Common Mistakes People Make When Renovating Older Homes

There’s no denying the charm of older homes, which have a warm, lived-in feeling and a much-loved vibe that seems to envelop the rooms and almost echo through the walls. At the same time, the space needs to be carefully brought into the 21st century to make it easy and convenient to live in. Carefully considering and handling your home renovation plans right from the start will help you have the best of both worlds and avoid these common mistakes.

• Failing to check the state of the foundation: This is the most vital feature to consider because if the foundation itself isn’t sound, it will affect every other aspect of your home improvement plan. So, look to the past to fix the present. Some qualities of the foundation and the original elements of the house will not be possible to re-haul once done; you need to assess how you can work best around it. Then check if the original floor plans are available. The original floor plan will help with drawing up a new plan and speed up your renovation time. Also, ensure that both the plumbing and the electrical system are brought up to code to avoid safety risks.
• Completing projects in the wrong sequence: When you’re getting your house renovated, it’s not a good idea to go about and knock down walls or even think about altering structures in an attempt to do everything at once. Dramatic changes can prove to be more costly and time-consuming in the long run. It’s essential to have the proper sequence for each aspect. For instance, installing a new roof is a rough job that could ruin a new paint job if you opted to paint before finishing your roof.
• Adding too many fixtures: Adding in fixtures while ignoring the square footage is a common renovation mistake. It comes into play especially if you’re looking at selling later, when an appraiser or buyer may assign your home a value on a price-per-square-foot basis. Even if you have no intention of selling, the value of your home significantly goes up the more livable space it has.
• Not making your home energy efficient: An older home should not be treated as a new one when it comes to energy efficiency. Instead of hastily laying insulation or installing double glazing, which encourages dampness, look at doing up your whole home in careful sections. Look at options like solar panels, heavier curtains, replacing old radiators, checking your ductwork, mending broken glass, switching to LED lights, and filling in the gaps in your paneling. These solutions will be sure to make your home both cozy and environmentally safe.
• Failing to pay attention to your floors: With their natural warmth, wooden floors are one of the most inviting aspects of an older home and add character. Those are aspects you would most likely want to retain. But decay is something you need to check for if your house has wood floors. An expert will test the wood — which would mostly be hardwood — to see if it is dull, lacking luster, stained, collapsing, or crumbling. Experts will offer the right solutions, including filling in gaps, sanding, insulating, and refinishing to look as good as new. Generally, wood floors have many loves, and planks in older homes tend to be thicker and more durable. However, if the deterioration and damage are too extensive, you might have to replace them altogether.

Is It Better to Buy a New House or Remodel an Existing One?

While this would be a personal choice, both choices have advantages and disadvantages. Tinkering and doctoring your old house can often make it look as good as new and bring it into the modern century. Once you know precisely how much remodeling the house will need from top to bottom and the probable cost of making changes, it will be easier to decide. Ultimately, you don’t want to give up comfort and sanitation to retain an heirloom effect. You can compare the cost of remodeling to the current real estate cost of investing in a new home and decide what suits you best.

Contact Us Today

There’s so much planning and thought required when you’re looking at renovating older properties. Every stage is critical, from having a proper timeline to designing blueprints. If you want someone as invested in your home remodel job as you are, reach out to us to see how we can help.