Home Renovation Money-Saving Tips Every Savvy Singaporean Homeowner Should Know!
With price inflation hitting almost every aspect of our day-to-day lives, it’s never been more important to pick up money-saving tips and hacks for one of the most expensive expenses in adulthood – home renovation!
Want to learn some money-saving tips for your upcoming home renovation? Our team at Redbrick Homes has put together a list of useful renovation tips shared by some of Singapore’s top interior design firms.
Money-Saving Renovation Tip #1:
Have a Budget & Stick with It
Before you begin anything on your renovation journey, you should go in with a full expectation of how much money you are willing to (and can afford to) spend on your home renovation.
The reason is simple. Without having a benchmark or budget in mind, it is easy to get carried away with incurring ever-ballooning expenses during the process. Keep in mind that many aspects of home renovation do not come cheap, so even the slightest change could cost you hundreds to thousands of dollars.
The solution? Set up a realistic budget (An average renovation budget starts from $30,000) and track your expenses along the way to avoid going over budget.
Money-Saving Renovation Tip #2:
Don't Rush It
As in life, rushing anything rarely leads to good outcomes. In the case of home renovation, it could even lead to mistakes that result in financial losses – just google renovation scams!
That’s why you should not be in a rush to settle with the first interior design firm that you meet. Not even if they tell you that this package deal is only for a limited period! You want to make the effort to interview a few to get a sense of which would be more suitable for you – both in terms of working style and budget.
Check out our article “6 Red Flags That Scream Danger When Dealing with Interior Designers” to learn what you should be on the lookout for.
Money-Saving Renovation Tip #3:
Opt for Minimalist Interior Designs
When it comes to the budget for home renovation, there’s a simple rule to keeping the budget low, and that is to keep things simple.
The lesser the amount of renovation works required, the lesser the cost of the project will be.
For homeowners working on a budget, designers will always recommend going with a more minimalist interior design. By keeping the interior design down to the essentials, without expensive renovation works like hacking, in-built carpentry, and more, homeowners can expect to save savings!
Money-Saving Renovation Tip #4:
Reduce Built-In Carpentry
The number one renovation tip that interior designers offer homeowners on a budget is to avoid or minimize built-in carpentry.
Why? Built-ins are a lot more costly and take more time to get ready than their off-the-shelf counterparts. This is usually because you get a choice of better materials, finishings, and customized sizing to fit your home.
Not only that, if you ever plan to move, you will not be able to bring them along to your new place and will have to incur costs for a whole new set of furniture again.
So, if you don’t need it, opt for loose furniture for a more affordable way to furnish your home.
Money-Saving Renovation Tip #5:
Overlay Flooring Instead of Hacking
Bought a resale home and plan to overhaul the flooring? Doing it the traditional way of hacking the existing tiling to re-lay new tiles will be very costly due to the costs of hacking, and debris removal on top of the laying of the new flooring.
The alternative? Go with overlay flooring options instead if the existing flooring is in sufficiently good condition to do so.
By opting to overlay directly over the existing flooring, you get a whole new look, but at a much cheaper cost. Win-win!
Money-Saving Renovation Tip #6:
Choose More Affordable Materials
Want to achieve a high-end look but are not willing to splurge on costly and difficult-to-maintain materials that will break your budget? Our designers have the perfect solution for you – affordable alternatives that can do the job!
Affordable Alternatives for Atas Materials include:
- Homogenous “marble-vein” tiles are significantly cheaper than natural marble tiles
- Replace glass with acrylic for sliding doors – not only is it cheaper, but it is also lighter and less prone to shattering
- Vinyl instead of hardwood for flooring
- Use composite wood instead of natural wood for your outdoor decking – not only is it cheaper, but it is also more durable and requires less maintenance over time
Money-Saving Renovation Tip #7:
Use Paint for Feature Wall
Keen on having a feature wall that is the visual centrepiece of your living space? Unfortunately, most popular options like brick walls, marble walls, wood carpentry feature walls and more either require expensive materials, extensive installation (and hence labour costs), or both.
That’s why interior designers have come up with a much more affordable and yet still visually aesthetic option for homeowners on a budget – paint feature walls.
Depending on the overall look you are going for, you can either go with simple ombre or abstract patterns, to elaborate murals.
What’s more, when you get bored of it, you can easily change things up with a fresh coat of paint – something not as easily achieved with other types of feature walls.
Money-Saving Renovation Tip #8:
Be on the Lookout for Discounts
There are plenty of discounts available to homeowners looking for a good deal, you just need to know where to look!
Here are some things you can do:
- Ask to purchase display sets which are usually sold at cheaper prices
- If you are BTO homeowners, make sure to join your estates’ social media group to get access to group buy deals
- Plenty of electronics, and home appliance brands offer group buy deals – so gather your neighbours to get a good deal
Check out our Redbrick Homes Voucher Kit which offers a whole suite of discounted deals for your home.
Find a Reliable Home Renovation Partner
In any home renovation project, your interior design firm is what makes or breaks your project. That’s why making sure you find a reliable home renovation partner who can help guide you through this process is the most important of all!
Get started by using IDMate to get matched with one of our many reliable, trustworthy, and talented interior design firms today!
