When Is the Best Time To Renovate?

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When is the best time to renovate your home? Renovating your home is one of those tasks that are easy to put off. There are always excuses, such as:

“We’ll do it this spring.” 

“Let’s wait until the kids are out of school.” 

“Prices will be better in wintertime.”

There will always be reasons to wait—but then, there are also real considerations to take into account regarding price, timeline, contractor availability, and more.

So how do you really know when the best time to renovate is? Here are a few guidelines. 

Obviously, if you’re getting ready to sell your home, the sooner you renovate, the better.

If you’re renovating with the goal of selling your home afterward, you’ll want to get the process started as soon as possible. 

Unless the improvements you’re making are relatively small and cosmetic, it’s a good idea to plan on your renovations taking upwards of several weeks. And no matter what the size of the project, you’ll need time to get at least three quotes from different contractors, choose the one you want to work with, get on his or her schedule, and allow time for supply issues, worker issues, etc. 

If the project you’re undertaking is minor, like painting (exterior or interior), replacing flooring in a room, or putting in new counter tops, you can plan on the actual work taking roughly up to a week. Larger projects like a kitchen renovation may take a few weeks up to six months, while major projects like adding a second story or fixing a foundation can take over a year. 

If you are selling your home, it’s important to think hard about the renovations that will actually improve your home value, and stick to these top home improvements. Otherwise, you risk spending thousands of dollars on something that will only earn you back a fraction of what you put into the project.  

If you’ve got time to spare, the slower winter months are more budget-friendly for renovations. 

Because spring and summer are contractors’ busiest seasons, waiting until winter, assuming you have the time, can be a good way to have your work done faster and for a better price. 

Consider that when contractors have full schedules, their services are at a premium. They’re able to charge more not only because there’s greater demand, but also because it’s harder to find available workers. 

This seasonality even affects suppliers, as prices for materials tend to begin rising in early  spring. 

In winter, on the other hand, contractors have less work. That, combined with lower prices for materials, means they will usually charge lower prices then.  

So, if you’re working with contractors to renovate your home, and you’re able to wait until the colder months to start, you’ll likely save money, and possibly time as well. 

Ultimately, the best time to renovate is when your budget can handle it.

No matter what type of project you’re starting or what kind of timeline you’re on, the best time to renovate will always be when you can complete the project with minimal stress; both financial and otherwise. 

That can mean waiting until the kids are in school again, so they’re not home for much of the day. Or waiting until that bonus check arrives. Sometimes that’s the best thing to do. 

Renovating a home is already stressful enough. Adding more strain by worrying about money or trying to figure out how to occupy the children will only make it harder to get through.