Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa December / Jan 2016 | Page 38

IMPROVING

Smart tips

for a stress free
DIY Renovation

36

1. Create a plan
It’s always helpful to do a little online research prior to
rolling up your sleeves and seek out how-to videos or
step-by-step tutorials that will help you create a DIY
plan and nail every step.

out of motivation or money part way through. At the
end of the day, your time is valuable too, and some
grueling or more specialized tasks may be well worth
your investment in dollars to hire a pro rather than your
investment of blood, sweat and tears.

3. Determine your budget
One of the motivating factors for many DIY-ers is the
potential to save money. Although sweat equity may
be free, it’s still important to create a realistic estimate
of required materials and compile a complete project
budget. The last thing any homeowner wants is to run

4. Estimate your time
Regardless of how big or small a project is, most DIYers fail to create realistic timelines to complete the work.
It’s important to sit down before you begin a project
and write out every step in sequence, then make a list
of materials and costs associated with each step, and

DEC/JAN 2016 SA Real Estate Investor

www.reimag.co.za