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But I Can Do it Cheaper Myself

We were recently exhibiting at the Home and Lifestyle Expo in Pukekohe and we had a comment from one home show goer that we hear all too often in the renovations business…

“But I can do it cheaper myself!”

This comment has prompted some serious office discussions and it got us all thinking – what is our time worth? What is the opportunity cost of doing the job ourselves and what price do we put on our time? We kiwi’s come from a long line of proud DIYers and its often hard for us to take a step back and let someone else do it for us. 
 
While the relative dollar figure can be cheaper when you DIY what we all fail to account for is the time spent. You’re the project manager and the rookie builder, you deal with the subbies and all the issues that arise with renos and that’s after your fulltime paid job! And don’t forget that mistakes can be costly, especially in kitchens and bathrooms, so plan, plan and plan more and add a bit extra to your budget just in case.
 
We had one such client, not so long ago, who was going to do it themselves (and this happens more often, than not), one year on and the room has been stripped but the project is far from being completed. And everybody understands, life gets in the way, you have work, you have a family. 
 
So, the question we put to you is this, if you put a value on the hours you worked to get the job done, would you be saving? 
 
If only there was someone that could take care of the whole project start to finish! 
 
That’s the unique difference that Smith & Sons has, from design through to planning and construction, we are the renovation specialists. 
 
Author

Melissa van den Brink
Smith & Sons Franklin

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