Should I Renovate Or Move?
When you feel it’s time for a new living space, your two main options are moving to a new home or renovating your current one. Deciding between the two is a big decision with high financial and emotional costs. You must consider all of the factors involved in each process to come to a well-thought out decision that is best for you and the rest of your family.
The Advantages of Renovating
Our prospective clients approach us after making the decision to renovate rather than move. The three most common reasons they cite for making that decision are:
- They love the neighbourhood and don’t want to leave the school systems or their kids’ friends behind. If they don’t have a family, perhaps they have a fantastic backyard, an easy commute to work, or they just love the local amenities.
- It’s a convenient location near friends and loved ones.
- They grew up in the area, or even in the home, and don’t want to leave it behind and sever the emotional attachment.
Evaluating the Reasons for the Change
There are also many common reasons why people decide they need a change like a move or major renovation.
- Market conditions
- Changing space requirements
- Inconvenience
- Financial considerations
- Plans for the future
Here at Sosna, we focus on the renovation process and help guide our clients through it. We can help you solve all of the following issues that might be pushing you to consider such a big change.
You Feel Embarrassed to Invite Guests Over
If your home is dated, in poor condition, or cluttered, we can help. Your renovation project can focus on extending storage opportunities and renewing those materials that show signs of wear and tear.
You Lack Privacy
Sharing the home with your aging parents or your growing children can leave you feeling overcrowded and low on privacy. We can help you create private space for them and you despite any limitations in your layout.
You Feel Cramped in Certain Parts of the Home
Your home should feel spacious and welcoming to both you and your guests. If your kitchen feels a little small or you don’t have the space for your favourite activities, a renovation is the best way to deal with these space issues.
You Feel Isolated From Guests or Family Members
The layout common to older homes usually separates the main floor so that it’s hard to feel connected with your guests if you’re in the kitchen and they’re in the living room. We’ll create an open layout floor plan for you to help end this isolation.
You Are Dealing with Safety Hazards in Your Home
Safety hazards like mold, outdated features, and wiring problems are serious no matter your age. But even a home in good condition could pose a number of risks to older adults. We can add aging in place features and bring your home up to modern safety standards so you can continue to enjoy it for years to come.
Still trying to decide between a renovation or a move to a new home? Click below to download our helpful PDF checklist that you and your family can go over together. If you decide that renovating is the best option, you may be a perfect fit for working with Sosna.
Determine What You Want to Change
Figuring out exactly what about your home is not working for you is the best place to start. Look through some interior design magazines and check out before and after pictures from our former projects. Once you have some ideas to start from, discuss your changes with your contractor to determine whether they are reasonable and/or feasible.
Our designers here at Sosna work closely with our clients so we can get to know them. We discuss the client’s needs and prepare drawings for them to review before we start the project. The end result is a home with optimized function and aesthetics personalized to the client’s wants and needs.
Consider Your Financial Situation
After getting an idea of what you want to change in your home, we can start determining the budget necessary for the work. To get more of an idea of what to expect, check out our blog Budget First, Then Design.
Identify Concerns and Potential Challenges
Renovations are costly and do have to potential to cause stress. Common concerns involve:
- The project will not be treated as a priority by the designers or contractors
- The contractor will take the money and disappear, abandoning the project
- The final results won’t match what they envisioned, leaving them disappointed despite the outlay of money
- The project hits a lot of delays or issues, leading to it taking longer than anticipated or promised
- The chance of dealing with surprises discovered during the renovation that increases the cost of the project
- Growing and changing costs for the renovation
- Disruptions from dust, mess, and noise that bothers them and their neighbours
- Low quality work or issues that arise from the renovation a few years down the road
- Letting strangers in their home during the renovations.
Proactively identifying your concerns with regard to the renovation is the best way to address them. Having a contractor you can trust will reduce your stress about engaging in this process. At Sosna, we discuss all concerns with our prospective clients before beginning the project. We want to check that we’re the best fit for your needs and can help you achieve your goals.
Moving to a New Home
While there are many reasons to choose a renovation, sometimes moving is still the best choice. However, don’t underestimate the costs and effort required for this choice.
Advantages of Moving
Access To A Fresh Start And New Surroundings
Moving to a new home usually occurs because of big life changes. Making a physical move can give you a fresh, clean start with a new neighbourhood and exciting surroundings.
Opportunity to Upgrade To a Larger Or More Suitable Home
If you’re still living in your starter home, your growing family may leave you feeling cramped in the current space. A new home gives you a chance to find a place that better fits your lifestyle. This same is also true during the empty nester stage when you need to consider shrinking down to a smaller place.
Avoiding the Issues That Can Come with Renovations
While renovating is recommended as a way to stay in your home and avoid the hassles of moving, it still comes with some headaches of your own. Depending on the amount of work your home needs, there’s a chance that packing up and moving will be simpler. Issues that might arise during a renovation include:
- Trouble finding a reliable contractor
- Extra work managing multiple contractors
- Dealing with dust, noise, and daily interruptions
- Moving out temporarily for demolition and installation work
- Storage solutions for your belongings during the project
- Strain on your family relationships
- Staying on time and under budget.
If you notice, many of these issues can occur during the process of moving to a new home as well. Unfortunately, you’re going to have to deal with a small amount of stress no matter which choice you go with. Staying in an undersized or outdated home without moving or working on it will also leave you feeling stressed, so the only thing to do is move forward one way or another.
Identifying Potential New Homes
Before deciding that you’re set on moving rather than renovating, check out the market in your area. In Toronto, there has been a seller’s market for the last few years due to low inventory levels and high demand. You may find there are few to no good homes available in your budget or in the areas you want to live in. A renovation is always available even if the housing market is tight.
Weighing The Potential Challenges
In addition to looking at your desires for a new home, you need to consider the challenges of moving.
- Moving costs a lot of money-you’ll have to cover any difference between your current home’s sale value and the new home’s purchase price, not to mention fees for buying, selling, and closing
- You have an emotional attachment to your current home-will a new home feel the same to you?
- Potential difficulties in finding a new home that fits your needs-even if you see a few good options on the market now, they may not be available by the time you’re ready to buy.
How to Make a Final Decision
Choosing between renovating and moving is a deeply personal decision. Sometimes, even after all the analyses, it comes down to what feels right for you and your family.
Seek Professional Advice
At Sosna, we specialize in helping our clients create the forever homes that meet their needs, tastes, and lifestyles. If you’re ready to renovate, contact us for a consultation. We’d love to speak with you to see if Sosna is the right fit for you and your family!
