5 Tips For Doing Up Your Home On A Budget
There comes point, after living in a house for a while, when you need to start fixing the place up a bit, or you just want a new look and feel for your home. Doing up your house can cost a fortune. Things like paint, carpets and even furniture, can leave you out of pocket tens of thousands of dollars or more. So what can you do if you want to do up your house, but you don’t want to waste money in the process? Here’s some tips:
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Recycled or second hand materials
People do up their houses all the time – some of them not because their current furnishings and fixtures are run down, but rather because they want a new look. What this means is that their old pieces may be perfect for the look and feel you are aiming for. In addition, big building companies or government offices often undertake building or refurbishment projects and have a lot of additional materials left over, which can be sold for a much reduced price. Things like bricks, pavers, colourbond fencing and other materials can be found at great quality, for a fraction of the price. Head online to auction houses, ebay or even Google and see what you can dig up as extras or second hand, and save yourself a fortune!
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DYI
The difference between getting someone else to do a job for you, and doing it yourself can be thousands. So if it’s simple enough, take the time and do it yourself. If you knock out the middle man, you also knock out labour costs, which can make up a substantial part of the bill. If you’re not confident, check out some DIY books, Google instructions or head to youtube for a full tutorial. If you don’t need a builder’s licence to do it, and the instructions are very straight forward, give it a try yourself.
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Your labour force
If your renovation or home makeover is a big job, you might find yourself paying builders, fencing contractors, painters, plumbers, electricians and all sorts of other tradies. But before you do, call on your network. In all likelihood you probably know people from at least a few of the trades and can get a discount or even get away with the job for a slab of beer. Don’t underestimate how much your mates can help and don’t overlook it as an option.
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Brands
Another big cost can be associated with the brands you choose to use when refurbishing. Some brands of tap fitting will cost ten times as much as others, some furniture you pay for the brand not the quality and some carpets will have an extra price tag depending on the profile of the seller. Don’t avoid good quality, but do avoid paying additional for a brand – just because it’s well known, or imported from somewhere you’ve never heard of!
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Furniture
The finishing touches to your new home will likely be the furniture you choose. Select carefully. If you buy something that is too cheap and of low quality, you may find yourself forking out cash again in a few years. But you also don’t have to pay the earth for it! Head online, compare offers and even look at stores that don’t have a shopfront and are purely based online, their reduction in overhead costs, means a reduction in price for you.