Learning From Our Past Mistakes
Experiences in House Renovation
This vast Victorian house renovation project that we’ve just taken on is not our first. Back in 2005, we bought an old farm down in Wiltshire and renovated it from top to bottom. I swore that we would never do it again! I was pregnant when we bought it and we moved into a half-finished house with a 3-month-old baby. Big mistake! I ended up more or less leaving James to it and just making quick ill-thought-out decisions when I had to. The budget completely ran away with us and we were forced to finish it quickly and sell it to pay back the debt. We did it and made some profit but it was hugely stressful and I hated the whole project by the end. I am determined that this time will be different!
Mistake Number One
Having a split focus. If you’re going to manage a renovation project yourself don’t underestimate how much of your time it will take. How will you juggle family commitments and your job? That first time I was completely unprepared not having a clue how I was going to manage motherhood let alone a renovation at the same time. This time I have much more of a plan. We have two teenagers who are more of a help than a hindrance at this stage and I have cut back on my photography work to allow myself more time. James has changed his job slightly to allow for more flexibility but it will be me who is project managing on a day-to-day basis. It’s still a lot of work and it won’t be easy but at least we’ve thought about it a bit!
Mistake Number Two
You have to watch the budget like a hawk! I’m not good at this. Despite an A level in Maths I still can’t keep numbers in my head and I will procrastinate on anything budget related if given half a chance. It’s also the subject that’s most likely to cause arguments so it’s easy to avoid. Don’t! We now set ourselves budget meetings at least once a month and go through everything. We try to keep everything separate so that spending on the renovation doesn’t get muddled up with day-to-day living. Again, it’s not easy but we’re working on it. Excel spreadsheets are your friend!
Mistake Number Three
Keep your options open. You’ll want to work towards wherever your priorities lie be that a money-making flip, a family home, or a chic hideaway. Be prepared to change your mind! Life happens and your best-laid plans can easily be upended or you just realize that things aren’t working out the way you thought. On our first project, we leaped in thinking this was our forever home, and as a result, made some design choices that ended up costing us way too much money. When our situation changed and we had to sell there were elements of that renovation that we didn’t see a return on. If we’d known we were doing it to sell we would have made some more sensible decisions. This time we’re a bit more prepared. We’re still hoping this is the forever home but we’re being more careful about protecting the investment should we change our minds.
Mistake Number Four
This brings me to number four, take your time. Obviously, this isn’t always possible, especially if you’re trying to flip a property for profit, but if you can, my advice is to slow down. If you can live in a house as it is for a while then all the better. You need to experience a space to really know how it works with the light and seasons before making big design choices. It’s so easy to rush in and make changes you will then regret. Also, I’m learning that DIY is quite enjoyable until you add a time deadline. There’s nothing worse than having to rush through jobs that are hard enough to begin with.
So, those are our biggest mistakes from last time. I’m sure there were lots more but those are the obvious ones. We are doing our best to avoid them this time around while also discovering new ones as we go along. I don’t think it’s ever perfect though. Even those people that have done hundreds of renovation projects still make mistakes and come up against unanticipated problems. That’s half the fun though, right?