How To Renovate A Home: Important Things That Renovators Should Know

There are many different reasons why it can make sense to renovate a house instead of purchasing a ready-to-go property. First of all, it provides you with the opportunity to discover a house that is full of original features and character, and second of all, it can provide you with a large return on your investment, as long as you have the right work done and you shop around.

One drawback is if you don’t do the proper planning and start your project without doing any research, then your renovation project could end up being a huge money pit, cause a lot of stress, and drain you of your money.

How To Determine The Potential Of A Renovation Project

To figure out whether or not it is worth it to buy a house to renovate and that has good potential, the following should be considered when looking at a property:

What renovation potential does the property have?

Is there enough space for an extension, whether it is a side or rear extension, or to convert a garage, basement, or loft?

Check out the other houses in the neighborhood. Have they successfully obtained plan permission for renovations that are similar to the one you are planning?

Is the house in a good location for you?

Will most of the work be surface level or structural?

What are the ceiling prices on local area houses? Will value be added to the property by the renovations that you are planning to make?

Before you purchase a property to renovate, make sure you are aware, aside from the work that is involved in renovating a home, there are also other costs that need to be accounted for as well:

Legal expenses

You can expect to have to pay £500-2,000 for a conveyancer or solicitor to represent you
Contingency fund: you need to ensure you have some extra money on hand in order to deal with unexpected issues that might arise (and that is definitely to be expected when you are renovating a house).
Professional fees: this includes Building Regulations and planning permission approval, structural engineer reports, various surveys, and other types of professional fees such as tree surveys.

Council tax
Valuation fees
Electricity will be needed as well for power tools or daily living if you are planning to stay at the site

Reconnection fees: You might need to have the water supply connected or re-connected. It might have been disconnected.

Surveyor Findings

If you are interested in purchasing a house and renovating it, then a chartered surveyor can help you by identifying any potential problems that can impact the sale. You can arrange for a survey to be done before you even make an offer on a property as long as the homeowner agrees to it. However, it is usually done once an offer is accepted.

The survey can produce a building report that should highlight any potential concerns and give you a good idea about any important repairs such as double glazed windows Surrey that need to be made and how much they may cost. The report can be used to decide whether or not you want to carry through with the transaction, or you might be able to negotiate on the price for the property based on the report’s findings.

A chartered survey can recommend additional investigations if they detect or suspect:

drainage problems
damp
heave or subsidence
infestation

A building report can identify the construction methods that were used on the house (if the home was extended over time they might vary. During the home renovation process, you can use this information to make sure you use the right techniques and materials.

Keep in mind that there is a solution for most structural issues. Although your budget might need to be increased, detecting them early on can make it possible for you to better plan your project.