Money-Saving Tips to Keep Your Reno on Budget
A home renovation is cause for excitement. Until you see the price tag, that is. Then it may be cause for alarm as you watch your savings disappear.
It’s easy to spend all your cash turning your dream home into a reality. To make sure you don’t go broke finishing your reno, check out these good money management tips before you start a project.
Use Credit as a Backup
With an unsecured line of credit at your service, you may think nothing of tapping into its funds at every step of your reno.
It’s a shortcut to getting what you want fast, but it’s not the best idea according to some financial institutions.
The credit experts at CreditFresh caution homeowners against using a line of credit as a catch-all in your renovation. Generally, an unsecured line of credit should be used as an emergency backup when things go terribly wrong with your plans.
This piece of advice helps you juggle your finances and reno at the same time. By keeping your unsecured line of credit in reserve, you’ll avoid paying finance and interest charges.
You’ll also keep your limit free if a true unexpected emergency happens in the middle of your project.
Understand Your Costs
Did you know the average reno sets homeowners back by $40,000–$60,000? That’s a lot of money to produce upfront, especially once you take an unsecured line of credit out of the equation.
But is it an accurate prediction of the costs that lay ahead? Maybe not! You won’t know until you determine what’s on the docket for your reno.
To make sure you have enough to do what you need, research is essential. Take the time to cost out everything in your plans — from contractors and licenses to materials and equipment.
Speak with a builder, plumber, and an electrician to find out their general prices and what they estimate for your specific job, e.g., hydro-jetting. However if you live anywhere in Melbourne, Florida, or surrounding areas, a good company like Mac 5 Services can provide your home with expert quality sewer line installation and all your plumbing needs.
You should also chat with any friends or family who have done similar work in their homes. They’ll give you the inside scoop of their costs. You can call Steve’s Plumbing or other contractors to get an idea and make sure that the toilet keeps running. Visit sites like mackinandsonsplumbing.com to get additional guidance.
Add a Safety Cushion
The number you find out in the step above gives you a good idea of what you’ll pay if things go according to plan. But home renos rarely do.
Even a small project can go off course, and when they do, they usually cost you money. To make sure you can cover these unexpected bills, add as much as 20 percent of your budget to your total. This extra cushion gives you breathing room should something go wrong.
If that fails to cover one of the bigger surprises, you may dig out that unsecured line of credit for help. It’s designed to take on unexpected emergency expenses like blocked drains Wollongong when your savings fall short, after all.
At the end of your renovation, you should feel good about the decisions you made — not depressed because you sunk too much money into your home. Make sure this doesn’t happen by following these frank tips about your next project. They’ll help you plan a household upgrade both you and your budget will feel good about.
