What Do Major Home Renovations Entail?

What Do Major Home Renovations Entail?

For people wanting to undertake a major home renovation, this might be to upgrade their existing home or because they have bought a run-down or older house that they want to renovate. If you have never renovated a home before, you might be wondering what major home renovations entail. Is it a project that you can handle yourself, or do you need to hire a builder for major renovations? These are some of the things you can expect.

Getting The Plans

First of all, what is your desired outcome from the renovation? For any major home renovation you will need to have some plans drafted to consider how these new spaces could look, how they could change the overall appearance and flow of your home and also to figure out which improvements actually fit within your available budget. A good architect or an experienced draughtsman will sit down with you and discuss your requirements and budget. They will ask a range of questions about your lifestyle, the family members (teenagers will have different needs from young school children for example) and the anticipated use of the areas you are looking to renovate. All of these will have an impact on how they design your renovation project.

Using their experience, they will also have insights or ideas that you may not have considered. They might suggest a different configuration of the layout or a different orientation to capture more natural light and warmth.

They will also have an understanding of the shape and slope of the land that you will be building on.  This will have a significant effect on the costs of the building project also.

Once they have your input, they can then go away and draw up a sketch design and layout for you to then review, giving you the chance to either accept the design or for you to suggest changes. Once you agree on the design, they will then make the final drawings.

Once the plans have been submitted to Council, it is important that you do not make any changes to these since they are critical for Council Consent – see below. A renovations builder can use these to produce an estimate, though any later variations from the design will undoubtedly affect the construction costs, usually upwards, as well as potentially causing delays, so be absolutely sure that the design is what you want before the draughtsman or architect makes the final drawings.

Council Consent

It is essential to get approval for your building project from the local Council before you begin any major renovations. This might be Resource or Planning Consent, or both. Getting the Auckland Council Consent is a complex process and people are advised to seek professional help with the process. We can point you in the right direction here if you need help with your application.

As part of the consent process you will need to supply the drawings of the final design produced by a qualified architect or draughtsman to accompany your application. Any major variations from the design might need to go back for further approval – causing delays in your project.

Getting consent is vital as the Council has a range of powers to slow or halt building if the consent is not granted. Often renovation building companies will not quote a project without Council Consent first being granted, as it could easily be a waste of their time. It is not uncommon for Council to request changes to the plans as part of their peer reviewing processes for engineering and design.

During and after the renovations process, you will need inspections from the Council. At the end you will get the final sign-off, called Producer Statements (PS). Not only are these important to show that the Council has approved the completion of your work, but if you do not have the appropriate consents, you will not be able to get insurance cover.

Further, you will also find it very difficult to sell your home without the relevant Code of Compliance or PS. Banks and lenders are increasingly looking for reasons to not give a loan or mortgage. The absence of Code of Compliance documents will be all that is needed.

Major Renovations For The Whole House

It is not just updating your kitchen and bathrooms – a major renovation often includes multiple spaces of a house.

These days people tend to want to have a big open-plan living area. So it is common for us to work on major renovations in Coatesville that include the kitchen, lounge, dining room, and hallway for example. With our major renovations building experience we can help create much more living space in a house by removing walls to reconfigure the layout, giving views across the garden or creating much brighter internal living spaces.

Other major renovation projects can include adding an upper-storey or perhaps building out over a garage to add bedrooms or an office. Adding a granny-flat is another popular addition, which can often be part-funded by the parent selling their home, or rented out to gain extra income.

Major Renovation Projects Can Involve Indoor And Outdoor Upgrades

Upgrades and big renovations don’t need to be exclusively focused on a home’s interior. The exterior of a home can also be part of the renovations. If you have created a wonderful open-plan living area, lots of people choose to carry that outside by having a new deck, patio, or outdoor living area built. This way, you can extend the theme throughout your home, creating a steady flow of colour and style.

Another advantage in having major renovations in your garden at the same time as the indoor renovation building work, is that you only have one time of disruption. You might as well “get it over with.” The building company is on-site so they can build the deck or patio for you. The Project Manager can work with the other trades companies for landscaping or outdoors electrics for example.

If people put off the idea of renovating their garden or outdoor living area, they will find it harder to get the enthusiasm at a later date so we always recommend having the indoor and outdoor renovations done at the same time if your budget can handle it.

The Costs Of Home Renovations Can Vary Wildly

One of the first things that most people want to know about home renovations is how much they cost. Unfortunately, there isn’t necessarily an easy answer to this question. There are many things that impact the total cost of home renovations.

Upgrading a small home is generally going to be cheaper than improving a larger home unless expansions are involved. Some homes may not need extensive renovation work, but other properties are going to need significant upgrades.

One of the best options for you is to call in an experienced home renovations builder to talk through your ideas. They can then give you a ball-park figure so you can see if that fits with your budget or your valuation for a renovated house in the area.

These days with the quickly changing costs of renovation building work in Coatesville, in fact throughout New Zealand, your own estimate is likely to be some way of the mark. Don’t leave it to chance and start a project that you cannot afford.

Summing Up

In short, there are many ways of renovating your home to create more space, light, or add value. If you have some thoughts about a major home renovation in Coatesville, and would like some advice, please call us on 0800 224 628 or email us at enquiries@cainbuilt.co.nz, we’d be happy to talk to you about your options.