Guest Blogger: DIY Tips to Survive Moving into a Fixer-Upper Home

Guest Blog #203, Entry #692, October 7, 2011

Have you just purchased a home that needs some tender loving care? ‘Fixer-uppers’ are a great investment if you are willing to put in the needed labor, time and expense of fixing it up once you move into it. Today, my Guest Blogger gives DIY tips from moving into his fixer and upper and how it changed his family’s lifestyle!

Use these DIY tips to help through your remodel

Image courtesy of Decor Dir

Get new carpet isn’t just getting new carpet. It’s a change in lifestyle.

We were in a lifestyle-changing mode, anyway. Getting into a new house and welcoming a baby are two of the biggest changes a young couple can face—we just happened to be facing them at the same time.

Two days after the papers were signed, the short sale completed, and the moving truck ordered, we get an “oh, by the way” call from the previous owners that they had forgot to mention to the agent: they had water damage, and the carpet had developed some mold on the backing. “Enjoy the house!” Click. I stood in my house staring at the offending carpet with silence and rage ringing in my ears.

Buying a house isn’t cheap. Neither is having a baby. I soon came to find the expenses involved in inspection and repair. I’d do it myself, but I still needed a loan. One California home improvement loan later, I headed to Lowe’s.

And that’s where we come to the lifestyle changes involved in changing your carpet. Because picking out a carpet was more than the color we liked. There were not only several factors to considered, but also many a trade-off to consider:

Before you buy a ‘fixer upper’ make sure you are ready

Image courtesy of Remodeling Ideas

Tips to consider:

• If we weren’t going to be in the house longer than five years, is it worth it to get the less expensive carpet?
• If we get the more expensive carpet, will it provide the value and satisfaction to balance out that price tag?
• If we are recarpeting one room, will we recarpet the rest of the house to match?
• What kind of furniture changes can we afford considering the shade of the carpet?

Our DIY priorities became the following:

• Cost
• Durability
• Aesthetics
• Ease of cleaning
• Furniture
• Paint

Having a home improvement loan does not mean that we were keen on spending the entire sum, so we were trying to be smart about the entire process (hint: loan = interest). And at every step of the process, we asked ourselves, “How is this going to handle with the little one . . . and any future siblings?”

See what I mean? Lifestyle.

A fixer upper can be beautiful once completed

Image courtesy of This Old House

So here’s what we ended up with:

Wife and I repainted virtually every wall in the house, a task that becomes rather entertaining when you have no concern for the old carpet beneath you. We settled on a carpet with soft brown tones ranging from “espresso” to “chocolate” that had Scotchguard built in. We—ahem, I—got through three bedrooms, a living room, and family room, and my father-in-law came by to help recarpet the stairs. Our used-to-be-white, 15-year-old sectional was replaced with a microfiber couch and loveseat, colored deep red.

And I’m afraid the rest of the furniture would have to wait. I now have yet another loan to pay off (interest), but my house is finally my house—and it looks amazing (equity).

So let’s hear it: Am I the only one who finds a complete lifestyle change with a home improvement project? Tell me about your latest and greatest, and fill everyone in on what changed for you.

Jared Heath likes to bite off more than he can chew when it comes to home improvement. He is most grateful for his wife who lovingly cuffs him over the head before the budget gets out of control. He and his wife and new baby are now resting comfortably in their new home.

For more DIY ideas on Stagetecture, & Stagetecture’s YouTube Channel, click here.