When we think about making changes to our homes, we should have a good understanding of what the renovation is likely to cost. But how do we set about budgeting for this?
We have been renovating clients’ properties since 2004, creating stylish, beautiful homes, and gathering cost data along the way. We’ve created a page which shares that data with you, revealing the real cost of renovating a house.
Typical cost of home improvements
At the start of our engagement, many of our clients would admit to not knowing the cost of what they had in mind. There is plenty of information on the internet, but you need to piece it together, and major costs are missed. For instance, when planning a kitchen, you need to consider new lighting, flooring, heating, and decoration, as well as the cost of units and appliances. Indeed, we now ask clients what they believe their budget to be before arranging the free initial consultation. Particularly for a full basement conversion, if they haven’t budgeted for £4000 / m2 plus VAT just to create a habitable space, then the project is unlikely to proceed.
So we thought it helpful to create a page sharing our experience from real home renovations in Bath and Bristol since 2004. This page has links to cost data for specific projects including: the cost of a new kitchen; the cost of a new bathroom; the cost to decorate a reception room; the cost of an extension and so on.
Why people underestimate the cost of home improvements
People have a tendency to underestimate the cost of home improvements because they don’t have time to research matters fully. They also gain a false impression from TV shows that suggest renovations can be carried out on a shoestring.
We’ve produced another web page which looks at a selection of case studies in which clients assessed their return on investment for home improvements. We often receive requests to design a new kitchen from clients who believe the budget should be about £8000; the reality is nearer £16 000 by the time it is actually installed completely with alterations, new lighting and electrics, flooring, heating, decoration and building works. A new kitchen is a fairly straightforward notion, but it carries other other requirements which we have to include in the total cost of a renovation.
You often hear people speak of “additional costs”; how projects have “gone over budget”. In fact, many of these costs can be identified before works begin with a little more preparation and discussion. It is our job to make sure that our clients understand the full cost of home improvements.
We hope that our guide to home renovation costs helps you to prepare well for your project.
Nick
