When we bought our 1920 rowhouse, which had been loved by a single owner for the previous 40 years but not improved much during that time, we knew we'd be facing three phases of work over the next decade:
1. immediate safety updates like replacing the electrical and plumbing systems
2. ongoing upgrades and maintenance
3. eventual significant renovation
We factored the cost of phase one into our budget when we put our offer on the house and preparing for phase three will require years of careful financial planning, but phase two is where we're afraid we'll be irresponsible with money because so much of what falls within is subjective. Yes, stage two does include needs (rather than wants) like a new porch roof and a major appliance will probably die before we're ready to redo the kitchen. But is it really necessary to replace every single light fixture in our home as soon as possible just because the '80s ceiling fans with frosted glass cluster shades that were in a…
1. immediate safety updates like replacing the electrical and plumbing systems
2. ongoing upgrades and maintenance
3. eventual significant renovation
We factored the cost of phase one into our budget when we put our offer on the house and preparing for phase three will require years of careful financial planning, but phase two is where we're afraid we'll be irresponsible with money because so much of what falls within is subjective. Yes, stage two does include needs (rather than wants) like a new porch roof and a major appliance will probably die before we're ready to redo the kitchen. But is it really necessary to replace every single light fixture in our home as soon as possible just because the '80s ceiling fans with frosted glass cluster shades that were in a…
- Get link
- Google+
- Other Apps