Home Extension Budgets – everybody needs one!
You’ve decided you want to improve your home, maybe you’re adding a bedroom or expanding the kitchen? If you’ve outgrown your home or just want to add a bit more space a home extension is a great alternative to moving house.
Whether you’re renovating for practical reasons or you want to add value to your property a medium to large scale project needs careful consideration and planning.
Most importantly it needs a budget…
Don’t be like Grand Designs…
You’ve decided you want to improve your home, maybe you’re adding a bedroom or expanding the kitchen? If you’ve outgrown your home or just want to add a bit more space a home extension is a great alternative to moving house.
Whether you’re renovating for practical reasons or you want to add value to your property a medium to large scale project needs careful consideration and planning.
Most importantly it needs a budget…
If you’ve ever watched an episode of Grand Designs you’ll have seen couples whose plans have faltered because they’ve run out of cash.
Beautiful projects stopped midway and left half finished because of gaping holes in the budget. Time delays are not just inconvenient, they can end up costing you more money. If you run of money and work stops you run the risk of weather damage to any exposed unfinished works.
You also have to take into consideration the availability of your tradespeople if you call works to a halt. How will you feel if your contractor is not available when you want to re-start?
Relax, all will be fine
As an artist I’m not just here to create beautiful works of art – I have practical solutions to help guide my clients in creating beautiful spaces in which to live and work.
With that in mind, I’ve put together this guide to help you stay on a budget without having to compromise on quality and choice.
Here are my five tips for staying on track with your budget:
1. Be specific about what you want
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Taking the time at the start of the project to really think about the space you are trying to create will make the whole planning process easier. What is the purpose of the space you are creating?
Who is it for and who will use it the most? Is it fit for purpose? When you know exactly what you want from the outset, costing the project will be much simpler and will save time.
2. Be Realistic
You know what it costs you to live and you know what savings you have to access. Ideally your budget shouldn’t impact on either. When planning your budget , your building costs should not put you in debt or affect your ability to pay the bills.
Modify your ambitions to match your budget. Are the fixtures and fittings you want readily available or will they be difficult to get hold of? Will you need to add on import or shipping costs?
3. Choose a designer who understands costs
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You’re investing in improving your home and you have a specific idea of how it should look but when it comes to keeping hold of the project purse strings you need a designer who can help you visualise and source alternatives if you can’t quite stretch to your first choice.
That doesn’t mean you aren’t going to be equally in love with the next best alternative. Employing a designer who is sympathetic to the budget will make for a smoother, pain free extension experience.
4. Always have a contingency fund
We’ve all seen those makeover shows, the unexpected costs have tripped up the homeowners.
Problems arise and unexpected costs are a fact of life. Projects rarely run without a hiccup from beginning to end but if you factor in some bumps in the road you’ll be better prepared to deal with them as and when they arise.
When you’re drawing up your budget add a “contingency fund” heading and allocate a comfortable amount to it. This will not only provide you with a financial buffer, but also with peace of mind so that if something does go wrong you will have the resources to deal with it.
5. Put any cost savings in to your contingency fund
If you make any cost savings during your project then:
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1. Nice one!
2. Don’t splurge it on something else!
It can be so tempting to spend the money you’ve saved or treat yourself to that add on you thought you couldn’t afford at the start of the project, but honestly, don’t do it!
You are reading an article about sticking to a budget! Put that extra money into your contingency fund.
Worse case scenario, you have a healthy emergency fund that will cover any nasty surprises and mean you can ride out any issue, small or large. Best case scenario, you have a tasty pot of money left over when the works are complete.
You could put it towards your internal decor or definitely a commissioned painting from me!
Conclusion
The success of any endeavour is wholly dependant on its planning.
As the saying goes, fail to prepare – prepare to fail. Corny but true. The budget is the foundation of the delivery of any successful project. Identify your goals, define your costs and make it happen.
I want everyone to have beautiful homes – homes that reflect their aspirations. If you would like my help or advice on choosing art for your home and finish off that transformation please do get in touch.
Photo by rawpixel on Unsplash
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