We Australians love to renovate – just look at the number of TV renovation reality shows! Renovations are a great way of increasing the value of your property, but you do need to be properly prepared.

Your whole life will be uprooted and it will get messy for starters. Then there is the added stress of meeting unexpected challenges and seeing your budget spiral upwards with unforeseen costs.

However, renovating a property needn’t be like a TV reality show with emotions running high and constant racing to the nearest Bunnings if you make plans and have some idea of what to expect.

To avoid, or at least reduce some of the chaos and fraught nerves, here are some tips to help:

Get advice

First and foremost, get advice from professionals. Speak to builders, plasterers, electricians and other trades people who do renovations. They will explain exactly in what order things need to be done, what you need to budget for and what potential challenges you may meet.

For instance, while you may have budgeted for the taps, tiles and vanity for the bathroom, have you considered there may be some additional plumbing work needed too?

Know your renovation

It’s very easy for projects to escalate when you’re doing renovations. Many people think, ‘while I do this, I might as well do that’. What started out as changing some cupboard doors and a lick of paint in the kitchen, suddenly turns into a massive project and before you know it, you’re living in a building site and costs have sky-rocketed.

Think very clearly about what needs doing and most importantly, what renovations will increase the value of your house. You don’t want to over capitalise i.e. the cost of the renovation is more than the increase in value to the house.

Budget for unexpected costs

No matter how prepared you are and what advice you get, there will almost always be unexpected costs and challenges to overcome. From pulling up the carpet to find rotten floorboards to discovering a tangle of wires behind the plaster for what appeared to be a simple rewiring job, there will be additional issues you’ll need to put right.

Prepare for delays

The weather, availability of trades people to do the work, and delayed deliveries are just some things affect time-lines. Accept some things are out of your control and concentrate on working with what is in your control.

Be safe

If you’re doing some of the manual work yourself, make sure you invest in proper work gear. You don’t need to spend a fortune; you can wear your oldest clothes, but get yourself a pair of safety glasses, proper work gloves, a dust mask and sturdy shoes, ideally steel cap boots. No matter how comfortable your old trainers are, if you drop an old tile or solid piece of wood on your foot, it will hurt!

If you’re thinking of renovating your property with a view to selling later down the track and want some no obligation advice, our experienced and knowledgeable team would love to help out.

Over the 40 years we’ve been successfully operating in the area, we’ve helped thousands of people realise their real estate dreams and we are committed to delivering the best service and achieving the best possible results for our customers.

This is why we are one of Newcastle’s longest established property management companies. Give us a call on 02 4954 8833 or pop into our Cardiff office for a chat.

And don’t forget to check out our Facebook page for handy tips on selling your property or what to look for when buying a property.