How To Prepare To Renovate Your Home
Renovating your home can be an exciting, yet daunting task. You can make it easier by doing some thorough preparation and planning.
Just creating the designs and plans for your home renovation takes more than a little effort, not to mention all the other aspects of the project that you’ll need to think through. Make sure you take the time to fully prepare, and keep reminding yourself that it will be worth it, because it will.
If you’re starting a home renovation project, here are some tips to make sure you and your home are ready.
Prepare Your Finances
Home renovations are a good investment, but they can often require more up front costs than you’d think. Inevitably there are snafus that arise and upgrades for materials that you just can’t live without, so it’s a good idea to have more than you think you need ready to spend on your project. Start saving now by putting your renovation money aside in something like a credit union savings account. This will help keep you from spending it and will allow it to grow on its own by earning interest. While you’re at it, start doing research and getting general estimates on the remodeling projects you’d like to have done, and then prioritize which ones you want to put the most money into. That way if something happens and you have to cut a project, you’ll have the one you care most about finished.
Figure Out Temporary Living Arrangements
Whether you’re going to have one room under construction or the whole house, chances are you’ll need to figure out a different way to go about your normal life while the renovations are taking place. If you’re redoing the majority of your home, it might be worth finding a family member or friend to stay with or planning to take a vacation during that time. If you’re only doing a few rooms, you may be able to stay in your house, but you’re still going to need to figure out a system for preparing food and using bathrooms if those areas are under construction. Talk to your contractor about which days they’d recommend you plan to be entirely out of the house in order to avoid breathing paint fumes or having no running water all day, especially if you have children and pets.
Protect Your Belongings
Spare no efforts to keep your home safe and sound.
Save yourself another headache and expense by ensuring that your belongings are protected. Plan where you’re going to store the items that are in the rooms that are going to be under construction and protect other items from damage throughout the rest of the house. Consider removing rugs to cut down on the amount of dust and dirt that lands on them, and cover shelves and other furniture with fabric or plastic sheets. If you’re only having one or two rooms redone, create a pathway for the workers so that they don’t have to unnecessarily traipse through your whole house. Take down picture frames and other breakable items so that they don’t fall from vibrations or knocking in other rooms. Secure your valuable belongings, especially if you’re not going to be living in the home while it’s under construction. Even if you trust the crew and contractor, construction zones are often easy for thieves to wander into unnoticed.
Communicate With Your Neighbors
Construction of any amount involves a lot of noise, unsightly piles of building materials, and a large number of people coming and going. Maintain a good relationship with your neighbors by communicating what you’re doing and how long you expect it to take, especially if it’s a large project. They’ll appreciate the heads up and the ability to prepare their kids, pets, and homes for the added commotion. You can even sweeten the deal by bringing a small gift of appreciation like home-grown veggies, flowers from your garden, or baked goods. If your project is touching their property line, whether it’s a fence or a condominium wall, make sure you get their permission to do the project before you begin. Tell them what you are thinking of doing and consider asking if they have any input or concerns throughout the process.
Take Care of Your Family
Managing renovations while being uprooted is stressful, to say the least. Make sure you’re protecting your family, especially if you have younger kids, by being intentional about communicating the benefits of the project and the excitement of it, rather than the inconvenience. Keep routines intact as much as possible and make time to relax and get out of the house together. Acknowledge that the construction is going to put a strain on your relationships and then look for ways to minimize it as much as possible. Putting in the effort to fully prepare for the project is one of the most effective ways to do this.
If you need mold remediation or post construction cleaning, contact RestorationMaster.
About Vince Sandri
Vince Sandri is a content writer and blogger with more than 12 years of experience. His expertise is in creating content related to disaster restoration, including information about preventing and reacting to natural disasters like flooding, water damage, fire and smoke damage, mold growth, storm damage and more.
Vince has been the main contributor to RestorationMasterFinder.com since 2014. Over that time, he has written numerous service pages and blogs for disaster restoration providers featured on RestorationMasterFinder.com. Vince has done extensive research and covered a wide range of topics relating to disaster restoration to help homeowners, business owners, and property managers better protect their property. He understands the problems that disasters like flooding, fire, smoke, and mold can cause as well as the best ways to respond to these issues to limit the damage.
Vince completed his Bachelor of Arts degree at Aurora University and his master’s degree at DePaul University. He has been writing SEO website pages, blogs, and press releases since 2012. Vince is also a musician and can be seen playing in the Chicago, IL area.
