7 Tips to help with renovating an older property

If you are the proud owner of an older property then you may need to do a bit of work to get it looking the best that it can.  That being said, you need to make sure that you do not lose the integrity of the property with the changes you make. If you want some help when it comes to those big decisions or if you want to make sure that you are making the most out of the budget that you have then this is the guide for you.

Expect a Lot of Surprises

Renovations are never usually straightforward, and this is especially the case when it comes to older houses. With historic house renovations, you need to have a loan ready, should you need it. With any renovation, you can almost always expect to run into issues and if you are hiring contractors then they may find it hard to provide you with a fixed bid. When you do hire a contractor for your older home, you may find that the bids are loose because they just don’t know what is going on inside your walls. Cost-plus is the way to go. If someone does give you a fixed bid then don’t take it, because they may be setting you up for a false expectation. It may be that they offer cheap work in order to win your business, and this can lead to compromises being made across your project.

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Work with Professionals

When hiring a renovation partner, you have to make sure that you can trust them. You also need to make sure that they respect the building you have, and that they are transparent. When hiring someone, try and make sure that they have experience in working with your specific property type and also make sure that they are going to listen and ask questions. Your vision has to be a consideration here, so find someone who is willing to do the work that you want them to do.

Prioritise Structural Integrity over Aesthetic Changes

If you have an older property then it may have foundation cracks or even asbestos. You have to make sure that you take care of issues such as this before you try and tackle anything else. If you don’t then any other jobs you get done will probably be pointless. All you’ll be doing is putting a temporary fix on a permanent problem. Sure, dealing with fixes such as this can be expensive but if you get them out of the way now, then this could save you money in the long run and you may also find that it is easier to get the result you’re looking for.

Deal with Bad Renovations

You may also want to deal with any bad renovations that may have been done in the past. Peel back the carpet and find out about the origin of the home. Houses have the ability to give you a backstory, and the more you take away, the more you will be able to find. It may be that you end up uncovering features that really make your home more unique, or that you find repairs that have not been made properly. Either way, if you can deal with things like this now then you can be sure to save yourself time and money later.

Work with What you Have

There are some homely quirks that you just have to embrace. One of them would be lack of consistency.  You don’t want to erase history just so you can make your home look more uniform. Be respectful of the home and also make sure that you are not scrapping any remnants of your property just so you can get that modern look. The more you can reuse the stuff in your home, the better. Even if you just use a little here and there, you can save yourself money while embracing the true character of your home.

Make Appropriate Changes

Adapting your home is sometimes required. You should try and be sensitive here and you should also try and be respectful of the floor plan. A lot of homes don’t have closets, but you may want to add one. If you do then you need to do it in a way so it looks like it’s been there forever. If you can’t do this then at least make sure that you can remove it if you want to. When making changes to your home, you have to make sure that they translate well into the design. Smaller considerations can be made, such as changing the direction of the floor or even putting down a new floor altogether. If you do this but make sure that it still suits the theme of the home then this can work in your favour. If you have an outdoor space and you want to make it usable then you can easily add a Victorian-style greenhouse. Victorian style greenhouses are very attractive and when you invest in something like this, you can change the purpose of the space while ensuring that the features you’re adding don’t end up looking odd.

Make it Energy-Efficient

The only true downside to buying an older property is that the insulation might not be great. You may also find that the windows let a lot of heat escape and this can really chip away at your monthly budget. If you want to do something about this then make sure that you invest in some energy-efficient options. You can replace the glass in your windows while keeping the original frame if you want, and with the front door, you can buy a new one. Just make sure that the style and the colour fits in with the traditional aspects of your home, and you will soon find that things work in your favour.

Renovating your home can be expensive and stressful, but the results are usually well worth it and it could be a great investment for your family’s future.