Remodeling is an excellent idea for improving or updating your home, but it can also be expensive. For example, according to HomeAdvisor, a typical renovation in 2023 costs between $17,806 and $80,466. Therefore, if you’re not careful, you can spend more than planned during your remodel, landing yourself in financial trouble. Fortunately, there are several ways to keep your home improvement costs down and still enjoy impeccable results. So, if you’re planning a home remodel, below are a few tips for savings made simple that will help keep your renovation expenses in check.
Have a Clear Plan
A plan is one of the most essential elements of any home remodeling project. A clear and detailed plan can help to ensure the smooth execution of a project, with as few hassles and delays as possible. In addition, a plan acts as a roadmap, which can help to guide your expenses during a project, thus keeping you from overspending. Therefore, having a clear plan is one of the top tips for home renovation savings made simple.
The first thing to do when creating a home remodeling plan is to understand and visualize what you want to achieve. For example, depending on the condition of your home (and your preference), you might be looking to improve the functionality or aesthetics of your home or make some overdue repairs. Therefore, from these goals, you can choose the best project(s) to invest in during your home renovation.
After deciding on your home remodeling project, the next step in creating a plan is to define the scope. The scope will include vital things like your project’s design strategies, list of action plans, required materials & supplies, the contractors to hire, budget, the project timeline, etc. One thing to note about the project scope is that the larger it is, the more expensive your home renovation will be. Therefore, you must simplify the scope as much as possible to save money.
Stick to Your Project Plan and Budget
Not sticking to your plan is one of the top reasons your home renovation project costs can quickly get out of hand. For example, say you had planned to hire roofers for a roof restoration project. However, mid-way through the project, you decide to make unplanned upgrades, like installing solar panels. These unplanned projects will lead to more expenses that push your project costs past the budget.
Apart from unplanned projects, making too many changes to your original plan is another way your home renovation project costs can get out of hand. That’s because it can lead to scope creep, which can cause delays or increase the project timelines, significantly increasing the project’s labor costs. In addition, changing the original plan will lead to more expenses in terms of new materials and supplies, which will only make your home renovations more expensive.
Therefore, one of the top tips for home renovation savings made simple is to adhere to your plan once a project gets underway. Of course, no plan is perfect, and you may need to make a few changes to achieve the desired home improvement results. However, you can keep these changes in check by thoroughly considering them and only making them out of necessity (and not on a whim).
Use Professional Contractors
Hiring a professional is another excellent idea if you’re searching for tips for home remodeling savings made simple. At first, this might seem counterproductive given that you’re paying these professionals, thus adding to your project costs. However, working with contractors offers several benefits that can translate to huge savings on your project.
One of the top ways contractors can help you save money on your home renovations is by helping you avoid DIY mistakes. According to a survey by Angi, around 80% of homeowners make a mistake when attempting DIY projects. In several cases, these mistakes result in expensive home damage, thus adding to the home renovation costs. Therefore, when remodeling your home, you can save money by, for example, hiring a plumbing service instead of attempting to do a plumbing project on your own.
The other benefit of working with professional contractors is their experience and access to specialized tools and resources. As a result, they can complete your renovation project at a much faster pace, thus saving you time and money. On top of that, given their experience, they can offer you expert advice, which can help to reduce your remodeling costs.
Shop Around When Choosing Contractors
We’ve already seen that hiring contractors are one of the top tips for money savings made simple during a home renovation. However, you can save even more money by shopping around and comparing the prices offered by different home improvement professionals. Consequently, you can buy from the contractors with the best prices, which can help you save hundreds or even a few thousand dollars on your renovation.
One of the best tips for shopping around is to ask for estimates from different contractors. For example, if you plan to hire cement services, you can identify about three to four cement companies near you and request quotes. Chances are, you will find a significant difference in the quoted price, which can help you save money. On top of that, you can even save more money by negotiating with your preferred contractor for a lower price or asking for a discount.
When requesting estimates from contractors, you should ensure that they are detailed, with a breakdown of every expense. The detailed quotes will help you to create an accurate budget, thus preventing a situation where you start your project with insufficient funds. In addition, they will help you unearth any hidden or undisclosed contractor fees that can lead to a bloated budget.
Look for Deals on Materials and Supplies
According to CBS News, the prices of home renovation materials have increased by between 3% and 25% in the past year alone. Therefore, materials are another area where you can easily overspend when sprucing up your property. Fortunately, several money-saving tips can help you cut down on the cost of your renovation materials and, consequently, your remodeling project.
