Homes
Lessons From a First-Time Home Buyer: DIY Until You Can’t
When it comes to tackling household projects, I think it’s safe to assume that most homeowners see two potential paths: hiring someone to do it for them or doing it themselves. Yet, I’m here to argue that there’s a third, hybrid option. In fact, it’s the approach my wife and I just took. I like to call it “DIY Until You Can’t.”
Our DIY Until You Can’t Story
As I’ve mentioned before, at the back of our yard was some random foliage (for lack of a better and more specific term). While these assorted flora were nice for blocking some of the view into our backyard, the problem was that they would grow vines that latched themselves onto our communication line — luckily stopping short of the actual power lines. Also, my wife just hated the eyesore.
Before embarking on a DIY project, we actually did have a landscaping company come out for an estimate. However, it became clear they weren’t really interested, so we quickly gave up. Instead, little by little and weekend by weekend, we (meaning my wife) started dismantling the mess with the pole saw we bought.
Here’s the thing, though: in Springfield, it’s illegal to throw away yard waste in the trash. So, at first, we’d break down some of what she cut and transport it (via our hatchback vehicle) to the local yard waste recycling center. But, at a certain point, what she was removing was getting larger and larger. In turn, rather than trying to continue breaking it down, she let it accumulate in a large pile, seen above.
Initially, we planned on ordering a dumpster to be delivered that we could then try to fill quickly and have picked up. Before ordering, though, she decided to call up a company that would haul it away for us. That’s when things took a slightly unexpected turn: rather than just showing up for a quote and setting up a removal date, they let us know that they could go forward with the job right then and there. Granted, their bid was a bit higher than the dumpster plan, but we decided to rid ourselves of the eyesore ASAP.
Based on my experience with this, I think we absolutely made the right call. For one, the guy hauling it was at our house for three hours — and needed to rely on some tools we didn’t have. In other words, I suspect that we’d have bitten off more than we could chew had we tried to move it into a dumpster ourselves. On top of that, as I said, the instant gratification of having it gone was quite nice.
Since we never got a real quote from the landscapers we invited out, I can’t say for sure how much we saved with this approach rather than just hiring them to do both parts, but I have to imagine we did pretty well. The bottom line is that we ended up spending an amount we were comfortable with while also doing an amount of work we were comfortable with.
The Dangers of DIY
Of course, just because this hybrid do-it-yourself approach worked for us in this instance doesn’t mean that it’s a fit for every occasion. After all, tackling a project without the knowledge or skill to do so can easily cause more harm than good. Because of this, I’m not suggesting that you start off each household task with a DIY mentality. In fact, that’s where the “until you can’t” factors in — sometimes the “can’t” comes before you even start!
To be clear, it’s perfectly okay to hire help. But, if you want to save money and think that there are parts of a job you could complete on your own, then I think it’s worth considering. The trick is just knowing when it’s time to hand things over.
Another Hybrid DIY Example
By the way, as I realized, this isn’t even really the first time we’ve taken this “DIY Until You Can’t” mantra to heart. When we moved into our house, we brought most of our stuff over in our car and then rented a van for a weekend. Then, when it came time for the big stuff we couldn’t handle on our own, we had pros come and do it. By having everything ready for them and limiting the amount of stuff we needed them to take, we saved mightily compared to a full-service job. It’s all a trade-off!
Professional Last?
You may be wondering if this hybrid approach works in reverse as well. For example, could you hire someone to start a job but then hand it off to you to finish?
Well, in theory, I see no reason why this would be out of the question — provided, of course, that you know what you’re doing. Nevertheless, I’m inclined to prefer to have the professional be the one to see the job through.
Could you save money by having someone deliver a major appliance but installing it yourself? Potentially. But, given the number of things that could go wrong, this is where I think it’s best to step aside and let the pros do it.
Then again, it’s up to you and your level of comfort to decide what makes the most sense for each situation.
With so many projects on our list, as homeowners, it makes sense to try to save money and make progress by doing as much as we can ourselves. However, it’s also important to know our limitations and call for help when the time comes. Personally, I think this hybrid DIY approach is a powerful tool that’s already yielded some great results for us. So, as you look to your next home improvement project, consider what (if anything) you can tackle on your own before handing it over to the professionals.
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