Successfully renovating a house and not dying in the attempt

Undertaking a renovation so that your flat reflects who you are and how you want to live is not a trivial or easy job. Follow our real estate tips and you will know how to renovate a home and not die trying.

- ... and what did you think?

- Ugh, I like the house a lot but you know, it reminds me of that movie with Tom Hanks and a beautiful house that later was a ruin... I can't remember the name...

- This house is a ruin.

- It's not that bad. Don't exaggerate. It needs a good refurbishment and that ...

- I'm saying that the film you're talking about is This house is a ruin.

- Ah! You're right.

- So what are you worried about?

- So I see what it looks like, I think I can imagine what it might look like, but I don't know how to get from one situation to the other.

Undertaking a renovation to make your flat reflect who you are and how you want to live is not a trivial or easy job.

Marta and Jorge are like all future homeowners who prefer a flat to renovate because they want their future home to be even "more theirs". And in many ways they are right... But Jorge is not wrong in his fears, because undertaking a renovation so that your flat reflects who you are and how you want to live is not a trivial or easy job.

How easy it would be if, when one is thinking about whether or not to renovate their home, they could see before and after photos like these. Faced with the magnificent final result, the troubled homeowner would have no doubts and would not be overwhelmed by all the unforeseen events, mishaps and misfortunes that he fears will befall him. But of course, he does not have this image. That is why, renovating a house requires a great deal of bravery, courage and... a certain amount of madness.

Successfully renovating a house. What you should know.

The first thing you have to do is two tasks:

1. Assess your real chances of collecting eurits.
2. Value the approximate cost of the investment to get the home of your dreams.

The first is always cumbersome but simple: bank balances, money that you are going to earn and can devote to this, mortgages or loans that you can get with your salary, your partner's salary and other operations... But the second is much more complicated and it will be very easy to make mistakes or to be deceived.

Let's suppose you already know how much money you can count on to renovate your home. Point 1 solved. Check.

As you have heard about a builder who did a wonderful renovation of your cousin's flat in Argüelles in Madrid, you ask him for his phone number, you meet him and you are delighted because he has told you that he will let you have it for 80,000 euros. "nickel-plated". Just like that. That alone should have alerted you to run away... But no. You like him so much! He sees everything sooooo easy and encourages you in such a familiar way that you fall for him. What's more, it only takes him a day to give you an estimate, without the need for a plan or a simple sketch, because he only needs one visit to the flat, without seeing the installations, the load-bearing walls, without checking other previous reforms -your upstairs and downstairs neighbours- and without talking to the owners' association or the town hall technicians, he has enough. Didn't all this make you a little bit nervous? No. You fall into their nets.

Three useful tips on how to tackle the renovation of your home:

These are the 3 pieces of advice I gave Marta and Jorge when they told me about their plans to reform and avoid fainting, scares and ruin:

1. If the renovation is going to be more than just painting (and most of them are), it is imperative that you have a professionalA technician, architect or interior designer will cost you very little if you weigh up what they can save you. Go to College of Architects or to the College of Decorators and ask for young architects or decorators who do this type of work; or, if you know of one, contact him now. It may cost you 8 or 10% of the cost of the work but it will be worth it because after listening to you and visiting your flat in detail and investigating, he will draw up a plan of your ideas converted into a technical document that will allow you to move on to the next phase.
2. Call 3 or 4 companies that specialise in renovating houses like yours. Take a walk around the neighbourhood and see where there are building sites; write down the information of those companies that make the best impression on you; ask friends and family for references -which you should check- or ask the technician you have hired for one of their recommendations. You already have three companies selected! Meet with each of them together with your technician, give them the technical document as well as all the details that seem important to you and that have not been mentioned.
3. Ask your technician to rate the shortlisted renovation companies according to a) their price, b) their experience in similar works and c) the personal reliability of the person in charge. The price has to be closed because the technical document must contemplate everything you want to do, including taxes and fees. Always bear in mind that in a reform, the: "while we're at it why don't we do..." is always very expensive, and the "this is not worth doing". is always very cheap.

Let's get to work on your home renovation!

Well, you are now ready to tackle your home renovation, but let me give you one last piece of advice:

Don't panic when the building work starts and everything is turned upside down and you want to die when a wall falls down or a false ceiling comes off or the water or heating pipes have been ripped out and your future home looks like the scene of trench warfare. To get to order (your beautiful home) it is essential to go through absolute disorder. The old physical principle of entropy, which today hardly anyone knows what it is, despite being ever-present...

A dwelling has, like people, the equivalent of a soul. Let me call it a trace. Well, you and your renovation technician have to respect the trace of the property. This is the only way to get your dream flat.

To get to order (your beautiful home) it is essential to go through absolute disorder.

I leave in the boot a lot of ideas, experiences and recommendations to face a successful renovation and to transform a house into the home of your life where you find love, peace and security. Successful home renovation is not a matter of magic or luck, it is a matter of know-how.