Not happy with your current home? It may be possible to transform it into the perfect home through renovations. Alternatively, you may be better off moving to a new property. Choosing between the two options isn’t always easier. To help you make the right choice between improving and moving, here are a few important considerations to make.
Can you achieve the features you need through renovating?
Whether you want extra bedrooms or a driveway, you need to consider whether adding these to your current home is feasible. You may not physically have the space to build a driveway or bedroom extension. In other cases, you may have the space, but may not be able to obtain planning permission. As a result, moving may be your only option to achieve your dream features.
Even if you cannot find any homes on the market that sport your dream features, it may still be possible to buy a new home and then renovate it to achieve these features. Another property may have more available space to build upon or may not be bound by as tight planning restrictions. You could even build your dream home from scratch using the help of luxury home builders. This could allow you to move into a new home with all the features you need.
All in all, it’s best to do your research first to make sure renovating is truly unfeasible before you decide to move. Hire contractors to survey your home and look into the allowed planning developments on your property to check what you truly can and can’t do.
How much do you love the location of your current home?
The location of your home is something that you cannot fix with renovations. If you’re not happy with your current home, you should consider how much of this is to do with the design of the home itself and how much is to do with the location. If the location factors like noise or flooding or crime play a big part in your unhappiness, moving may be the clear solution.
Of course, if you love the location of your home but hate the home itself, you should consider whether it’s worth staying to keep this location. Through some major renovations, you may be able to make your home more to your liking. It depends on how much you love the location and how feasible renovations are.
Which is less disruptive to your life?
Having to make major renovations to your home could be quite disruptive to your life. For example, renovating a kitchen could mean not being able to cook in there for a while or wash up dishes. This could mean relying on microwave meals and takeout meals on disposable plates for a while, or eating out or at a friend’s house.
Of course, moving home could be much more disruptive. You’ll have to pack and unpack everything, as well as making time for viewings, which could mean having to take time off work. You’ll also have to get used to a new home and location, which could mean replanning your journey to work and notifying various people of your address change. The further away you move, the bigger the lifestyle adjustment is likely to be.
Overall, moving is likely to be more disruptive than renovating because it’s a much bigger change to your lifestyle and it’s permanent. This is something to consider if your life is already quite hectic and you’re trying to take the least stressful option.
Which is more affordable?
Cost is a big factor to consider when deciding whether to renovate or move home. There are times where making drastic home improvements could work out more expensive than relocating. This is something that you should weigh up.
For example, let’s imagine that you need an extra bedroom. You may be able to cheaply convert your loft to add a new bedroom. However, there are other cases where a loft conversion may not be so cheap – you may have to raise the roof if it is too low or replace the roof if it is in poor condition.
Moving to a home with an extra bedroom is likely to be more expensive if you stay in the same area. However, if you’re prepared to move further afield, you could find that it costs you less to buy a home with an extra bedroom than it does to convert your attic. Just make sure to also factor in moving costs.