a project or abandon this Viking series? No, you have to make your dream come true at an affordable price. And not by saving money either. By thinking strategically about design, materials, and timing, you can reduce the cost of renovating your home without cutting corners.
House Renovation Ideas
We’ll walk you through renovation costs, from the biggest costs (tearing down the house and starting over) to costs as small as choosing a sconce over a recessed one. But another universal truth about renovations is that every little detail counts. So save a little here, save a little there, and soon you’ll be talking real money. Check out our home renovation ideas below and learn the best way to get the look you want for less money.
Significant Value Adding Home Renovation Ideas
If you can remodel and outfit your kitchen for maximum utility, you may not have to knock down walls to gain more space. First, replace bulky shelves with 8-inch-wide, cabinet-height pull-out drawers that contain shelves for canned goods and other items. “You get three or more horizontal levels when you would otherwise only have one,” says Louis Smith Jr., an architect with the Meier Group in Ann Arbor, Michigan. You could easily spend a few thousand dollars outfitting the cabinets with upgrades like dividers, pull-out pot racks, and lazy Susans, but you’ll save many times that amount by forgoing the addition you thought you needed.
Before you drill a large hole in the side of your home and rearrange the framing, consider less invasive and less expensive ways to capture light. For example, to brighten a windowless bathroom or hallway, you can install a “tube light” that can be moved between the rafters and directs sunlight into the living space.
DIYers can save big with recycled or gently used lighting and building materials. Habitat for Humanity operates about 400 ReStores nationwide, offering salvaged materials at half the price at hardware stores. One caveat: Many contractors don’t work with salvaged items or with owner-supplied materials in general because they don’t want to take responsibility if something goes wrong. However, if you do your own homework, you can find everything from prehung doors to acrylic skylights to partial packages with insulation. (To find a ReStore near you, visit habitat.org.)
Before beginning any renovation, ask your local Habitat for Humanity department to remove materials and furnishings for later resale. “About 85 percent of a house is reusable,” says B.J. Perkins, manager of Habitat’s ReUse program in Austin, Texas. “We can do a full teardown or do some decluttering and take the cabinets, tub, sink, etc..” You save space in the landfill, get a charitable tax credit and support a good cause. Visit the Habitat website (see Way to Save #3) to find a partner near you.
Exterior Renovation Ideas That Get Noticed
A demolition may not be as expensive as a rebuild, but you can still save money by doing some of the demolition yourself as long as you do it carefully. “If a homeowner wants to demo a patio, I’m sure they can,” says Michael Winn, owner of Winn Design in Virginia. “But when it comes to interiors, I would advise against it unless they have already done it.”
The reason: A careless mechanic could inadvertently dismantle a load-bearing wall or, even worse, push a reciprocating saw into live or pressurized wires. (For tips on a proper demo, see our October 2005 article “Before You Build, You Must Destroy.”)
For example, if your addition requires clapboard siding, you can save more in the long run by choosing the pre-primed and pre-painted option now. It costs 10 to 20 cents more per foot, but “you end up paying half as much for later painting jobs,” says Paul Eldrenkamp, owner of Byggmeister, a design-build remodeling company in Newton, Massachusetts.
The reason? Factory varnishes are applied to dry wood under controlled conditions: no rain, no intense sun. “I used prefinished shingles on my house about ten years ago, and the only blemish on the surface is the occasional spot of mold, which washes out easily,” says Eldrenkamp. “The color looks like it will easily last another 10 years.” Cost of unfinished siding for a 10-by-40-foot addition plus two painting jobs: $5,000
Beautiful Cheap House Renovation Design & Ideas For You ✓ ✓ ✓
When it comes to things like flooring, ask your contractor if they have any leftover stock from other work. A few years ago, contractor Bill Asdal needed hardwood floors while renovating a Civil War-era bed and breakfast in New Jersey. He made a few calls and found hundreds of square feet of hardwood of varying lengths and widths that would otherwise have been thrown away at other job sites. By simply planing it to a consistent thickness, then sanding and refinishing it, he saved his customer nearly $9,000 in material costs.
“The more recessed lights you install, the more expensive it becomes,” says Tom Silva, general contractor for This Old House. In addition to the internals, there is the work of cutting all the holes and insulating them properly. A wall or ceiling light can also provide more power, so you may be able to get by with fewer lights.
Depending on the scope of your project, you may not need a full architectural contract, which involves numerous meetings, multiple site visits, and multiple sets of construction drawings and accounts for approximately 8% of a project’s construction budget. You may be able to leverage an architect’s knowledge by asking them to provide a one-time design consultation.
For a flat fee of $400, for example, Baton Rouge architect Kevin Harris will meet with a homeowner, discuss the problem and outline some solutions, which can be as simple as opening a partition or moving a door. The homeowner can then take the sketch to a contractor or drafting service, which charges about $1 to $1.50 per square foot to produce formal construction drawings.
Great Home Renovation Ideas To Design An Awesome Home In 2022
Although this practice is controversial among tradespeople, some contractors offer consulting and mentoring services to qualified DIYers on an hourly basis. Chicago-area contractor Ted Welch charges $150 an hour for such coaching, with a two-hour minimum. “The happiest customers are generally those who have good craftsmanship, who recognize that skills need to be practiced to improve, and who are willing to take the risk, make a few mistakes and learn from them,” he says.
Unless you have a lot of time (and expertise) to dedicate to your project, the best way to get ahead is to manage the demolition yourself or ultimately do some of the finishing work yourself. “If you want to save money, go out and help,” says Tom Silva. “You can insulate, you can paint, you can sand. » Or better yet, he says, help clean every day. “Instead of paying someone to pick up sawdust from the ground, invest your money in the time it takes to trim the window correctly,” he advises.
If you are doing your own project, reduce your material and delivery costs by picking up the goods yourself. No transporter? For around $400, you can buy a nearly new single-axle utility trailer online that you can tow behind your SUV. Buy one that is just large enough to carry 4×8 sheet goods flat. Use it for half a dozen rides and it will pay for itself. Search for trailers for sale near you through eBay Motors or try your local classifieds.
If your walls are in such rough condition that it would take a painter days of filling and sanding to prepare them for roller use, consider using materials like textured glass from Roos International, based in Deerfield Beach, Florida To consider.
Creative And Unique Renovation Ideas To Inspire You
Textured glass is a breathable, non-toxic wall covering made from fine glass filaments. It looks and feels similar to fiberglass mats used in auto body work. It is available in a variety of finish patterns, is easy to paint, and is designed to be installed directly onto existing surfaces, making it stronger and hiding dents.
Some imitations make sense: The wood giant Weyerhaeuser sells a fast-growing natural eucalyptus hybrid under the Lyptus brand.
The light-grained hardwood is sustainably harvested from plantations in Brazil and looks remarkably like mahogany. It is sold as tongue-and-groove flooring and in boards and panels for cabinets and joinery. (Visit Lyptus.com to find a dealer near you.)
“Most clients don’t want to hear those words,” says Paul Irwin, design director at Landis Construction.
Home Renovation Ideas For A Stylish And Functional Space
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