You have bought a new house and you must use this lockdown to plan your dream home. It is the best time as all family members are together and you can involve everyone as you discuss the plans and get their thoughts too! In your everyday routine it is difficult to take time out for these talks and without a proper plan you may be unhappy with some last minute decisions.
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We can broadly divide this exercise in 3 parts.
- Budget planning.
- Get an estimate.
- Finalizing the design and material selection.
BUDGET PLANNING
In the process of making our dream home, we usually spend more than we thought simply because there was no planning. We will share a few simple tips and practical ideas about how to do this budget planning.
- Look at your plan carefully and list down things you need in the new home in full detail including paintings/rugs/artefacts all of them to the last detail.
- Now, put a tick against items that you will carry forward from your existing home.
- Identify items that you want to buy out from the market as per your choice like décor, kitchen appliances, mattress and such others. Check some websites for realistic prices and dedicate a budget towards these items.
- You know how much money is already spent. We are just doing a reverse calculation here. At this point you may want to add items like Electrical, painting, and plumbing in case you have missed these in step no 1.
- Identify a list of items for which you will need professional services of a designer who can design and execute the balance work for you. These will include Wardrobes, kitchen, furniture work, false ceiling, electrical, painting and all other related work. From here you move to the next stage.
If you find difficulty in doing the above, reach out to us www.abodeandbeyond.in and we will be happy to assist. Please quote reference of this article.
GET AN ESTIMATE
Once you know things you want, share this with a few shortlisted firms whose work you like and share your requirements with them and ask for a budgetary estimate. Some of them may ask you questions, for which you will have answers only if you have worked on stage 1 in detail.
Support your enquiry by adding a few reference picture of design or concepts that you have liked. (Take suggestions from family members at this stage) This will give them an idea of your choices and preferences. Ensure that you send your floor plan as a must along with this list. If you can put all the details together in a file, it will be great.
Once you have an estimate from a few companies, you will know an average market price. Shortlist further as per the estimate that suits you and meet the representatives in person. As this is mostly a one-time activity for most people, it is good to know who you are going to work with, and you are sure of their know-how towards the subject. This will also help in relationship building, as you may be interacting with each other for a minimum of 30 -45 days and you definitely want to have a good experience.
FINALIZE THE DESIGN AND MATERIAL
After step 2, you have now finalized who you are going to be working with. Trust your decision and gut completely and leave the rest to the designer. Ensure to let them know about any prerequisites like vastu compliance, any special need that may require deviating from the standards, or any such thing that you may feel relevant in your case.
Remember, communication is the key. If you like something, appreciate; in case you do not – let them know, so that they can modify the design/selection to meet your requirements. Understand that it is a process where both parties need to be equally invested.
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