Home renos on your summer to-do list? Keep these 5 helpful tips in mind

Renovating your home or condo can be a challenge within itself. Ultimately, it’s all in the name of creating a space that’s more beautiful, functional, and reflective of your own personal style.

With some simple planning, you can avoid some of the most common home reno pitfalls and make the process as smooth as possible. Though renovations can be stressful, the final product is what makes it all worthwhile.

In the meantime, before you revamp your home — or while your renovations are underway — here are some helpful tips to keep in mind.

Create a budget

Before embarking on your home makeover, a wise place to start is to figure out your budget. Keeping in mind the changes you’d like to make and the amount of money you’re willing to spend, look into getting service quotes and the kinds of materials you’d like to use.

When it comes to renovations, costs are known to add up quickly and unexpected ones are likely to arise, too. Plan for this by having a reserve or line of credit you can tap into.

Check your coverage

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Ensuring that your home is adequately insured is always important, but it’s especially crucial when your space is undergoing renovations. There are many variables to consider, including the new people who may be in your home and any potential damage that could be incurred.

“We’ve been doing improvements to our home over the last year, including our rooftop patio and kitchen,” says blogger and lawyer, Krystle Ng-A-Mann. “We were surprised to learn just how big a factor insurance is, and quickly thought we better contact our provider to ensure we were doing everything on the up and up.”

Sonnet, Canada’s first fully online home and auto insurance company, provides faster, easier, more transparent insurance coverage for busy, digital-first Canadians. Their easy-to-use digital platform and 24/7 support team can help you find out if you need any additional coverage, what permits are required for your renovation to be up to code and to understand what is and isn’t covered. To make the switch or see how your current coverage stacks up, you can get an online quote and policy in under five minutes.

“It was such a seamless process, and it was pretty eye-opening to see what Sonnet Insurance’s rates are like,” adds Ng-A-Mann. 

Do an audit

Before doing any upgrades, it’s advisable to do a personal audit of all your personal belongings and their value. This way, if any damage is incurred as a result of your renovation, you’ll have an inventory at the ready which will ease the process of submitting a claim.

Similarly, it’s a good idea to reassess the value of your space post-renovation. It’s likely that the changes you’ve made will increase the value of your home which is something you’ll want to be reflected in your insurance coverage as well. Sonnet’s self-serve platform — along with their team of insurance pros — is there to help you make sure your policy is up-to-date with all your latest upgrades.

Consider what you’ll need on hand

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Another important thing to consider, depending on how extensive your renovation will be, is what items you’ll need quick access to during the ongoing reno.

Toiletries, clothes, and work-from-home gear all come to mind as high-priority items you may want to pull from a renovation zone that may soon become off-limits.

Do some safety upgrades

While you’re in the process of upgrading your home, why not go the extra step to upgrade its safety features? In addition to leading to a decrease in insurance premiums, electrical upgrades can help reduce the risk of electrical fires, and in turn, diminish the risk of any fire-related claims.

If you’re renovating your basement, it might be handy to know that 30% of sewer backup claims are the result of sump pump failure, according to Sonnet Insurance. By checking in on it regularly or having it replaced during your reno, you can help rule out a huge potential mishap.

To learn more about how easy it is to get your home and car insured — or to get a quote and buy online in under five minutes — you can visit sonnet.ca.