With house prices slumping in much of the country, upgrading and adding to the living space are an alternative to buying new.
However, television programs have shown plenty of DIY disasters and unsuspecting homeowners who pay out their life savings to under-skilled contractors who do shoddy work or even abandon the project in the middle of the job.
Related: Do Home Renovations Really Pay Off?
If a home renovation is something you plan to do, here are some tips to ensure a quality job:
- Try to get referrals from friends and co-workers. If you don’t know anyone who’s had work done, comb through the yellow pages, advertisements and on-line for names. Call several companies. (On a couple of projects I had, some companies didn’t even return my call.)
- Once you have a feel for them after speaking to them on the phone, choose three to five people to interview and give you an estimate.
- Make sure to discuss everything you want to accomplish together with the budget you have for the project. A good contractor will offer suggestions and alternatives to keep you within budget. (Add an extra 10% for cost over-runs.)
- Most reputable companies will do the job with no money up front. Beware of people who want huge money before they start. You don’t know if they will go broke part way through the job, or take the money and run. If it’s a large project they may ask for payment as each area is completed.
- Check the contractors’ backgrounds and references before signing any agreements.
- Don’t make a lot of changes after the original estimate. That said, if you really hate what was done, make sure it’s changed right away before additional work is completed. Don’t feel you can learn to live with it. Just be aware that the cost of redoing and replacing will add to your estimate. (When my living room was painted, the colour was hideous over a larger area and the room had to be repainted.)
- Keep pets out of the “construction zone” for their own safety and also the workers’. Also, you don’t want to find pet hair embedded in your newly varnished wood floor after it has dried and it becomes a permanent part of your décor.
- Equally important, make sure you keep out of the way. They don’t need you hanging over their shoulder making comments or suggestions. After your daily inspection, if there’s a problem, speak to the contractor.
- It’s a nice gesture to provide some refreshments to the workers – coffee or bottled water for example. Also indicate which bathroom they can use. I was told that some homeowners don’t allow bathroom use, which seems unreasonable to me. (Although I was dismayed to see that my new basement toilet was “christened” by the plumber who installed it and my first chore was to clean it.)
- After the work is done to your satisfaction and payment has been made, enjoy your new living space. Maybe you can have a party to show it off.
Do you have any home renovation tips or horror stories to share?
I’ve recently discovered Great Canadian Rebates, which is a one-stop source that was made for Canadians to save money shopping online. The website offers cash back rebates and online coupons to hundreds of merchants who ship to Canada.
Great Canadian Rebates
I have to admit, I wasn’t too crazy about online shopping in the past. I like going into a brick and mortar store to really know what I am purchasing, as well as to ask questions about the product. Plus the shipping and handling charges can be outrageous, especially when coming from another country.
However, getting started with Great Canadian Rebates is easy. You simply sign in and select a store from the list of merchants. Next you will see a merchant profile that describes the cash back rebate percentage they are offering you, as well as any deals and coupons they are currently featuring. From there you follow the link to continue shopping, and you will be taken directly to the merchants’ website.
- Sign up for Great Canadian Rebates here – (link)
Great Canadian Rebates acts as a portal to these merchants and receives a commission when you make a purchase, which a portion of it is passed on to you. Great Canadian Rebates will send out payments every two months via PayPal or cheque.
Your balance needs to be greater than $3 to be paid through PayPal, and over $20 to be paid out by cheque.
I have personally used Great Canadian Rebates to purchase new blinds for our house, and most recently a new laptop. I received my first cheque of $39.78 earlier this year.
I am a big proponent of maximizing my rewards when spending money, so this is a good way to double-dip by using my credit card AND receiving a cash rebate back from the purchase.
Some examples of merchants and their cash rebates are:
- Quick Tax: 10% rebate
- Avon Canada: 6% rebate
- Sears Canada: 2% rebate
- Toys R Us Canada: 2% rebate
- Expedia.ca: 2% rebate
- Dell Canada: 1.5% rebate
- MBNA Smart Cash MasterCard: $60 rebate
- American Express Gold Rewards Card: $60 rebate
Check out Great Canadian Rebates and save money shopping online. All new sign-ups will receive a $2 credit just to get you started. You can sign-up as a referral under Boomer and Echo by clicking the link below:
To sign up for Great Canadian Rebates click here
Want to know how to accumulate cash in a hurry? Stop wasting it! Here is a list of 10 things that are a waste of money, in no particular order:
10 Things That Are A Waste Of Money
Insisting on brand loyalty. Sure, we all have our brand favourites but often generic or store brand clones are very similar in quality, if not indistinguishable, and can save you at least 25 percent or more. Check them out and compare the difference.
Buying from TV infomercials. TV products are overpriced and they hardly ever turn out as depicted. Plus shipping and handling costs can be enormous. If you’re still tempted to buy, most items are available at many retail stores, often at sale prices and you save the shipping charges.
Failure to return items. It doesn’t fit right or the colour is wrong or it was just a plain mistake, but who has time to trek back to the store? You do. If you still have receipts, try to get a refund for all new items with tags or original packaging. At least get a store credit, otherwise it’s a waste of money.
Late fees. Don’t be a late payer. Late fees on credit card accounts, mortgages, car loans, property taxes – even library books and DVD rentals are extremely high. Record due dates in your planner and pay on time. If you do incur a late fee, call immediately. Most creditors will waive the fee if you have a good payment record.
Related: 10 Fees That Are Worth The Money
Overdraft fees. A small slip-up can easily turn a $5 burger into a $40 overdraft fee. Even if your bank is happy to cover your mistakes you’ll be not only charged a fee, but at least 21% interest until the OD is covered. Look into your chequing account options.
Extended warranties. Extended warranties are mostly profit for the retailer. Generally, if an item is going to fail, it will do so early on and the manufacturer’s warranty will cover it.
Paying for storage. If you’ve got so much stuff that you need to pay to store it, you’ve got too much stuff. Period. Take the plunge and unload everything you don’t use or need. Turn what you can into cash or give away still serviceable items to charities like Goodwill or the Salvation Army.
Related: How Many Clothes Do You Need Anyway?
Not taking advantage of available discounts. Do you have a young driver in the family who is also a good student? You may qualify for a good student discount to lower your auto insurance rates.
Did you take a driver training course? Does you car have more than the basic safety equipment? Did you install a home protection system? Call your insurance agent for a review to save on auto insurance.
Buying in bulk. It’s easy to get carried away when you walk through a warehouse club like Costco. Determine how much you really need and then consider the price.
If it’s more than you can reasonably use before the stuff turn stale, rotten or past expiration – or you just don’t need it- you’re throwing money down the drain. If you must buy in large quantities, invest in a vacuum sealing machine or a large freezer for storage.
Not taking an employer’s match. If you’re eligible for employer-matching RRSP or other savings plans and you’re not signed up, you’re turning down FREE money. It’s like getting a 50 – 100% return on your money without any risk. How can you pass that up?
So, this is my list of 10 things that are a waste of money. Can you add to the list?