Browse Forums General Discussion 1 Jan 03, 2010 8:05 pm Hi everyone. I am new the forum but I am hoping you can help me with something. DH & I are about to begin renovations to our home. We are renovating every room of the house (except the bedrooms as they have already been done) and we are also adding in some internal stairs and a new family room. We are very excited but getting a little nervous. We are doing this as "owner builders" but we have a licensed builder doing project management along side me. (I work from home & DH works full time so he won't be able to "manage" so to speak) We have been "scared" a little by some stories from friends & family recently about renovation budgets blowing out by up to 50% and this concerns us a little. Our builder has been fantastic to date and given us lots of info and we feel like we have thought of just about everything but of course we expect some little extras to pop up. So ... getting to my question - when you renovated - what type of "little extras" popped up ..... Did your budget blow out? if yes (and you wish to answer) by how much? Any suggestions/advice will be appreciated!! Cheers, Ruby Re: Renovation Budgets 2Jan 03, 2010 8:36 pm Do you know what you want to do? Why not start getting quotes? Custom European Cabinets - Melbourne Kitchen Specialist PM for business details as website currently being updated! Our Crazy Owner Builder Journey! Re: Renovation Budgets 4Jan 03, 2010 8:47 pm Thanks Suh!! Ok maybe my post wasn't written quite right lol We have already been given a "quote" from our builder which we have accepted and building begins in 2 weeks. What I am talking about is when you have a quote for e.g $50K and then half way thru "something" comes up and hence you need to spend more $$ then your budgeted $50K ... know what I mean? I guess what I was looking for was stories from people that have renovated and had their quote/budget increase during the renovation period..... Cheers, Ruby Re: Renovation Budgets 5Jan 04, 2010 11:48 am Most extras in renos come from the client not being able to visualise what a finished article will look like. When they eventually see it, dont like it and want it changed then the dollars start piling up. So to limit extras try and view/take pictures of what you really want -- especially if you have trouble explaining yourself. Arfur Re: Renovation Budgets 6Jan 04, 2010 1:24 pm From my experience and people I've spoken to ... extras usually are - issues with the existing structure (so if you get this checked out before you start, less likely to find termites as a surprise) ... I had "maybe the roof might need to be replaced" ... when I KNEW it had to be replaced ... and I made them include it in the price, not as a maybe. - allowances for items ... eg. builder allows $300 for a toilet ... when you actually go looking, you find that a $300 is not the type you like, and you want the $1000 toilet ... multiply this by lots of items, wham goes the budget! Actually specifying items (brand, model, colour) before starting will cut some of this down. - the bits that aren't included ... landscaping, curtains, carpets - added percentages ... although you might include an amount for extras, depending on you contract, builders can add percentages to other items and extra work ... eg. the toilet - you want the $1000 toilet, if the contract says builder can add a margin of 20% ... that toilet now costs you $1200 .. plus they say it costs more to install ... plus margin ... up it goes!! Say you have three toilets for $300 = $900 ... you change to the $1000 ... = $3600 ($2700 extra just on toilets!!!!) Good luck ... it is so much fun when it is over! Oh and you can get lucky ... my lovely builder had 0% margin .... and oh boy am I grateful for that ... I went over budget on nearly every single item!!!! Re: Renovation Budgets 7Jan 04, 2010 1:49 pm ditto to what lucyshouse said! The only other thing I can add is that once you have a beatiful, renovated dream home, you're not going to love your old furniture or acessories.... Our reno budget went a little bit over, thanks to a few things we underestimated the cost of, but the new curtains and blinds, new lounge suite, new dining suite, plus matching accessories really blew it. Hello Josh, This is Irving from PRIMA, we are a manufacturer of the staircase, railings, kitchen cabinets, windows, doors from China. If you have requirement to purchase… 0 5450 Coming back to your old stomping grounds, huh? Renovations on a budget can be quite the journey. It's like giving your house a new lease on life. The twist of not knowing… 1 3473 Assuming the structure of your cabinetry is good then I would DIY everything as follows: - replace your counter tops entirely, - replace all drawer runners with soft close… 1 4779 |