How To Save Money On Home Renovation Projects

As many of you know, we have been working diligently on renovating my boys’ room.  It is coming along well and we have spent every penny allotted for this project and then some.  We have however, utilized many money saving tactics throughout this project.  Here are five of our top money saving ideas.

1.  Do the labor yourself – this is by far our greatest savings.  I know this can be difficult and time consuming but on this project we saved by not having to hire a contractor, electrician, dry waller, painter, floor lay-er, or any other workers.

I can’t begin to imagine how much we would have paid for labor.  Also, by doing it ourselves, we learned many new life skills like we did when we installed our new metal roof.

2.  Buy used – MANY of the items for this room were bought used.  I knew I was going to redo this room and had a vision for it for a very long time.  I started buying items for this room many months ago.

Some of those items include: lamps, furniture, ceiling fan, lights and some tools for this job.  Before you buy used, be sure to check out the item completely and ask about the store’s return policy.

3.  Repurpose furniture and refinish it to make it look “new” – we have often repurposed furniture…like the time we used an old dresser to add storage under our basement steps, or turned a changing table into a bench and shoe storage in our entryway, or for this project when we turned old tv cabinets into dressers.

Think outside of the original purpose and get creative.  You can refinish these items to give them a whole new look…like with my hope chest, my grandmother’s furniture, my dining room table, or the boys’ furniture.

4.  Use coupons and coupon codes – We have a Home Depot just a few minutes from our home and so that is our primary home improvement shopping location.  Their coupons are hard to come by but they will also use competitors coupons so be sure to check into those too.
I have also recently been introduced to a new website called Save1.com . Save1 is a website that offers coupons and special deals from thousands of top online stores in America including Home Depot.

Save1.com is a family operated site that is working not only to save the consumer money, but is helping save lives of starving children around the globe. Let me tell you how it works.  When you make a purchase from an online retailer using a Save1.com coupon or special offer, your purchase will provide a meal to a hungry child.  It’s just that simple.  Over 100,000 meals have already been provided through online purchases. I love saving money and I love helping others so Save1.com is a great way to do both.

5.  Use reward programs – there are many reward programs out there…like if you use this credit card they will give you cash back.  Utilize these…that 5% (or whatever it is) can really add up.  Make sure you pay off your bill each month to make the reward worth it though.  A reward program that I really like is Fuel Perks.  My local grocery sells gift cards for many retailers including Home Depot.  During this home improvement project, for each $50 giftcard I purchased, I earned 20 cents off each gallon of gas I bought at their gas station.  I showed you the time I got free gas.

I didn’t do as well this time but still saved about $75 on gas, over the course of this project. So, don’t forget to take advantage of these reward programs.

*I was compensated for including Save1.com in this post.  I do however, think that using coupon codes and special offers available on their site, is a great way to save.  Anytime you can help a child is also very admirable.

Don’t miss out on any of my upcoming posts…Follow along!