Are You Really Game for a Renovation?

A brand new bathroom. A modernized kitchen. New hardwood floors. Brand new lighting fixtures. As an owner, the thought of upgrading your current home and having some of the features you’ve always wanted is quite tempting – and can oftentimes be a very smart investment. And for buyers, given the incredibly tight inventory here in NYC, fixer uppers can start to look quite appealing given their significantly lower prices and wide-open potential.

But are you truly ready for what a renovation would entail? To help you get a better sense, here are a couple of things to consider.

• Why do you want to renovate?

  • Your reasons behind why you want to renovate your apartment will greatly influence how much you want to (or should) spend.
  • Renovating for yourself because you want to stay in the apartment in the future? You might want to spend a little more to get precisely what you want.
  • Renovating for investment purposes? Then you’ll want to find a balance between cost and quality so that you can get the best return on your investment.

• What do you want to renovate?

  • Kitchen, bathroom, floors, living room, etc? What, exactly, do you want done to them?
  • If you’re in need of inspiration for ideas, then check out Corcoran’s Pinterest boards for different rooms. You can also head on over to Houzz – a site geared specifically towards home renovation and interior design ideas.

• How much will it cost?

  • There are three things to consider – cost of materials, the cost of labor and time for completion.
  • You should contact an architect or contractor to get them to give you an estimate of cost and time based on your space and the work you want done. But to give you a ballpark idea of what you might be in for, check out these links – Expected Renovation Costs and What Will My Renovation Budget Buy

• Where are you going to stay while all of this is being done?

  • If you’re just renovating one room or otherwise doing a very small project, you can probably handle staying in the apartment during the renovations. But if you’re planning a gut renovation, you should seriously consider alternative accommodations and the cost of this should be factored into your overall calculations.

• And finally, one of the most important questions you should ask yourself – are you actually better off just moving, if you’re a seller, or buying a finished product to begin with, if you’re a buyer?

  • For sellers, turning your existing home into your dream home could be a wonderful idea. And for buyers, it’s pretty much the same thing – getting a property on the cheap may sound great, but you have to compare the overall cost to existing similar homes. But depending upon what needs to be done, you may find that making the change is going to cost a lot more than you originally thought, possibly even more than another renovated home that’s currently on the market.

Have a few more questions? Feel free to email me. I’m always happy to help!

Nikki R. Thomas
Licensed Associate Real Estate Broker
The Corcoran Group – Village Office
212-937-1647
nikki.thomas@corcoran.com