How to create a home construction or renovation budget – with templates.
Getting ready to renovate your home? Keeping your construction costs under control can be tricky to manage. But using a construction budget template is a great way to keep your renovation on track.
What you’ll learn:
- What is a construction budget?
- Why use a construction budget template for your home renovation?
- How to create a construction budget.
- How to budget for a home renovation
- Save your template in the correct format
- Home construction budgeting tips
- Frequently asked questions
Doing up your property can be a great way to add value to your property and make everyday life more convenient. But whether you’re renovating a kitchen, doing up a nursery for a new arrival or adding a downstairs toilet to your floorplan, a construction budget is essential for a seamless makeover.
That’s where a construction budget template comes in. This handy tracker lets you see how much you need to spend before starting and plan out the key costs of the project, to avoid too many unexpected surprises.
Ready to renovate? Check out our handy templates and tips to help kickstart your project.
What is a construction budget?
A construction budget is a financial breakdown of the costs involved in a home renovation or other building construction project.
It usually includes things such as materials, labour, and extra funds for ad-hoc fixes that pop up on the fly. This budget might be useful if you’re thinking of doing your own renovation project.
Why use a construction budget template for your home renovation?
Maybe you’ve got a new baby on the way and you need to baby proof one of your bedrooms to create the perfect nursery. Or perhaps you’re looking to convert your garage or add a new extension to increase the size and value of your home.
Whatever it is, a construction budget template is a good tool to use as a guide to get started. You can even edit it accordingly to match your individual circumstances. A construction budget also:
- Provides cost clarity. Estimates how much the overall project will cost, with a breakdown of where the money is going.
- Acts as a guiding framework for resource allocation. Your budget can help you work out the major costs as well as areas you might be able to make savings.
- Allows you to control costs. Seeing costs written down can give you a clear overview . You can also use it to allocate buffers in case any extra construction is required.
- Improves decision making. You can compare projected vs actual costs for further insight when making final decisions.
Now we’ve looked at the why, let’s delve into what exactly needs to go into a home construction budget template.
How to create a construction budget.
To start your construction budget template, open a new spreadsheet or document and label each cell on the y-axis with the various phases of a construction project. Here are a few of the most common elements to include:
- Structure: Land preparation, foundation, masonry, framing.
- Exterior: Exterior finish, windows and exterior doors.
- Systems: Plumbing, electrical, HVAC, insulation and air-sealing.
- Interior: Drywall and plaster, interior finish, kitchen and bath.
- Additions: Decking, outhouses and landscaping.
‘Other’ tabs are always useful to add at the end, because there are some things that don’t fit neatly into a category. Particularly, if there are surprising costs that come up in an ad-hoc fashion.
Add separate columns for your budgeted and actual costs. If there are other things, like which contractor you’re using, over/under calculations, or whatever may be relevant to your project, you should add them in additional columns too.
Key dates and deadlines are also common in construction budget templates. This helps you work out timings of any dependencies – for example, when the flooring might be laid so the kitchen can be installed.
You can choose to create a weekly or monthly budget, depending on the length of your renovation project. You should review these each week to check the health of your cash flow, and ensure any payments are made on time.
After labelling your budget, save the sheet as a new template. Now you have a master copy you can use for any future projects.
How to budget for a home renovation.
First, open your construction budget template in Excel (or another program of your choice), and enter your estimated costs in the ‘Budget’ column.
Check the total sum as you go, to make sure it isn’t more than your budget. Don’t fret if it is, you can always revise the figures at the end.
Once you’ve sorted the estimations, you can get going with your project. The ‘Actual Cost’ column lets you see the reality of your project spending. This allows you to compare the expected with the actual costs side by side and identify where it might be more or less than you expected.
Alongside your budget, you might also want to use a construction checklist PDF to methodically ensure you’ve carried out all the essential steps.
Save your template in the correct format.
Excel is a fantastic tool for customising your construction budget template. But the final document can be tricky to share, as not everyone has or uses Excel. That’s where the value of PDFs really shine as they’re compatible across multiple devices and make it easy for others to view, comment and annotate.
You can convert Excel to PDF online with Adobe Acrobat online. Save your budget spreadsheet as a PDF then get ready to share.
Home construction budgeting tips.
Doing your home up can add value to the property as it increases the visual appeal, as well as functionality. But it’s easy to get carried away with renovation plans and forget about your original budget.
Here are some key budgeting tips to help you keep your finances under control when renovating:
- Set a budget in advance – this can help you narrow down suppliers and set a clear savings goal for your home renovation plans.
- Use a vision board to outline your goals – vision boards and mood boards are handy for any project, but especially home renovations. They can help you set your goals and direct your decisions.
- Do it yourself where possible – this can help you save on labour costs. Though some renovation tasks will require a professional, so it’s best to factor this in early.
Frequently asked questions.
What are some general requirements in a construction budget?
Some of the general requirements in a construction budget are:
- Labor costs.
- Equipment costs.
- Permit costs.
- Design costs.
- Backup costs for unexpected events.
There can be others too, such as preconstruction planning, waste management, and site preparation. Each project will have its own unique circumstances and associated costs.
How do you calculate a renovation budget?
To calculate a renovation budget, decide on the key costs, and add a little bit on top as a safety net in case unexpected costs arise. Get quotes from different places to get the cheapest prices for labour and materials, plus any other fees.
What is the most expensive thing when renovating a house?
Kitchens and bathrooms can be the most expensive things when renovating a house. This is because there’s added complexity due to the plumbing and electrical work required. If you’re having an extension, this can also come with higher costs due to the major structural changes involved.
