The value of residential alterations and additions has risen to the highest level in more than four years, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
The ABS Building Approvals for August found that the value of alterations and additions to residential buildings was strong in August, up seven percent to $784 million, to be the highest level recorded since April 2016.
The stellar result is likely partly due to the HomeBuilder scheme, but also to an increase in the number of people undertaking renovations during the lockdown, according to a NSW renovation expert.
The Happy Renovator author, Werine Erasmus, says many Australians are choosing to use the downtime to start or finish renovation projects on their homes or investment properties.
“The problem with many renovators who attempt to complete projects in their ‘spare time’ is that they often don’t have any time to spare!” Werine says. “However, the lockdown created the ideal conditions for many people to restart or finish their renovation projects.”
Werine believes renovations will continue to grow in popularity in the months ahead as more people work from home or perhaps move to part-time employment.
However, renovating property is something that can be a steep, and expensive, learning curve if people don’t understand all of the necessary ins and outs, she says.
“While I advocate a part-time work and part-time renovation strategy, it’s vital that you don’t attempt a renovation or upgrade without educating yourself about what’s really involved,” Werine says.
“The reason why we see so many half-finished renovation projects come up for sale is that people spend too much and run out of money, or they make costly mistakes that they can’t afford to fix.”
“Renovation projects are nothing like what you see on reality television, but by educating yourself on the process, there is no reason why anyone can’t complete a renovation that achieves their goals and, most importantly, makes them happy.”
For more on home renovation strategies
Almost half of Aussie homeowners renovated last year, survey shows
10 top tips for managing your reno budget
