Introduction
Home renovation is a great adventure. It’s like renewing a kitchen, bathrooms, or refreshing the whole interior of your home; whatever way, it’s a breath of new life taken into your living space. But sometimes, hidden challenges come along with all that excitement. Typical renovation mistakes turn dream projects into nightmares for many homeowners in Sacramento and elsewhere. Now, how can these pitfalls be avoided? Now, let’s discuss the top five mistakes to avoid when remodeling your home and ensure everything goes off without a hitch for your Sacramento home remodeling project.
1. Skipping the Planning Phase
You may as well take a road trip across the country without a map if you decide to renovate your house with no solid plan. It is quite possible that along with becoming lost, you will feel frustrated and be miles from your expected destination. Planning, therefore, is at the core of every successful renovation project. It becomes extremely important to jot down the goals, work out the budget, and set a timeline before hammering in that very first nail.
Think about what it is that you are trying to get from the renovation. Is it supposed to improve the value of your house or to make it more energy-efficient, or maybe freshen up the look? Keeping this in mind will help you through all of your decisions. Other important things to finally consider are how renovations are going to impact your everyday life. Will you need to include temporary accommodation somewhere else? How is it going to disrupt the routine of your family? These are important questions to be sorted out in advance.
2. Underestimating the Budget
Probably the most common mistake for homeowners is underestimating the cost of renovations. Setting a budget based on best-case scenarios is in human nature, but unexpected expenses are almost impossible to avoid. From hidden water damage that could be hiding behind your bathroom renovation to unexpected issues with your kitchen, things can add up quickly.
Of course, the best way to protect yourself from this is by putting a buffer in the budget. To be rough, the rule of thumb would be to add 10-20% to cover any surprises. For example, when you do kitchen remodeling in Sacramento consider all possible costs including: cost to replace countertops, materials, labor, permits, and a possible delay. Better safe than sorry.
3. Ignoring Building Permits and Codes
Like most other cities, Sacramento has building codes and permit requirements that must be addressed when renovating. Failure to address these specific items can create significant fines, costly delays, or even require ‘undoing’ work already completed. From bathroom remodeling to kitchen expansion or addition of a new room, be aware of what permits are required.
This process may be overwhelming, but it is a very major step to have your renovation legal and up to code. That protects you, too, when selling your home. The buyers want to be reassured that everything was done properly so that no hustle will appear in the future.
4. Overlooking the Kitchen and Bathroom
In home remodeling, two places where one should never cut corners are in the kitchen and the bathroom. These will be not only serving functionality but also impacting resale value. So many Sacramento homeowners make this mistake by focusing on areas other than these very key rooms.
For example, if your kitchen is outmoded, consider renovating it with new appliances, new countertops, and better storage facilities. Likewise, for the bathroom, new fixtures, improved lighting, and a fresh coat of paint bring so much change.
5. Choosing the Wrong Contractors
Among your renovations, choosing the perfect contractor is the biggest decision that you will have to make. A good contractor can convert at all your dreams into reality whereas a bad one can literally turn your dream into a nightmare. One of the most common errors that Sacramento homeowners commit is hiring a contractor just because the latter offers the lowest price.
Although one must ensure not to overshoot the budget, it is not necessary that the cheapest bid is the best. Provide ample lead time for researching contractors, reading reviews, and seeking references. Meet them in person and discuss your project with them, making sure they have a crystal clear picture of what you are seeing in your head. Don’t hesitate asking about their experience in a similar genre, previous work, and timelines.
Conclusion
Home renovation can be a fun process as long as you do it right. By following these tips – don’t skip the planning stage, be realistic about the finances required, get all the necessary building permits, make sure that you cover all the important sections such as the kitchen and the bathroom, and choose the right builders – you can cut down the time and the cost of your project. Whether you are designing a complete home remodeling project or are thinking of a bathroom renovation, careful planning, proper budgeting and professional workmanship will work out in the long run. Therefore, now, you are ready to convert your house from a place where you stay, into one that you want to stay in.
James Martin is a passionate writer and the founder of OnTimeMagazines & EastLifePro. He loves to write principally about technology trends. He loves to share his opinion on what’s happening in tech around the world.
