Hey guys, I'm 26 and have working full time for the last two years and have got a bit of money saved up for my first home which I will convert into an IP after I stay in it for 6 months.
Most of the places I have been looking at (under $400K) need a little work done to them. I am eager to do as much of the work myself as is legally possible. However, I don't have any prior reno work experience. I am wondering whether you guys can give me advice on the best way to find work with people that are doing renovation work and other building related stuff. Do I just approach random builders at bulding sites?
I figure that if I can give someone else a hand renovating it'll better prepare me for my own house and also help build up contacts and network with people in the business of renovating. Probably the only disadvantage for me is that I'm only available for such work on weekends. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Why not purchase something that needs some work, not too many difficult or big jobs etc.
Learn to do those, like patching up walls, painting, putting in a vanity etc.
Then build up.
Then one day, you'll be able to perform an extension, like I did.
I've never done any hard core reno, but I've done the freshen up, painting, gardening etc etc. I've learnt a great value in using the little shops. You know, the little paint shop on the corner that is owned an run by a guy who has been in paint his whole life and can give you just the best advice. You may pay a bit more for his product (I found it wasn't much more), but his advice is just so valuable. He can help with advice on colour schemes, prep work, even a bit of plastering etc etc. My lesson was to give the large hardware warehouse a miss until you know what you're doing and make use of the smaller businesses that offer a better level of knowledge and customer service to learn what you can. Of course, getting a pro in to do a bit of the job and learning what you can is also a great idea. We had a pro painter paint the living area in our PPOR, and I learnt alot about how to do painting well and fast, which we then applied to all the other rooms and the exterior ourselves. Likewise, the small nursery supplier – great on advice and help. I really detest going into those massive warehouses, losing myself, forgetting what I wanted, getting no help whatsoever, feeling totally useless. The smaller shops make you feel welcome, and you leave with the stuff you need, some great advice and a feeling like you CAN do the job.
good luck.
SWhere are you located? have you tried contacting some of the smaller niche builders and one man teams as these guys are always trying to source good help. Being able to only work weekends may cause a few issues with some of them and also council issues (i cant work before 7 am or after 4 pm on sat and not at all on sundays.)
Good luck with a great idea at trying to advance yourself and get some valuable hands on experience.
I think what you need to do is differentiate between what you can do and what requires professional help e.g. plumbing, electricals because they provide peace of mind and OH&S/insurance/legislation etc.
I did some reno on an unit I had. I painted the walls myself and did a bit of things. However, I also realised that getting the property out to the market was also very important. So I got a small-time (but fully insured) renderer to do some work, got a plumber to fix a few things on the bathroom and got someone to lay the floorboard. Yes, I could have done all those things myself and I would have learned but at the same time it would have taken me at least 4-5 weeks more to get the property ready and put it on the market. The last thing I wanted to tell prospects was that I am working on something and will be finished soon. Just make sure that you are prepared to manage whomever you hire and negotiate good rates based on performance. Hope it helps.I Can’t agree with SHales and Airstrike enough.
I’ve helped friends do reno’s before and the smaller shops are soo much more helpful, use them, give Bunnings a miss this time.
And contact a small team of tradies in your area, tell them you’ll trade your time in for some skills to be learnt. I’m in the tradie industry myself and its always a wonderful thing when there’s a pair of hands around to help to pass tools up the ladder and hold things steady while you screw them on..
Hope this helps..
That is great that you want to work in this field.
Let me discuss this with my friend and i will do something for you
You must be logged in to reply to this topic. If you don't have an account, you can register here.
