Making the final commitment to buy your first home fills you with an overwhelming sense of accomplishment and pride. With every man and woman’s home being their castle, buying a house is an investment for your future, it’s a place to start a family and a private fortress for you to recuperate after a long day at work.
If your first home is currently lacking the feel and appearance you desire, the following tips shall provide you with the knowledge and impetus to begin planning the journey of renovating your first home.
Assess The House
To begin, take a walk around and inspect the property for any visible damage. Below are some of the most common issues to be wary of:
- Asbestos; used as insulation, commonly found in the loft in houses built before the year 2000.
- Damp and mould; this can be located in any part of the home, particularly within areas rarely exposed to air and sunlight, such as the basement or poorly ventilated bathrooms.
- Structural issues; for instance, this could mean the stairs or the first floor are unsafe to walk on, due to age or wear and tear.
It’s important to note that during your assessment if you are planning to knock down walls or extend your property, you must check the government website for planning permission, before starting any work.
Renovation Budget
This should be determined by blending that which you can afford to spend on updating and fixing your property, with the potential of how much you can reasonably afford to borrow. In some circumstances, you can request your bank to consider lending you money on top of the mortgage, to enable you to renovate your home.
Much like other parts of the house buying process, i.e. you were required to be meticulous in budgeting, and placing money aside for elements such as shopping around for moving costs on websites like movon.com, and sourcing a solicitor to request an estimate of your legal fees. The budgeting of your renovation is no different. You should survey the issues in your home as stated above, and then proceed to hire the relevant experts. Be it carpenters, plasterers, damp and mould experts, and so forth. Each professional will provide you with a quote, and this will give you a ballpark figure to work with when working towards creating your budget.
Time Frame
Devising a time frame is paramount, to ensure you will not be living on a building site for longer than necessary. Which is why, when you consult the experts for a quote on the work that needs to be done, ask for a time frame. This will help you map out the next few months to a year, and determine how long you and your family will need to endure life on site, in pursuit of your first home renovation.
Crafting a plan to renovate your home is key in ensuring you identify the priority issues, you create a realistic budget, and you estimate a time frame for the work to be completed.