Home renovations can be a costly expense. From knocking out walls to installing brand new flooring (read more here), there are some home renovation costs that cannot be avoided. Nonetheless, there are still ways to save money. It just takes a little creativity. If you have a costly home renovation coming up or you are wanting to do some updates around the house on a budget, here are some tips.
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Make A Budget And Stick To It
Creating a budget and sticking to that budget is one of the most crucial steps when it comes to saving money on your home renovations. Keep in mind that when you are on a budget, that does not mean that you are only doing what is cheap. You can still pay for quality, you just may have to pick and choose what you want to pay for. Think about how much money you are willing to spend and compare that with how much money you have coming in. From there you can start creating a budget that works with your income. It is also recommended that you add an additional 10 percent to your total amount for incidentals.
Pay In Cash
Pay your renovations in cash or with a debit card if possible. You do not want to take out a loan to pay for the updates. Loans are typically accompanied by high interest rates. It might make sense to borrow money to do some home updates if you intend on selling your home. You will likely get a return on your investment, but if you are only doing them just for the sake of updating the house, it is best that you pay in cash.
Pace Yourself
You do not want to rush any job, especially one that involves how your home will look. Pace your home renovations. Avoid rushing the process. Sometimes you do not have a choice but to pace yourself since you are gathering all the necessary capital needed to make the renovations happen. On the other hand, if you have all the money you may feel the urge to get all the renovations done at one time. Do not do this. Your home will look like a dusty mess in between the renovations.
Do Them Yourself
There are some home improvement jobs you can do yourself. Give it a try! Doing some renovations yourself will save you thousands of dollars. If you are not comfortable doing handy work and you insist on paying someone, there are things you can do to prepare for their arrival. Remember, you are paying them per hour. By setting up your home for their arrival, you will be saving money.
Use What You Have
Instead of gutting the entire room, consider using what you already have and repurpose them. For instance, if you are updating the kitchen consider repurposing the doors instead of swapping them out for new ones. You will be surprised what a good sanding and a fresh coat of paint can do to update a space.
You know when you have found the right home because it just feels right. And when we move into our dream home, we may find that the house is perfect, but the neighbourhood is not so much. Sometimes when we are at home, we cannot feel relaxed because we may not feel safe and sound. Wherever you live, a little extra peace of mind is always helpful. So this means we need to have the right products around us that make us feel safe and sound. Home security is such a wide-ranging concept these days that you can find pretty much everything to suit your needs. Let’s show you what investments are worthwhile.
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Motion Monitors
Ideal if you are away from the property for a few days. While there are numerous ways for motion sensors to work, such as light-activated motion sensors for the garden, you may need to find something a little more subtle. You can click here for a monitor that will notify you if there’s any unexpected motion detected in your property. We can’t be too careful these days, especially as burglars can be very adept at breaking into a property without making any noise.
A Video Doorbell
If you don’t have a peephole in your front door, a smart video doorbell can help you see who is ringing the bell before you open up. The great thing about video doorbells is that you can actually talk to them through the device if you don’t want to open up the door. There’s a wide variety of smart video doorbells out there and some offer various features such as 2-way talk and even night vision.
Indoor Cameras
Home security all began with the humble camera. Old-fashioned security cameras are all well and good but these days when we are away from the property we need smart devices that can help us monitor our home straight from our mobile phone. Many indoor security cameras offer full HD and wide-angle video during the day and the night. A lot of indoor cameras will notify you if the camera detects any motion and will give you a snapshot of who is moving around.
Window Alarms
As burglars are pretty savvy when it comes to getting windows open without smashing them you can purchase a window alarm that is easy to install. Every window alarm has two pieces which have a magnetic strip and the alarm. Once the two pieces are separated, it beeps loudly and deters criminals but can also stop any wayward teenagers leaving their bedroom in the middle of the night!
A Small Safe
Something very simple but incredibly effective to keep your valuables secure. You can purchase digital safes these days that you can program with guest and master codes. The great thing about small safes is that they are incredibly cost-effective. It’s a small price to pay for huge peace of mind.
A secure home is only secure when you feel relaxed. These devices can go a long way to guaranteeing that you finally feel comfortable in your home environment.
It’s no secret that real estate is one of the better investments you can make. If you read any blog or book about the best ways to invest your money and build a healthy financial future, then it won’t be long before you see someone who’s making the case for property. But of course, while real estate can be a profitable area to invest in, it’s not as if success is guaranteed. Far from, in fact. There have been many people who have gotten themselves burned through this type of investing. To improve your chances of success, then it’s important to keep some smart tips in mind. We’ll run through a bunch below that’ll increase the likelihood that your real estate investment venture will be profitable.
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Know the Area
There are properties all over the world, but should you invest in them, no matter where they’re located? It’s a mix of yes and no. In general, it’s best to veer towards ‘no.’ By focusing on your home area, you’ll be able to draw on extensive knowledge of the streets, homes, neighbourhoods, and other key factors that’ll determine how much you can charge for rent. However, though you’ll want to spend most of your time and energy on areas that you understand, it is possible to look at opportunities elsewhere. Or at least, you shouldn’t automatically reject a property just because it’s not in your postal code. The key thing is to conduct as much research as possible. Remember that the valuation of a property is about much more than just the condition of the house — the location plays a massive role, too.
Your Niche
There are different paths towards real estate success. One of the key decisions you’ll have to make is to decide how you’re going to get there. This usually begins by deciding what your real estate “niche” will be. It could be you want to rent high-end properties, homes for families, or to students. Once you’ve figured this out, you’ll need to look at the specific details and rules for the process. For example, if you’re going to rent a property to students, then you’ll need to know about HMO, or House in Multiple Occupation; a HMO guide will run you through everything you need to know. While you may want to dabble in letting properties in different areas from time to time, you’ll find that having a particular calling to one type of property rental serves you well in the long run.
