Remodeling or Buying New…What’s Right for You?

There is an age old question that perplexes many – to remodel or not to remodel? The problem is that there is no right answer to that question. The answer, in fact, comes down to this – are you up for it?

If you look around a town like Wellesley there are renovations and “tear downs” with new homes going up everywhere. They may or may not be your thing but one thing is for sure – they are many people’s thing as they are selling like crazy. Articles and real estate sales numbers will tell you that many buyers want new construction. The homes are built for today’s family living with open and functional spaces. They are pristine!

But part of the charm of New England and the beautiful suburbs of Boston is the history and the older homes with character. These are homes many people love and the type of I own. We have a 1920’s Colonial that was built as a very small and charming home. Four renovations later it is still barely big enough for our family of 5 and dog. But that said we were self-proclaimed “serial lookers” who spent the better part of 8 years looking at every house that came on the market in the neighborhood we live in. We just couldn’t find the right home for the right price to make the big move.

So it was necessary for us to renovate the space we were in to make our house more “family friendly”. I can tell you several things from our experiences…one being that I do now understand why people chose to buy homes that have already been renovated. Our 4th renovation nearly did us in. It was an extensive and what I will call “very invasive” renovation that took our quality of life down several notches for a year. Our mental health also took a hit. The stress of constant contractors, dust and mess everywhere, decision-making, problem-solving and on and on turned us into a very unpleasant people for that time. We thought we knew what we were signing up for which was living like refugees in our house during construction. What we didn’t expect was the time and cost overruns and the difficulties that we had with our contractor. The end result was positive in that we love our new and improved house but the stress of the renovation will not soon be forgotten. So when making the decision “to renovate or not to renovate” make sure you know the answer to the all important question “are we up for it?” If the answer is “no” there are many “new” home options out there for you. If the answer is “yes” here are a few tips.

10 Tips When Remodeling…

1. Focus first on what matters most – kitchens and baths!

2. Paint and wallpaper are small money and go a long way

3. Don’t overspend on things that don’t increase resale value (fixtures, tile, etc)

4. Taking down walls to open up rooms makes a space look and feel bigger

5. Lighting is a low cost way to update the look of rooms

6. New windows add resale value, aesthetic value and green value (more energy efficient)

7. Cost effective landscaping can add curb appeal and aesthetic value without breaking the bank

8. Get contractor recommendations from friends and family

9. Make sure all cost overruns and changes are clearly discussed and agreed upon with you and your contractor

10. There are economies in renovating – if you are doing your kitchen consider doing the dated bath nearby as it will cost less than doing it as a stand alone project later

written by Mary Wilson & Sue Morris

wilsonmorristeam@gmail.com / www.wilsonmorristeam.com