Auckland House Renovation Contractors

House Renovation Contractors Who Can Complete Any Job

Renovations Auckland

House renovations – image vorakorn

There is a difference between hiring a cheap house contractor and hiring one that is going to ensure that the job you provide is complete to perfection from start to finish. If you have been looking for a house renovations Auckland based contractor that understand exactly what it takes to help you renovate your home, or to fix and refurbish a new home you just purchased call one that has plenty of good testimonials.

Even if you are unsure on what exactly you would like changed in particular areas of your home you should still call a specialist renovations company as they can give you some tips and guidelines about what other people are doing and also the likely cost., An experienced renovations builder will help give you options and ideas on what you can do to change your home. The best part about calling most good ones is the that the initial visit is usually a free of charge consultation . During this you can discuss the budget that you have in mind. This is important as it means you can either scale back or get enthusiastic if our plans fall within the affordable range for you.

Before making any changes make sure you have a visual idea about what it is exactly will be changed and how it will look. A designer or architect will provide these. For any house renovations in Auckland the builder will need good quality drawings and blueprints anyway so they know precisely what they are working on. They will need this information so they can buy the right materials and ensure the renovation is according to the Council Compliance Code.

You should also get an outline about how long it may take to renovate your home. A good renovation contractor will minimise the time for the project so you can get into your newly renovated home. They want to get onto their next job anyway. As part of the contract get a plan of action and detailed schedule so they can get started on this process. Some building keep their clients in the dark. You do not want this. Instead look for a renovations builder who has a good record for clear communication. From all reports, Repair & Restore does just this according to some of their testimonials.

The fact that this builder has such strong recommendations ought to make it an easy decision for anyone looking for Auckland house renovations. Not too many companies can show this level of public support from previous clients. Check for reviews about other companies and you will see that people are not as forthcoming about the other builders.

The renovations industry is very competitive with a huge number of building firms operating but for peace of mind and a successful Auckland house renovation job, you could save a lot of time and effort by contacting Repair and Restore. You can get more details from their website here.

www.repairandrestore.co.nz

 

Renovating to Change the Layout of your Auckland Home

Renovate For A New Floor Plan

When people get bored with the layout of their home they have two main options. They can move house or they can re-design their home and renovate it to accommodate the changes they want. This article is about developing a new design and renovating your home to provide you with the extra space or rooms you want to see in your house.

House designer and builder- image stockimages

House designer and builder- image stockimages

Some people will be brave and decide to carry out the renovation work themselves. This works for people who have a lot of spare time, loads of energy and to be frank have a very thick skin as the project will undoubtedly cause a lot of domestic strife. Major renovations are a lot of work and the amount of time and patience required should not be under-estimated.

People who go the self-build renovation route often want to do it because they think it will be cheaper. However, while it generally does cost less in financial outlay, there is the cost of their personal time to take into account. They might also need to have a bigger budget than they anticipate as cost over-runs on your own building plan can be quite high.

If you are keen to at least start down that path, here are few tips to get you going.

Sketch a floor plan

Before you can start building you will need to have professionally created scale drawings of the proposed new house. However, you will have lots of ideas in the first place so sketch out a few of the key things you want to have in your renovated home.

Testimonial video for Auckland renovation builder

Once you have some clear ideas which are agreed by the family then you can go to see an architect or house designer. They will draw up the floor plans you need so you can go to the Council to start the Building Consent process.

Extra features for the house renovation

While the plans are being drawn up or approved, you can start to think about some of the other elements. For example, if you are having a kitchen renovation as part of your building project, you might want to start looking at appliances, cupboards and finishes. Similarly, if you are having anew bathroom or bedroom, you can follow the same approach.

You might also want to think about the external features. For example will you want outdoor rooms which are becoming popular? Maybe an area for a spa pool outside? It is as well to start thinking of these now before the project gets too far down the track and will cause unnecessary re-work.

Be realistic about your building abilities

Now is the time to be honest with yourself and your family. A major renovation is a huge undertaking, one which many people try and plenty give up on. They run out of energy, time or money; sometimes a combination of all of those factors. Renovating a house these days is much more complex than your father may have done. There are much more strict building code requirements, new environmental materials, building techniques and appliances you can consider. But these require specialist skills; not just a hammer and a power saw.

