Why you shouldn't project manage your own home renovation
Okay, let’s be straight up with you. Managing your own renovation probably won’t save you money in the long run. Unless you have the proper skills, experience, or resources, you might be about to embark on one helluva expensive exercise, which could be easily avoided. Too many times we’ve seen people make costly mistakes and time overruns, not to mention bringing unnecessary stress on relationships and families.
While it may seem like a good idea at first, maybe you want to challenge yourself or improve your project management skills, but please, do us a big favour and run your eyes over what we’re about to say before you go in all guns blazing. In this article, we’ll delve into the reasons why you shouldn’t project manage your own home renovation, and why hiring a project manager for your home renovation can actually save you money, time, and headaches in the long run.
You likely lack professional experience
Not wanting to sound rude or anything, but project management is a specialised skill that takes years to master. Professional project managers are trained to coordinate multiple aspects of a project simultaneously, from budgeting and scheduling to coordinating contractors, sourcing materials, and handling unexpected challenges. Unfortunately, it’s not that simple, and googling ‘project management plan for building a house’ that you can follow just won’t hack it.
If you’ve never managed a large-scale project before, it's easy to underestimate the scope of what’s involved in a home renovation. For instance, scheduling various trades like electricians, plumbers, and builders requires an understanding of how their tasks intersect and the order in which things should be done. Mismanaging this can result in delays and, ultimately, higher costs.
We’ve also got long-standing relationships with contractors and tradies and know how to communicate with them to ensure the job is done right. Without this network and experience, you may end up hiring the wrong people, potentially leading to substandard work that needs redoing—costing you more in the long run.
What spare time do you have up your sleeve?
Project managing a home renovation is incredibly time-consuming. The role involves coordinating schedules, monitoring progress, dealing with supply issues, and troubleshooting problems. Unless you can dedicate significant time to managing these aspects, your project may quickly fall behind schedule.
Many homeowners try to juggle their full-time jobs, family obligations, and renovation management. This balancing act often leads to burnout and stress. Delays in decision-making, or inaction due to other priorities, can create bottlenecks that throw the entire project off course.
Having a BPM project manager on your side can dedicate their full attention to your renovation, and quite frankly will do an excellent job (here’s how we do excellent by the way). Your new best-building buddy will anticipate delays, proactively solve problems, and keep the project moving forward as planned.
The budget: your worst enemy
Staying on budget is one of the most difficult aspects of any renovation. Small, unforeseen expenses can quickly add up, and if you’re not experienced in managing budgets, it’s (very) easy to lose control.
For DIY project managers, it’s easy to make costly mistakes, such as over-ordering materials, not accounting for hidden structural issues (this one happens more often than not), or hiring contractors who offer low estimates but deliver subpar work, leading to additional expenses later on.
We are masters of estimating costs, allocating resources, and building contingencies for unexpected expenses. We can negotiate prices with contractors and suppliers, and we know where to cut costs without sacrificing quality to fit your budget. Now, if that’s not music to your ears, we don’t know what is.
How’s your industry knowledge?
Renovations are filled with intricate details that require a deep understanding of construction, design, and building regulations. Most homeowners don’t have this knowledge, which can lead to costly errors, delays, or even code violations that require expensive fixes.
For example, understanding the sequencing of work is critical. You wouldn’t want to install flooring before plumbing and electrical work are completed, but a novice might not realise this until it’s too late. Similarly, miscommunication with contractors about the design or structural changes could result in poorly executed work or having to redo significant parts of the project.
We’ve also seen many projects abandoned part way through and thousands of dollars lost because the homeowner did not foresee major issues and didn’t have the budget to carry on.
The one thing that gets a lot of homeowners is the regulations around building codes, permits, and safety requirements that vary from region to region. We’ll ensure that your renovation complies with all local laws and regulations, preventing legal issues that could arise from non-compliance. We’re fluent in council speak so we can often decipher what they need much quicker, saving everyone precious time and helping to avoid premature grey hairs.
It can be an emotional rollercoaster
We love rollercoasters, but emotional ones are not fun. Renovating your home is already a stressful experience, and taking on the responsibility of managing the entire process yourself can multiply that stress exponentially. We’ve seen it so many times, the pressure to get everything right, combined with dealing with delays, mistakes, or miscommunications, can take a toll on your mental and emotional health. It’s just not worth it.
Homeowners often underestimate the emotional strain of renovating while living in the house. The constant disruption to your routine, the noise, dust (ohhh there’s a lot of dust!), and intrusion of workers in your space, all add to the stress. Managing the project yourself means you’re on call to handle every problem, big or small, and any issues that arise can directly affect your living conditions.
BPM project managers are like your knight in shining armour, your hero to the rescue, your right-hand (wo)man. We handle the day-to-day challenges and mitigate problems before they reach you, allowing you to focus on your life while the renovation progresses smoothly.
We’ll get to know each other pretty well and we’ll end up talking on the phone a lot, and that’s why not only will you have a beautiful new space, you’ll have fun and enjoy the experience with us.
Risk of a trainwreck
One of the most challenging aspects of any renovation project is coordinating the work of multiple contractors. Each trade (e.g., electricians, plumbers, painters) often depends on the others to complete their work before they can start, creating a complex chain of interdependencies.
A home renovation project manager is adept at organising and scheduling these trades so that work flows smoothly and efficiently. If you lack experience in this area, it can be a logistical nightmare. Poor coordination can lead to workers waiting around for others to finish, which not only wastes time but also increases labour costs. No one wants to see tradies sitting on their bums, doing nothing (unless on a hard-earned break of course).
When we work with our contractors, it’s like a beautiful symphony. We know how to schedule them, effectively communicate with them, and ensure that each phase of the renovation happens in the correct order. Without this conducting, delays are almost inevitable and the symphony will turn into a cacophony.
Let’s talk legal
Renovations come with inherent risks, including potential damage to your property, injuries to workers, or accidents on-site. As a homeowner managing the project yourself, you could be held liable for these incidents if the proper legal protections and insurance aren’t in place.
Health and safety is huge on our priority list. We ensure that all contractors and tradies working on your renovation are fully insured and compliant with local laws. We also ensure that contracts are properly drafted to protect you from legal liabilities. Without this knowledge, homeowners may find themselves exposed to unexpected costs, or insurance issues.
The “Too Many Hats” problem
Renovating your home requires you to wear many hats – designer, accountant, scheduler, negotiator, and more. Each of these roles requires specific skills, and few people are experts in all of them. When you try to manage all these roles yourself, you may find that you’re stretched too thin, and mistakes become inevitable.
BPM is like an army; we’ve got someone who wears each of the hats and works as part of the overall team. We bring in the right people at the right time and delegate responsibilities effectively. By trying to do it all yourself, you risk compromising the quality of your renovation, your budget, and your own well-being.
While it may be tempting to manage your own home renovation in an effort to save money or maintain control, the risks far outweigh the potential benefits. The time commitment, stress, and risk of mistakes can turn your dream renovation into a living nightmare.
At the end of the day, the true value of a home renovation project manager lies in their expertise, connections, and ability to navigate the inevitable challenges of a home renovation. It’s an investment that will pay off with peace of mind, a smoothly executed project, and a cracking end result. Check out our once bitten, twice as smart approach, and please get in touch if you think we can help you.