Get Your Finances Under Control
You’ll find that everything runs much more smoothly if you have a solid grasp on your finances. While there’s a lot of potential to improve your finances on a long-term basis, there’s no avoiding the fact that there can be a lot of expenses that you need to pay too. Indeed, this is something that many people overlook. It’s not just the cost of the mortgage, but also taxes, maintenance, all that stuff. One of the best gifts you can give yourself is to get the basics of accounting under your belt. You can learn this pretty quickly, yet it’ll be something that you draw upon again and again.
Learn Some DIY
One of the best ways to keep your costs down is to learn some DIY skills. As with accounting, actually as with all things, this is something that anybody with a little time and patience can learn. The advantage of doing so is that you’ll be able to handle some of the jobs related to your property yourself, rather than having to hire someone else to do everything. Of course, the big jobs like the electrics and things should always be left to others, unless you’re specifically trained in those fields. But the non-dangerous jobs? They should be done by you. As well as saving money, it’ll also just save time, since you won’t need to go through the process of finding someone to do the work for you.
Work with the Best You can’t build anything truly special on your own. You’ll always need other people, to varying degrees. While it can feel as if investing in property is something that you do on your own, the truth is that you’ll likely have to call upon others from time to time. And not only have to, but actually want to — it’s in your best interests. There are two specific areas where you should focus on bringing in the best people possible. One is with the jobs you need to be done. This is maybe less about “the best” (unless you’re renting high-end properties), more about finding trustworthy people. For the professional roles, such as your financial advisors, you will want to find the best that you can afford, since their expertise can make a big difference.
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Rainy Day Funds
One of the tougher aspects of becoming a landlord is maintaining cash-flow. There can be many surprise expenses that can cause complications if you’re not ready for them. The smartest way to prep yourself is to build a rainy day fund, a stockpile of cash that you can use as and when it’s required.
Finally, remember that if you’re going to find long-term success with your real estate journey, then it’s important that you take it seriously. If you treat it as a small side hobby, then there can’t be too many surprises if it doesn’t turn out well. Treat it like a business, on the other hand, and you’ll have the correct frame of mind for success.
Conclusion
As we said at the beginning of the blog, real estate investing can be profitable, but success is far from guaranteed. It’s really important to follow the best practices; they will be your best defence against the pitfalls and dangers of real estate investing.
With the way the pandemic is going, it seems we’re going to be indoors for a while. Even though going out is not as much of a taboo as when it first started, it’s still important to take the safety precautions very seriously. But not only do you have to stay safe when you’re outdoors. You also have to make sure you’re exercising some level of caution when you’re inside, especially if you’ve been out. It is also important when you are inviting people into your home, whether you’re close to them or not.
If you’re looking to sell your home and need professionals to evaluate the building, make sure they are adhering to safety precautions as well. Mansell McTaggart in Sussex, for example, is dedicated to reducing the spread of the disease and have outlined their specific procedures involved in accessing their services. The attached infographic has all the details, and it is a relief to know that some people are still taking the situation seriously. It will also be better if your home is safe for the next occupants as that way, they will be more at ease with making the purchase.
Selling your home doesn’t have to be more challenging than it can already be especially in these times. The statistics on the effects on the pandemic make it pretty clear that you cannot compromise on safety right now. So in whatever you do, think about how you can make it a little safer for everyone involved.
Buying a home is arguably one of the biggest expenses that you’ll ever counter in life. However, it’s also one of the most well-documented processes and you can easily get help if you need it. In this post, we’ll be looking at a more practical approach to buying your first home and how you can streamline the process to save money and reduce the amount of hassle it takes.
Don’t just buy a home because it’s expected of you by your friends, family or even society. Not everyone buys a home and some are content with renting. Make sure you’re comfortable with the responsibility of buying a home because it’s a decision you’ll be locked into for many years.
Get your finances in place
You also want to make sure that your finances are in order. Get a credit check to ensure there are no outstanding issues and make sure you establish a secure source of income that can pay for your home.
Use a mortgage broker
A mortgage broker comes with many advantages. They can help you save time when looking for a good deal and they can also help you save money since they’ll compare lots of different mortgage lenders to help you find the best deals. They can often work with dozens of different lenders to compare prices and find one that suits your budget and needs.
Pick a place where you want to live
It’s important that you spend a lot of time choosing your ideal location to live. This is because it’ll change everything from school choices to job opportunities. Make sure you scout out each location and do a bit of research to help you decide on the ideal city or neighbourhood for your needs.
Decide on a type of property
You also need to decide on a type of property. While houses tend to give you more freedom, it’s hard to find an affordable house inside of a city. Instead, you’ll likely need to live in a suburb if you want a large house with plenty of space. However, if you prefer living in the city, you’ll likely need to pick an apartment if you want accessible transport links and other conveniences.
Make your offer
It can be stressful deciding on an amount to pay for your first home. It’s important to understand when you’re paying too much for a home, but you should try to make your offer compelling for the seller. Your estate agent should be able to help you with this process and suggest a good price to offer to catch the seller’s attention.
Understand that it takes a long time to finalize
Many people underestimate just how long it takes to finalize a home purchase. You need to keep in mind that it can take up to half a year or more depending on how careful you want to be. It can take weeks to find a suitable home and even more weeks to find a suitable mortgage lender.
