Home improvements are a vital part to keeping your home up-to-date with the times and also to ensure that it doesn’t lose value when it comes time to sell.
To save money, many homeowners take the do-it-yourself route and use the tools at their disposal to upgrade their homes. Sites like YouTube have made it easier than ever to follow step-by-step tutorials that show you how to make substantial repairs and upgrades to your home without having to pay a professional.
The down side, however, is that when you choose to DIY, you take on the risk of going over budget by making mistakes. You also risk stretching out your project weeks or months longer than necessary due to a lack of time to work on it.
In today’s post, we’re going to talk about how you can stay on budget and on track to finish your home improvement project without bringing in the professionals.
Making a timeline
Let’s start with the big picture for your home renovations. When deciding which improvements to make, it’s important to know your limits in terms of the work you can do.
Set a reasonable number of hours you can work on your projects per week. Go easy on yourself. Most of us are already tired when we get home from work and probably won’t be able to start tackling big projects in the evenings. Rather, try to give yourself one weekend day to work on your projects and one weekend day to relax.
The most important aspect of creating your timeline is to try and keep your schedule open. So, write down the time you want to work on your home in your calendar, planner, or whichever app or tool you use to plan your time.
This will help you to avoid creating conflicting events and obligations, and help you stay on track to finishing your improvement projects.
If you’re looking for an evening activity related to your home improvement projects, it’s a good idea to start watching some video tutorials of people doing the same renovations as you. This will help you avoid mistakes and look out for common obstacles that you’ll face along the way.
Budgeting your improvement
You’ll want to save up for your project in advance, if possible, to avoid accumulating credit card debt. Your home improvement project should, in effect, gain you money by increasing the value of your home, not make you lose money on credit card interest payments.
Budgeting in itself is an art that few of us are taught in school. Fortunately, there are several free budgeting apps available. Or, you can simply draw one up yourself.
The key to creating a home improvement budget is to know how much of your monthly savings you can devote to this project without having to dip into other funds. To do this, you’ll need a clear understanding of where your income goes.
Once you have a budget and a timeline for your home improvement project, you’re ready to begin. Just make sure you check in on your timeline and your budget throughout the length of the project to make sure you’re meeting your goals and aren’t overspending.
About the Author
Kimberly Hering
Kimberly Hering's devotion to helping people achieve their real estate goals stems from her genuine enjoyment of the process. Whatever the task, Kimberly makes it her mission to get it done, however she can, without compromising her client's needs. Often, that means thinking outside the box. After working with Kimberly, clients describe her as being Trustworthy, Creative, Patient, Highly Skilled, Attentive to the Process and having a lot of Integrity.
After spending more than 15 successful years working on Wall Street, Kimberly transitioned into Real Estate, joining Alain Pinel Realtors, then moving to Zephyr, now Corcoran Global Living, in 2018. During her career on Wall Street, Kimberly was a Vice President working as an Institutional Equity Salesperson for Montgomery Securities for 10 years. She covered the top money managers throughout the US and Canada. She joined Jefferies & Co as a Senior Vice President managing the Western Region Institutional Sales group, while continuing to cover the top money managers.
Kimberly leverages her extensive experience selling equities to top money managers throughout the US and Canada, to successfully negotiating any Real Estate transaction seamlessly for her clients. Kimberly is well versed in Marin's neighborhoods, towns, cities, and education system.
Living in the Bay Area for 35 years, 25 years in Marin and having 2 sons in local Marin schools, Kimberly spends a lot of time volunteering in the community and serving on various local Boards. Kimberly has a collection of resources ranging from the best local breakfast spots to vetted contractors. With her reliable list of valuable resources, Real Estate experience and unsurpassed knowledge of Marin's many communities, Kimberly can guide her clients through every aspect of a Real Estate transaction seamlessly.
Relocating to Marin, downsizing, upsizing, first time home buying, final home purchase or sale, or a lot to build a dream home, no matter the undertaking, Kimberly works seamlessly until the job at hand is completed with 100% satisfaction.