As Australian’s we don’t just love our  homes, we also relish the opportunity to improve, extend, redecorate or redesign them. One of the great benefits of owning your own property is the freedom to do home renovations the way you choose. 

There are significant benefits in renovating your existing home. Firstly, you are in the unique position of knowing the things you want and need to change in your home. You have an opportunity to create the home that you actually desire – a home that accommodates your current and future needs. The other important advantage is the fact that you get to stamp your individual tastes by choosing fixtures, benchtops, cabinetry, tiles and paint colours – which is all part of the excitement of renovating. Renovating your existing home provides an opportunity for you to maximise your funds, while increasing the value of your property and ultimately grow your equity, which can add to your financial flexibility in the future. 

Renovating can be rewarding – adding value to both your property and lifestyle. However no matter whether you have major improvements or a small project in mind, it’s worth doing the job well. And it all starts with knowing what you are aiming to achieve with your renovation.

Jason shares reasons why you should renovate your home... 

1. Comfort and enjoyment 

One thing that you should never overlook is your own comfort and enjoyment. Ask yourself, ‘is this the way I would like my home to look for the next years to come?’. If you can’t answer with an immediate ‘yes’, then it’s time for some change. 

Keep in mind that you shouldn’t renovate solely to impact the future sale price of your property, as this will leave you living in a show house that doesn’t feel like a home. Renovating to satisfy your comfort and enjoyment is more important than trying to capitalise on the potential selling price 

2. Update your outdated home 

Failing to renovate your older-looking home may make you fall out of love with some of the original characteristics that made you fall in love with your home in the first place. Your bathroom and Kitchen might function just fine but old bathrooms and kitchens aren’t just visually unappealing. They’re often so dated that they don’t function as well as their more modern counterparts, it’s time to update your home and get with the times. 

If you like to entertain, then you probably want your home to be as attractive and inviting as possible. It’s hard to feel welcomed in a home that’s dated and old. If you want to really wow your guests and feel proud of your home, then renovations are a must. 

3. Avoid the stress of buying a new home 

Searching for a new home can be stressful and time consuming. It may seem like a good option for some, but there are a lot of annoying and expensive processes and issues associated with this. Firstly, it’s a very time consuming process to prepare your existing home for sale. You will most likely spend a fair amount of money and time on this alone, as you clean the place up and finish off that half-done job from 5 years ago. Then you will have to put your house on display and hold open homes, again another time consuming and disruptive activity. Next if you sell your home you will need to factor in all of the financial implications this has, such as Agents fees, Legal fees from conveyancing solicitors, Stamp duty, the list goes on Instead of spending months looking for that perfect home, why not upgrade your bathrooms or remove that wall that’s been bugging and  extend your living spaces?

4. Enjoy the results

A lot of people consider renovations to be a hassle, but the truth is that the process can be actually quite fun. When your renovating your home, you get to essentially turn your dreams into reality. It’s exciting to pick out just how you want your home to look and then watch it evolve right before your very eyes. 

And when the  work is completed you can truly enjoy the improvements you make. 

5. You will be ready to sell (if you want to)

When the time comes to put your house on the market, potential buyers will appreciate the home renovations. 

If you’ve renovated your house three to five years prior to putting it on the market, it will show buyers that you’ve taken care of the house. More recent home renovations, make it look as if they were done to make a profit on the  sale. In any case the  work you have had done by a quality builder will help either way.

Making improvements now will put you in the best position  to make your move as soon as the market picks up.  While everyone else is calling home renovation companies for those get-set-to-sell projects, you won’t be. Your house will be ready. 

6. Make your home good for the environment 

Old homes are not very friendly to the environment. From old windows and uninsulated walls that force your Airconditioning to work overtime to energy-inefficient appliances and fixtures, old homes don’t just end up costing you a fortune, but they’re really bad for our planet. Newer home designs are greener and will help you to lower your monthly energy costs. 

There are a whole range of improvements that can reduce your home’s eco-footprint. Many green modifications like installing low-flow showerheads and taps, LED lights  are affordable plus the long-term savings may be substantial. 

There are plenty of other reasons to renovate. The key point is to think about what you are aiming to achieve. 

If you’ve been thinking about renovating your home for what feels like forever, then it’s time to stop wishing and to start doing. There’s never going to be a time where your schedule and your finances are “perfect” for a home renovation project. But the longer you put it off, the less time you get to enjoy in your beautiful new renovated home. 

Hopefully, these reasons will convince you to stop talking and start turning your renovation dreams into reality. A home renovation project will completely change how you feel about coming home for the better. 

Your home will already hold priceless sentimental memories. It may be the first home you struggled to purchase as a young couple, or the place you brought your baby, or babies home to from hospital. For your children, your home is where they usually take their first steps, create unexpected feature walls with their crayons, celebrate their birthdays and generally take over every room in the house with “stuff” – all necessary of course! Hence, another reason why you should consider renovating your existing home 

So what are you waiting for?