When undertaking a home renovation, it doesn’t take long for the age old conundrum of DIY vs Contractor to come into play – but when is it time to hire a pro?
Your home is your castle, but even castles require upkeep to keep them in tip top condition. The art of home renovation is not generally a simple task, and can get even more complicated if you are inexperienced or it’s your first shot at it – even opting for the wrong set of tools can be a costly time consuming exercise.
The good news is that if you play your cards right, it’s not uncommon for a combination of doing it yourself plus the help of a professional tradesman for the bigger stuff.
DIY vs Contractor – Benefits Of Doing It Yourself
In the era of popular television shows like The Block and House Rules, there’s no denying that Aussies are passionate about getting stuck into home renovations themselves. There’s something incredibly satisfying about seeing the physical results of your labour – who doesn’t like to feel proud of themselves once in a while?
Cost Reduction – The prospect of potentially saving some money on the refit is often the primary drive for most renovators. However, if you don’t have any experience, this can easily backflip and cost you far more than you initially planned.
Work At Your Own Pace – If you’re the one in charge of the job site, then that means you’re the boss – and you can essentially set your own hours. While this offers greater flexibility on when, where and how you work, it can also drag your renovation out for months.
Your Own Touch – The age old saying of “if you want it done right, do it yourself” may be relevant if you have your own vision, or if you’ve previously had a bad experience. However, with the right team of tradies, this can also apply to working with professionals.
When Is It Time To Hire A Professional?
As fun and rewarding as doing your own home renovations can be, there are a medley of things that can go wrong. If and when they do, renovators usually hire the services of a professional tradesman to assist in cleaning up the mess – and this is usually when things get costly.
Like most things, preemptive measures instead of reactive ones can really help you in the long term when it comes to undertaking home renovations. To ensure that you’re thinking with the big picture in mind, speak to any tradesman friends that you might already have in your arsenal prior to commencing any large scale home projects.
Even if you don’t have the biggest budget to play with, getting an initial quote from a construction professional should give you a ballpark idea of what to roughly expect. In some cases, the total amount might even surprise you – making it a more economical route to follow from the very beginning.
While the list is expansive, some of the few key benefits of working with a qualified tradesman include:
Peace Of Mind – After you’ve sourced a reputable tradesman, their reviews often speak for themselves. This generally removes a great deal of the stress that comes with renovating your own home, and you know exactly when, where and how the job is going to get done.
Clear Expectations – When working with a qualified contractor, you know exactly when it’s going to be done, and how much you’re going to be looking at paying. This significantly reduces any nasty surprises, especially when it comes to your finances and future planning.
Get Your Time Back – We are all familiar with the saying “time is money” – especially in regards to how you choose to spend yours. Not only will the burden of physically doing the renovations be removed, but your contractor likely already works with a network of reputable trades.
Where Can I Find A Reputable Home Builder And Contractor?
When sourcing a reputable operator to see your home renovation right through to the finish line, it’s important to do your research. Start collecting examples of previous renovations that you like – many contractors can talk the talk, but can they walk the walk? A quality tradesman will only be too happy you work that they’ve already completed.
Another mark of a quality construction company is that they are happy to work with you. Ultimately, they’re getting paid to ensure your vision and goals are brought to life – so if you’re happy, they’re happy.
An example of a reputable operator for end to end office fitouts is Brisbane based Kibo Constructions. Lee Bourke and the team offer a unique “concept to creation” approach, and have extensive experience in commercial and hospitality refits and fitouts. If you know that there’s an upcoming project coming up for you, your brand or your business, then the team at Kibo can happily provide a quote – and you might just be pleasantly surprised with the result.