Real Estate: Renovating Your Home in 2022 - Three Things to Know

By Carrie Colby

Homeowners planning to renovate in 2022 should prepare for challenges including supply chain delays, inflation, and labor shortages.

A home renovation may be easier than buying a turnkey property that draws buyer competition, but the remodeling industry is facing its own obstacles in 2022. 

Taking on a home renovation can be a great option to save money on the purchase price of a property and create a customized space that can be a real source of pride. For most people, though, a home renovation is a major undertaking, even under the easiest of circumstances.

Meeting with contractors, understanding various proposals, choosing materials and budgeting are time-consuming and often fall outside the wheelhouse of the average homeowner’s skill set. Once these plans and decisions are made, renovations can be costly and disruptive, regardless of whether everything goes smoothly.

Even minor makeovers are proving more challenging than ever before.

Planning for a home renovation in 2022 poses additional challenges including supply chain delays, inflation, and a shortage of tradespeople. Here are the things to know to help make your home remodel experience as positive and productive as possible:

Questions to ask yourself before you renovate:

Thoughtfulness

Includes developing a set of plans for the renovation. This can include filing for permits with the town. In today’s climate, planning ahead is very important. Previously, a contractor could order materials as the project progressed, on an as-needed basis. Now, because of supply chain delays and escalating costs of materials, anyone renovating should wait until all the materials are on site before commencing the project. You should expect delivery delays, and it’s better to deal with these before demolition begins. Have the contractor check off every item before the project starts. You don’t want your kitchen to be all set, but with a gaping space between cabinets and counters while you wait for your oven to arrive.

Patience

With supply chain delays and labor shortages, more time is required than ever before. Delivery of materials and approval processes are currently slower than they used to be. And the contractor you may prefer is probably very busy, so you have to get in line. Furthermore, the supply chain issues we are all reading about are not an illusion. Everything from framing to sheetrock to appliances is experiencing delays.

Cash

Cash is also something you’ll need more of than you thought, especially due to delays and inflation. Prices have escalated in all facets. The best contractors are extremely busy, and their prices reflect the fact that they can pick and choose the projects they are most interested in. The cost of raw materials and the prices of appliances have gone up, too.

Price Gap between renovated and unrenovated homes widening

Renovated properties sell for more than those in need of a gut job. Buyers will pay more for renovated or new homes and expect a discount if they need to put thousands of dollars into updating the property. But with today’s supply chain delays, a shortage of skilled labor and the escalating costs of materials, that gap has widened.

That said, if you have the vision, patience, and budget, it’s a great time to take on a renovation, since a renovation can elevate the value of a home for today’s buyers.

This is the perfect time to tackle a renovation. The properties that need renovations are less competitive because most buyers are looking for places that are move-in ready. <

Carrie Colby is a Broker with Allied Real Estate, 909 Roosevelt Trail in Windham. She can be reached at 207-232-5497.