Avoid Bursting Your Renovation Budget (4 Steps You Must Follow!)

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Key Takeaways

To avoid bursting your renovation budget, start with a realistic budget based on your property type and average renovation costs.
Prioritising renovation needs over wants helps homeowners avoid unnecessary expenses and focus on essentials first.
Setting renovation plans around daily lifestyle and adding a 10–20% buffer helps homeowners manage unexpected costs.

Without a solid plan to manage your cost of renovation, expenses can quickly snowball.

The Good News???

With a few smart tips, you can easily avoid bursting your home renovation budget.

Tables of Content

4 Steps to Stay Within Your Renovation Budget

1. Settle on a Realistic Budget

Before meeting renovators, decide on a feasible and realistic budget based on your property type.

Clueless? Check out the latest average renovation costs.

2. Prioritise Your Renovation “Needs” vs. “Wants”

Listing your renovation “needs” vs. “wants” can help you identify unnecessary expenses and prioritise your renovation budget accordingly.

Renovation Cost Savings in Singapore

Example of Potential Renovation Cost Savings When You Prioritise Your “Needs” Over “Wants”

Needs	Wants	Renovation Costs Saved
Built-in Wardrobes for Storage	Walk-in Wardrobes System	Est. $2,000 - $3,000
Essential Lighting (LED lights, Ceiling lights)	Ambient Lighting Systems (Cove lights, Spot lights, Down lights)	Est. $1,000 - $3,000
Basic Painting	Feature Walls or Textured Paint (Limewash, Microcement wall finishing)	Est. $2,000 - $5,000

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‍Pro-Tip: Allocate renovation budget for your “wants” only after fulfilling your “needs”.

3. Tailor Your Renovation to Fit Your Lifestyle

Your renovation needs should reflect your day-to-day lifestyle.

Eg. If you rarely cook, having a high-end kitchen countertop may not be a priority. On the other hand, if you have children, investing in more storage cabinets to reduce clutter makes sense.

Important: Always ask yourself if a current trend will stand the test of time and will it still be relevant as your lifestyle evolves e.g. having children

4. Buffer for Unexpected Renovation Costs

According to the Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE), renovation budget overshoots are one of the top 3 complaints in Singapore.

We strongly advise you to set aside ~10-20% in the event of renovation hiccups. Some renovation costs are difficult to predict beforehand e.g. hollow tiles popping-out during hacking etc.

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It was almost like they didn’t exist - so we started our search on Google. HomeMatch came across as a no brainer for us to try because of their case trust accredited IDs, clear outline of their services and the fact that they came at no cost to us. The communication with HomeMatch were always swift, clear and helpful. From our online form, they called and clarified our needs then set about to match us with five IDs. We were able to view their profiles, portfolios and video snippets which were handy when it came to comparing meeting them in person whether they were authentic. Four of the five IDs contacted us swiftly and met with us twice - the first time to understand our requirements and floor plan and the second time to propose layout and itemized quotation. Same went for the fifth ID who was a later match because the initial match was not able to meet us. HomeMatch really came through with promptly replacing the initial recommendation such that the replacement ID was able to meet us the very next day. We were able to select an ID from the five based on all our interactions and although the process from contacting HomeMatch to signing with ID took 2 months it would have taken even longer had we tried to source IDs from the wild. HomeMatch services didn’t end with us signing the contract. HomeMatch reviewed our contract and advised us of its pros and shortcomings. They also provided critical tips that will help make our renovation journey a successful one. Although our Reno work have not begun we know that clear communication works best and we can always count on HomeMatch should we need them again.

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Bonus! 3 Tips to Minimise Your Move-in Costs

Take Advantage of Sales and Discounts

Timing your purchase of big ticket items during seasonal sales events (11.11, 12.12, or group-buy deals) can significantly reduce your cost of renovation.

Here’s another trick…

Go sign up for multiple new cashback/miles credit cards! You’ll very likely hit all the minimum spending requirements for newcomer rewards.

Pace Your Purchases

Instead of purchasing everything upfront, consider gradually adding furniture and appliances along the way.

This will not only lower your initial costs but also prevent impulse purchases.

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Sit Back — Your Renovation’s in Safe Hands

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Compare 5 Renovation Quotations

We recommend meeting at least 5 CaseTrust-Accredited renovators.

Comparing enough quotes will give you a clear sense of the fair market renovation costs.

However, the most important step to take is to find renovators who are willing to work within your renovation budget.

Some renovators have minimum budget requirements while others prefer to work with a smaller budget.

This is usually not stated upfront as renovators may not want to lose the opportunity to meet or persuade you.

So… how do you meet renovators who can work within your budget?

👇 That’s where we can help!

We’re the only platform that screens renovators on an individual level. This means that we know their “unspoken” budget requirements and strengths. And… this also means that we’re super confident in helping you find suitable renovators who can work within your budget.

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We’ll understand your renovation needs and match you with CaseTrust-Accredited renovators who can work within your budget.

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