How to Plan a Home Improvement Project

Are you thinking of sprucing up your home before you have some guests over? Or do you just feel like doing some redecorating? Whether your home improvement project is for your benefit or your guests’, you’re going to need some solid planning. So, with that in mind, here are three things you need to do:

1. Know Exactly What Needs Changing

Take a walk around your home. Make sure to check every room, as well as every nook and cranny. What works? What doesn’t? List everything you want to change and why. And don’t skip over all the clutter you’ve been ignoring for the past few months. The Art of Simple shares some questions you can ask yourself while decluttering, like “Do I love this item more than the clutter it creates?” and “Do I have something else that could serve the same purpose?” Keep these in mind while you are inspecting your home. Whatever changes you want to make, write them down for future reference.

2. Get Inspired

Now that you know what doesn’t work, it’s time to think about improvements. In this phase, the internet should be your best friend. Search the web for images and tips that’ll help you achieve the look you want. But don’t get carried away! Always go back to that list you made as your guide.

So, let’s say you want to free up more space in your living room. Typing “minimal living room ideas” into your search box will provide you with thousands of images to draw inspiration from. Bored Panda even has a list that might come in handy, with 36 pieces of furniture designed to save space. There’s no shortage of images and resources to draw inspiration from, so make sure to save them all to your gallery.

3. Financing

While you are daydreaming about your new and improved home, you need to think about your finances, too. By now, you should have a good idea of what specific changes you want to make, so it’s time to see if those changes fit your actual budget.

Cash is the most common way to go, but you could also use your credit card to pay for any costs associated with your home improvements. Though the interest rates are pretty high, they are typically the only extra fees you’ll need to worry about. Just make sure you can pay off your balance on time. It’s also a good idea to look into annual percentage rates, or APRs. Petal’s guide to credit card APRs highlights how you can take advantage of 0% APR offers. Credit card companies tend to have promotional offers for existing cardholders. Some might also offer you promotional 0% rates if you’re a new cardholder. This means your card won’t charge you extra when you buy something and don’t pay it off immediately. Just remember that the rate will return to normal after the promotional period.

Another good option is to apply for a loan. One example is a home equity line of credit, or HELOC. A HELOC uses your home as collateral, which qualifies you for lower interest rates compared to an unsecured loan. This is recommended for bigger or long-term home improvement projects, since HELOCs make use of revolving credit. This means you can take however much you need, when you need it. And it just so happens that we can help you with a HELOC, so check us out. Whatever mode (or combination) of financing you choose, make sure it suits your needs.

These three things should get your planning phase well underway. So good luck! We’re sure your home will look great once all the improvements are finished.

Written exclusively for ilendi.com

By Jenni Bella