Many kiwis love a great home improvement project, whether that is renovating one part of their home – or the whole thing. With COVID limiting travel over the past couple of years, New Zealanders have begun to prioritise home improvement. Putting money into a facelift of their kitchen, bathroom and other areas of the home. Flocking to DIY centres prior to lockdowns. And putting emphasis into developing their home rather than travel and other expenses. With this in mind, Shopless has some top considerations to make your home renovations a success.
What spaces are going to offer the best return?
It is good to consider the cost of the renovations, and the likely return on the investment. Bathroom and Kitchen renovations tend to be the most popular, also the most costly spaces but likely to see more of a return. In a recent Stuff article they estimated that a bathroom renovation has a return of $1.5 – $2 for every dollar spent. Another article suggested that renovating the kitchen and bathroom of a home should see a 50% return on investment. Additionally, turning a 3 bedroom home into a four bedroom home will also likely double your money.
However there is no current New Zealand study comparing the renovation investment to the increased value. Additionally every individual home is different, some may already have modern spaces that will have less of a return if immediately renovated. Some may also have immediate work that needs done such as the roof or carpet which can be costly renovations in themselves.
How much are you willing to spend and do you have emergency funds?
When you are renovating your home it is important to consider hidden costs. Many people create a budget that can be evaluated regularly on the journey of the renovations. As well as doing the renovation incrementally to ensure that each step is done within the budget and required time frame.
Currently due to a shortage of supplies general building supplies are at an all time high in price. One article discussing this need to budget appropriately uses an example of a NZ couple who have budgeted $200,000 for a full home renovation. The total cost of the renovation came in at $400,000. This was due to the discovery of asbestos in the walls of the home and other factors. What was anticipated to be a 4 month task became a 2 year project. So as much as it is good to do a lot of the work yourself, it is also important to keep tabs on what is happening in the world of building resources. What additional costs might crop up and if you should do the renovations a bit more progressively to ensure it is done within the required price range. And the required time frame.
What do you want to enjoy?
There is a huge push in New Zealand that when you renovate your home, it is subsequently to sell your house and make money. And that will likely happen. However it is also important to consider the fact that you may choose to live in your house longer, or renovating is also to make your living experience more functional and enjoyable. So if you are choosing to renovate your home, maybe consider what you would like done. Or added so that you can enjoy the home you are living in. This 2021 article gave a breakdown of how much renovations might cost in different areas of the home.
Another article suggested that the kiwi DIY was dead. That New Zealanders prefer to get contractors in to complete renovations on their home. With the kitchen being the most popular space to renovate. For those that did this they chose different areas to focus their time on while a contractor did the big jobs. Aspects such as garden improvements became a focus instead of major renovation. And this is great if you don’t have excessive time to put into a project, or you are happy with much of your home. There are always small aspects that can be improved in every home.
Shopless has given an insight into some priorities to consider when embarking on home renovations. If you are looking to sell your recently renovated home. Or if you are wanting to buy. Make sure to check out the property section of Shopless here. And make your renovation aspirations a reality.