The simple renovation mistakes you need to avoid

THIS mistake can end up costing you big time when you’re renovating your home - but the good news is it’s pretty easy to avoid.

HOME renos can be riddled with costly mistakes that mean lost time, wasted energy — and all but throwing away your hard-earned cash. So what are the biggest mistakes a DIY novice can make?

Well not asking the experts, for a start — so we’ve saved you the time and asked for you. Because as they say, time equals money.

WORK OUT YOUR BUDGET AND MINUS 20%

The Block’s Ronnie and Georgia Caceres may have made some enemies on screen, but off camera they’ve bought and sold 10 properties, and know a thing or two about budgets.

“You have to add a contingency budget of 20 per cent — so if you know you can only spend $100,000, then you need to have $80,000 for costs and keep that $20,000 as a buffer,” Georgia told news.com.au

“With every single renovation we’ve gone through, there are always things that blow the budget.

“There are always those hidden little things that have to be fixed or haven’t been accounted for — you really need to have that contingency if things go wrong.”

She said when you had a budget, make design choices based on that — not the other way around.

“From day dot, have a real budget and make design choices based on that budget — the bigger you go, the more it’s going to cost.

“You then design within that and make sure your design goals are achievable in that budget.”

LEAVE EMOTION AT THE (NEUTRAL) FRONT DOOR

The Perth renovator said the biggest mistake renovators could make was to become too emotionally involved in the build, creating spaces for themselves instead of the buyer.

“When renovating to sell, the biggest mistake people can make is using personal style choices instead of thinking about the buyer,” Georgia continued.

“A lot of people renovate houses for their own personal style but you have to renovate for a mass market and appeal to as many people as possible.

“So don’t do that brightly coloured feature wall — keep a neutral palate that other people’s furniture will suit so they walk in and can see themselves in there.

“I love our colour scheme on The Block — the neutral greys with blush.”

The couple’s winning kid’s bedroom. Picture: Supplied

Georgia said another key to minimising expensive errors was to plan, plan, plan.

“You have to spend a considerable about of time planning your space,” she said.

“And if you can, live in it before you renovate so you have a good understanding of how you want to use the space and how it flows.”

STORAGE, STORAGE, STORAGE

No excuses for messy benchtops with this many cupboards. Picture: iStock

Every season, The Block judge Shaynna Blaze marks down couples for her number one pet hate — not having enough storage. In the bathroom, in the bedroom, in the kitchen — buyers want — and need — as much storage as you can give them. And northern beaches property developer and interior designer Kirrely Powe couldn’t agree more.

“Each reno you do, you learn from your mistakes — and one of the biggest mistakes people can make is to forget about practical side of things,” Ms Powe said.

“Important things, like storage.

“Some people say ‘I want this, this and that’ with no thought on storage, and that’s a huge mistake.

“It’s all the practicality, boring stuff you don’t want to know about — but thinking about all of those things and planning for them is what makes a good build.”

ASKING THE EXPERTS

Interior designer Natalie Bacic said one of the biggest mistakes home renovators could make was not paying for expert solutions and thinking they can do everything themselves — like a lighting plan.

“A big mistake is the hesitation to employ professional tradespeople because they are trying to save money,” she said.

“What they don’t realise in so many instances is that the budget and time plan they initially try to follow blows out because of unexpected and unavoidable costs.

“Something as simple as a lighting plan is forgotten and just rushed through without some simple advice from an interior designer or lighting specialist. “Their expert advice at the rough in stage saves so much grief and extra time and expense later on, when practical power points or feature pendants have been forgotten and then need to be added.

“So spend the money at the start and save costs in the long run — it’s absolutely worth it.”

Originally published as The simple renovation mistakes you need to avoid