With many homeowners feeling more wealthy as their properties have increased in value over the past year, it is tempting to do the renovations you’ve always dreamed of.
And if you do it right, you should add value and make your home attractive to the next person when you decide to move on.
However, it’s important to be careful when putting your costs together – renovations are notorious for exploding, so make sure you do your due diligence first.
CONTINUE READING:
* The Rise and Rise of the Home Improvement: Why Was So Much Spent on Renovations?
* Is it worth expanding your home – or should you just move?
* Three things your contractors want to know before starting the renovation
* Builder versus architect: who is the best choice when renovating your home?
Which renovation brings the greatest added value?
It is a good idea to find out what the latest trends are.
“Providing a house with more usable living space is usually a central concern, so it is not surprising that single-storey extensions [also] very popular, ”says Chris Caiger, co-founder of Refresh Renovations.
Renovating to provide open living is generally the best bang for your buck, says Jen Jones, Auckland project manager, director of Nine Yards Consulting.
“This usually requires removing a load-bearing wall, which triggers planning permission, but it can really turn a dark, separated room into a bright, bright open plan area that is much more practical.”
Tommy’s real estate
If you’re doing renovations in the run-up to a sale, make sure everything you do is done in neutral colors. Now is not the right time to design your dream kitchen in dark red and black.
Know your market
If you’re renovating ahead of a sale, make sure everything you do is done in neutral colors, advises Jared Cooksley, director of Ray White Mt Eden. This is not the time to design your dream kitchen in dark red and black.
“They may love it, but buyers may not, and it can even put them off so that a new kitchen could actually reduce the value of the home,” warns Cooksley.
If you are in an expensive suburb, high quality fittings are expected from a renovated home if you want to hit the upper price range. New high-end kitchens in homes in expensive Auckland suburbs like Mt. Eden and Sandringham typically cost between $ 50.00 and $ 100,000 and luxury bathrooms up to $ 50,000, says Ray White Mt Eden agent Rick Mozessohn.
But if you live somewhere with more modest prices, the numbers on all of these high-end additions like underfloor heating and tech bells and whistles may not be right.
Create more space
A renovation with added value currently creates a separate workplace or accommodation.
For the past year since Covid first emerged, people have been thinking about how to convert garages, lofts, basements, and other areas into more useful spaces, such as the bathroom. B. another bedroom, an office area or a multipurpose room so that the children can use it as a second living room or playroom, says Caiger.
Adding a nice studio – with regulatory compliance – and possibly a kitchenette – where you can accommodate the in-laws or where the parents can work from home – can add significant value to a home, says Cooksley.
Smaller jobs for your money
On a smaller scale, Tommy’s real estate agent Sam Newble says painting, landscaping, and improving the “walk from the mailbox to the front door” are really important improvements you can make.
“Extreme renovation costs are not caused by the materials, but by customization,” says Mozessohn, an experienced renovator who is changing the shape of his current kitchen so that he can buy standard kitchen cabinets. He moves walls to do this at a low cost.
In this way you avoid spending too much
Research on Refresh Renovations found that people’s biggest fear about renovations is the unexpected costs.
The planning phase is critical, says Caiger, who points to Branz research showing that saving on planning could mean a $ 100,000 project costs $ 130,000. You should invest 10 percent in planning before the start of a project, he says.
“People often save on the project plan, then they have no tools to manage the project,” says Caiger, who says that a good project manager is essential.
Tommy’s real estate
Tommy’s real estate agent Sam Newble says even painting a room can make a really important addition to the value of your home – but stick to the neutral values so as not to deter buyers.
Jen Jones seconded this. “Plan, plan, plan. You can only quantify the extent that you know. So getting a construction report before or after your purchase can really help you understand what needs to be done first.
“New construction, a new roof, rewiring, insulation, all of these will consume a large part of your budget, but above all aesthetics must be addressed,” she warns.
Blowouts only happen because homeowners don’t fully understand the scope of the project, adds Jones. Knowing in advance that it will cost $ 100,000 more than your current budget, the decision can be made: will you decrease the scope or increase your budget?
Talk to your mortgage advisor first
Part of the planning process is talking to your mortgage advisor about how you are going to fund this renovation.
“Start by talking to us and get pre-approval,” said Sarah Bloxham, director of Let’s Talk! Mortgages and Insurance. A good counselor will ask a few in-depth questions about your planning, she says.
Banks tend to like fixed price estimates from builders bidding on the project, and they want to see who is running the project, says Bloxham. The more equity you have in the house, the more relaxed you will be, she adds.
A valuer can help see how much a home renovation can add to the value of a home, says Bloxham.
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