The contractor tried to overcharge by £50K! Renovating a Victorian Terraced House

This renovation project avoided a £50,000 mistake and I need to explain how we just caught it in time. 

But first, let me show you the results. Because, wow. I can't believe this is the same house, can you?! 

I'm having genuine difficulty remembering what it used to look like before work began. Good job we took these "Before" photos...

As you can see, it was a classic Victorian house in London. Dark to live in, poorly laid out and in desperate need of some love.

Although it looks like a different property now, it nearly went catastrophically wrong before it all started. 

Brace yourself 😬

The mistake you need to dodge during your renovation

Michelle (homeowner + legend to work with) joined as a student of ours while her purchase of the house was still going through. 

She was nervous about renovating it with such tight funds. And because she was about to invest an eye-watering amount of money into this place, she couldn't afford to run into costly mistakes... 

So she joined our renovation courses & community to give her project the best chance of success.

Michelle got to work rapidly with the courses & planning! Within a week or so, all those nerves, fear and uncertainty about renovating left her. She had her exact project plan, costs and layouts clearly mapped.

I taught her all the red flags and mistakes to avoid, where to portion and phase her budget... the layout that would be worth her investment, and how to complete it all affordably, on time and to a high standard. 

But then disaster struck (well, almost)... 

At this exact stage, most people rush their design plans or underestimate build costs. It can draw renovations to a standstill (or close) when work starts. 

But that wasn't Michelle. Our students are prepared for all of this. They know that the plans and decisions you prepare before the build starts, will prevent costs spiralling and dodgy shortcuts. 

Michelle's plans were done and ready to go...

But it was this unexpected curveball that caught her so off guard...

She started gathering quotes for the work and met with a plumber she developed a good rapport with. He verbally quoted her £25K for the whole property after taking a look through the plans. 

That sounds like a lot of money, but honestly it was about right for her property and the other quotes were in the same ballpark.

However... every time she asked him for a quote in writing (we teach our students to insist on this), he dodged her.

What?!?

The day before she completed on the property sale, he was supposed to begin work. She called him five times and insisted on a formal quote in writing before he started. 

Finally, he came back... not with a quote, but with a bombshell…

“Sorry, Michelle, it’s going to be £75K instead.” Yep, £50K higher.

How did he get it so wrong?! He assumed he could lowball the quote verbally to secure the job, crack on with the work, and then hit her with a nasty surprise invoice at the end.

But our students are taught about many red flags before it costs them money. And because Michelle knew exactly what to look out for, she didn’t fall for this. She sacked him before he ever started

The key lesson for your renovation

These sorts of decisions are happening on an hourly and daily basis and this is only one issue renovators are up against. There are a mountain more waiting to catch us out... it only takes one misjudgement to cause projects to spiral. 

I don't say that to make you afraid, I say it because it's the nature of renovations (they're high risk projects when managed poorly or left in the wrong hands) – and costly mistakes are preventable. 

We've been stung too many times ourselves in the past and it's why we support and connect students through our online courses & community. 

We show renovators the way to prevent common costly mistakes and prepare accurately - so you end up with results like Michelle's... a home you're unbelievably proud of, managed well and finished for a great price.

You might spot that enrolments aren't open right now. That's because we're preparing for one of our biggest enrolments of the year - my birthday intake!

If you're keen to join us, add your name to the waitlist for announcements. You don't need to have a huge renovation (in fact a lot of students don't) and you don't need to be living in your house to start the lessons and get instant value. There's so much important prep you need to be getting on with right away to ensure you aren't running into costly mistakes without knowing. 

I hope this curveball has helped you watch out for those contractors who try it on and at the very least, it’s a reminder to get all quotes in writing. Those chancers are out there, be cautious. 

I'm here for you and your renovation as always! 

We'll speak soon, 

Fiona