Botched renovations negatively affect property values

Our neighbour’s bad idea can hurt you

10:34 14 May 2013

There’s never a shortage of do-it-yourself horror stories. Many have made the well-meant but ill-advised decision to save money by completing home renovations themselves.

But sometimes a bad renovation affects more than just the home in question.

Many times homeowners are motivated to take the do-it-yourself route thinking that the potential savings will be more than worth the effort, despite their lack of expertise to complete the task.

This usually results in work that is either incomplete or just shoddy workmanship. But it is not common that work is so awful that it affects not only the homeowner but also other homes in the neighbourhood.

It is important that homeowners seek the opinion of a qualified, professional contractor before deciding that the work can be completed and completed properly before attempting the job on their own.