If you are still not sure, then take a look at some TV renovation programmes and look at the massive problems they all run into.

Look for a house renovation company

Auckland home renovations

Auckland home renovations
– image istock

If you do decide to go the professional path, then now is the time to start looking for a house renovations company. It will not come as a surprise to learn that there are hundreds of house building firms in Auckland. Your task is to find one that is reliable and will be able to complete your home renovation on time and within budget.

Start by asking around among work colleagues, friends and people at your sports club. You might get some horror stories but you might also get highly recommended builder such as Repair and Restore. A quick look at their website shows they have some very impressive testimonials from very happy customers.

If you have a plan for home renovating, they might be a good place to start. Visit their website for a start.

Getting Value Out Of Property Renovations

Making Your House Renovation Financially Viable

Many house holders think that renovating their bathroom or kitchen will add considerable value to their home. However, not very few homeowners realise that any increase is going to be dependent upon the amount of renovating and the amount that you spend. The same applies to any aspect of house renovation or home improvements.

 

Home renovations Auckland - image artur84

Home renovations Auckland – image artur84

A key phrase to keep in mind is that cost does not always equal the same value. “Not every renovation will pay off when you come to sell the home,” according to a professional house-valuer in America, Richard Powers, MAI, SRA, President of the Appraisal Institute. He goes on to offer a few pointers on home improvement projects that may help people sell their homes for a higher price or in a shorter space of time. This site has some broad cost ranges for common house renovations in Auckland.

 

Don’t over-improve or over-capitalise. Instead of deciding to add another bedroom, look for what is standard in the other houses in your neighbourhood. Adding a deck might seem like a good idea but if no one else in the area has one, you may not see a return on investment.

 

Do invest in basic upgrades. Fresh paint (stick to neutral colors), new fixtures, flooring and lighting in kitchens and bathrooms can pay dividends. This is especially true with the front door. Remember, first impressions count and the first thing people see up close is your front door. If the window panes are cracked or the paint is peeling, the do not get a good impression.

 

Do consider adding an extra bathroom. Homeowners can often recoup the extra cost of a bathroom when they put their home on the market because of the appeal that extra bathrooms have for homebuyers. However, do not go overboard and add a marble-tiled 20 square meter bathroom just because you like it. Again, look at other houses in your locality and see what size those second bathrooms are.

 

Forego the swimming pool. While pools look good in the movies, generally they turn off more people than they attract because of the perceived upkeep and maintenance costs. Also you will need to have space to install protective fencing around the pool.

 

Enjoy your renovation. Why wait until you are ready to move to have that new kitchen? Generally, a new kitchen will hold its value for one or two years. However, if you are thinking of a larger renovation such as adding new rooms or knocking one or more rooms into a single big living area, then you might want to review the financing of the project. You could save some extra cash or you might want to take out an extra mortgage.

 

On all these projects, those that add square footage to bring a house up to-but not beyond-community norms generally pay off the most. Clearly some Auckland suburbs do well with major house renovations especially inner city ones like Grey Lynn, Ponsonby and Parnell. There are many fantastic old villas that have been renovated and extended to create magnificent homes. But this does not apply across the board in all suburbs.

 

One of the best and easiest ways to get some advice if you are thinking about a significant house renovation is to ask a local real estate agent what they think. They will be able to give some thoughts on the viability of adding extra rooms or not. This will not be advice you can take to a mortgage lender but it will give you some pointers as to whether your plan has merit or will provide any financial return or if it will be over-capitalised.

 

House renovation builder

House renovation builder – absoluterenovations

If the real estate agent’s informal suggestions are positive, you can take it to the next step and get some ball-park estimates from home renovations companies and then ask a certified valuer for their formal opinion.

 

Finally, short-list two or three potential renovators and get fixed-price quotations including time schedules. Ask for details of previous satisfied customers so you can get some verification about this builder’s standard of work and their adherence to budget. It might be worth accepting a higher bid if that particular builder sticks to the agreed price rather than finding there are lots of additional expenses down the track.

Video testimonial for property renovations company in Auckland