The Basics…2 of 4: Define what you can spend.

Second, what’s your budget?
This is where most projects die. Many people do not realize the cost of renovation and when they find out, say, “Forget it!” Even if you want what you want at whatever it costs (rare) you need to define what you feel comfortable spending. You can spend as much as you can imagine, but most everyone has a limit. Most renovation is a substantial investment and it goes along with some risk.

  • Define what you can spend. What is the optimum amount you prefer to spend and what is your maximum.

  • A budget will help whoever designs your renovation in providing you an appropriate solution or an answer of “Are you crazy?” Whom else you share this budgeting information with varies in opinion depending on who you talk to.

  • Is your budget realistic?

  • Can you get what you want for nothing? Not likely. If you are looking at doing something big, your budget should be the same. Do you have champagne taste on a beer budget? We all like ‘nice’ things, but what we can afford is generally another story. Don’t let yourself fall into traps like when your ‘eyes are bigger than your stomach’ or adding a lot of small items to your project thinking it will cost about the same or not much more.

    Even projects that seem small can end up costing a lot more than intended for various reasons. Most commonly are other areas that are affected by the renovation that ‘expand’ your project by the relationship to it. For example, adding a door in a wall requires taking care of items within the wall such as electrical, plumbing and heating/cooling items. Structural issues may require additional structure to be provided down to the foundation. Not all that common, but for a small project budget, devastating. All of the walls in each room where the door joins may require painting or repairing finishes pending how extensive the ‘other’ work required is.

  • No budget is finite. Provide some elbow room.

  • An estimate may be listed down to the penny, but most renovation projects have unforeseen issues come up, hence the term ‘estimate’. Hence the term ‘risk’. If you want to convince yourself not to attempt renovation, watch the movie, 'The Money Pit'. In a few cases, this can become all too real!

    Most budget overages are due to someone not considering the most likely things to affect the work, or from home owners constantly changing their mind on what they want, resulting in higher design and construction fees. But some items are due to hidden deficiencies under floors, in walls and ceilings, from damage, or from changing building codes that now require something to be ‘improved’ before you can pass inspection.

    In general, the older a house is, the more likely things are going to have to be upgraded and may cost more than in new construction (yes, I said “more”). Your maximum budget should have some percentage of contingency for unforeseen overages.

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