Where materials are concerned, one of the top tips for savings made easy is to look for favorable deals from different suppliers. For example, say you’re purchasing a water heater for your home. By shopping around, you can find a supplier selling the item at a lower price, at a discount, or on offer. Consequently, you can save money on your renovation without compromising the quality of the materials.
Another tip for saving money on the cost of materials is to leverage your contractor’s connections. Most home improvement professionals have unique relationships with suppliers, where they can get quality materials at wholesale or discounted prices. Therefore, they can help significantly reduce your home renovation costs and guarantee quality results.
Be Creative With Materials
Materials account for a large portion of home renovation costs. Therefore, your project can still be expensive even if you purchase them at discounted prices. Fortunately, you can significantly reduce the cost of your home improvement materials with creative tips, saving much money during your renovations.
One of the top tips on home improvement savings made simple is to purchase affordable alternatives to premium materials in the market. For example, say you’re looking to hire residential paving contractors for a driveway project. In such a case, materials like asphalt and concrete can be expensive due to their popularity and luxuriousness. However, you can save huge chunks of money with alternative materials like gravel, crushed stone, natural stone, and rubber, and still get a great-looking driveway.
Recycling and reusing materials is another excellent way to save money during a home renovation. For example, you can easily reuse old materials like wood, metal, cement, plastic containers, old tiles, and bricks on another home improvement project. And by doing so, you’ll save the money you would have spent on the new materials and the disposal of the old ones.
Spread Out Your Remodeling Projects
A home renovation project can have several hassles, regardless of its size. Therefore, handling two or more projects at a go can force you to juggle too many things, causing several things like the budget and project timelines to get out of hand. Therefore, if you’re looking for tips for savings made simple during your home improvement, consider breaking down your renovations and handling them one at a time.
One of the top benefits of spreading out your renovations is that it allows you to handle one project to completion before embarking on another. Therefore, in case of problems such as delays, material shortages, or an increase in prices, only one project will be affected. Furthermore, you can keep a tighter lid on things when concentrating on one project, which can help you avoid a bloated budget.
Another benefit of spreading out your renovation is that you can time your renovations to coincide with the off-season. For example, if you’re planning an HVAC project, you can schedule it for the spring or fall seasons. During this period, HVAC contractors aren’t usually busy, and thus, you’re likely to get vast price discounts when hiring an air conditioning or heating service, saving you money.
Don’t Put Off Critical Repairs
Repairs are one of the top reasons many homeowners remodel their houses. Unfortunately, most home repairs aren’t cheap; according to a 2022 survey by Hippo Insurance, homeowners spend an average of $6,000 on repairs alone. Fortunately, there’s a way you can keep these repair costs down; by promptly fixing critical issues in your home when they occur.
One of the top ways prompt repairs can help you keep renovation costs down is by preventing the worsening of a problem. For example, say your AC unit is malfunctioning. In such a case, according to Angi, it will cost you between $100 and $2,000 (an average of $350) to hire an AC repair company to fix the problem. However, if you delay the problem, your air conditioner can suffer catastrophic failure, in which case you can spend around $5,886 to replace the unit.
Besides prompt repairs, regular maintenance is another one of the top tips for home renovation savings made simple. For example, according to Bob Vila, the average cost of replacing a septic tank is $6,361. However, you can avoid such an expensive home improvement project (and save money) by hiring regular septic pumping service, thus, keeping your system in top condition for several years.
Invest in Simpler But Effective Renovations
You can choose from several ideas when planning a home improvement project. However, some ideas can be expensive without offering much in the way of returns. Therefore, one of the top tips for home renovation savings made simple is to invest in less expensive but effective improvements.
An excellent example of how you can save money with simpler home improvements is when you’re updating your kitchen cabinets. According to Angi, you can spend between $1,875 and $9,250 on such a project if you install new cabinets. However, you could save as much as 50% on your renovations by refacing the cabinets, which will still give you similar results — a significant boost in the aesthetic appearance of your kitchen.
The outdoors is another of the top areas where you can save money on your home renovations by investing in simpler projects. For example, renovation projects like installing a swimming pool and garden water features can boost your home’s curb appeal but will cost you thousands of dollars. However, you can still spruce up your home’s exterior through less expensive projects like planting a lawn, starting a garden, or hiring arborists to tidy up the trees in your yard.
Remodeling projects can help to transform your house into your dream home. However, they can also quickly become your worst nightmare if you spend more than you had budgeted. However, with the above tips on home renovation savings made simple, you can cut down on your project costs without compromising the quality of your improvements.
