Help For Newbie

[IPineapple 3]

Hi everyone,

I just purchased a resale HDB flat but am totally clueless what i should do to reno (1st time HDB owner also).

Need to seek advice from you guys if I should engage a ID to help me or better to source for contractor?

I have some reserves in engaging ID as i prefer to do my own design and heard that most ID outsource their works to third party contractors as well and mark up.

I'm confuset here, please give me your kind advice?

Cheers

[gcdanilim 0]

Hello, I just went through a year and 4 months of rebuilding my house, so I can empathise with you. What I learnt are:

1. Know what you want first - prioritise all your needs, categorise them, and list all of them out.

2. Have a budget - obviously, your budget must be realistic according to your needs. E.g. if you want marble flooring, you do not budge for laminated flooring etc.

3. Have a time schedule. I found out that having more time to ponder helps to achieve 1. fully. Looking back, if I didn't wait 6 months for the drawings to be finalised before the building started, my house would have been different from what it is now, and not 99% to my satisfaction.

Depending on 2, you may want to engage someone, or work out the plan yourself. In any case, all 1, 2 and 3 are important, and 1 is something you cannot pass the buck. It is a question of someone working out with you your needs, or you work out your needs yourself. Then depending on 2, you engage someone to work out your needs, or you draw yourself. I had to engage someone yet design the house myself - not nice at all.

Hope this helps, cheers.

[IPineapple 3]

Thank you so much for the kind advice gcdanilim.

This is really helpful.

Hello, I just went through a year and 4 months of rebuilding my house, so I can empathise with you. What I learnt are:

1. Know what you want first - prioritise all your needs, categorise them, and list all of them out.

2. Have a budget - obviously, your budget must be realistic according to your needs. E.g. if you want marble flooring, you do not budge for laminated flooring etc.

3. Have a time schedule. I found out that having more time to ponder helps to achieve 1. fully. Looking back, if I didn't wait 6 months for the drawings to be finalised before the building started, my house would have been different from what it is now, and not 99% to my satisfaction.

Depending on 2, you may want to engage someone, or work out the plan yourself. In any case, all 1, 2 and 3 are important, and 1 is something you cannot pass the buck. It is a question of someone working out with you your needs, or you work out your needs yourself. Then depending on 2, you engage someone to work out your needs, or you draw yourself. I had to engage someone yet design the house myself - not nice at all.

Hope this helps, cheers.

[IPineapple 3]

Sweet.....thank you so much.

if you have lots of time to spare to coordinate and to supervise, design yourself and engage a few contractors to do the work

that's what i did , look at my design http://www.renotalk.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=40916