Renovations that Earn More Profit
Of course you have seen a lot of home renovation programs. Asking this question definitely gets you an already obvious answer. It would be surprising if you have not encountered this kind of show as there are already a lot of home remodelling programs in the television. They are very entertaining to watch. The big problem, however, is that you are not so sure to which side these supposedly DIY renovations cater to. They might say that they offer assistance to families who intend to create some changes in their homes.
Something I’ve noticed is that when investors renovate property themselves, they self-design so that they don’t cut into their profit by spending money on a designer. Fair enough if the designer is going to chomp into your profit too much. However getting professional advice (or at the least following the pointers that follow!) will accelerate your chances of making a profit - just as using a real estate agent to sell your property will increase the probable sell price.
Get your mindset right. This renovation is not your own home and you do not have to live there. Consider your likely buyers or tenants and keep them in mind the whole time. Put away the pretty glossy magazines and get down to business! You are looking at what ‘hard’ changes (things that are fixed) to make rather than the ’soft’ (furniture, artwork) which is what you’ll find in most interior design magazines.
For each and every element decide whether they fit their purpose. I’m not talking about if you particularly LIKE them as you see them in the scheme of the whole area or room at the moment - look at the elements completely independently of one another. Are they in good condition? If they weren’t adjacent to the things they are adjacent to now (instead, for example, in a more modern setting) would they look ok? So, look at every item independently and assess whether you could keep it or whether it NEEDS to be changed in some way.
For each of the elements that you have decided needs changing in some way; choose which one of the following four you’ll use. They’re easy to remember because they all start with the letter ‘R’, Renovate, Replace, Remove or Repair. You want to look at this from the point of view by asking yourself what is going to cost me the least and give me the most? Consider the 80/20 rule. What can I invest 20% on for 80% return? You’re not looking for a perfect, 100% result - but you are looking for 80%.
Tell a little white lie to the contractors or project manager about the expected completion date. Keep this to yourself and keep the pressure on as if this date were correct.
Visit the site briefly and frequently to resolve any issues and keep an eye on progress. Be as nice as pie to your contractors as they will be the ones to save you money if they LIKE you!
Pay your contractors on time after they have finished every last detail on your project.
