Moving to a new home or buying a property for sale is stressful enough, but what if you find that some areas need improvement or an outright renovation? If this is your experience, you are only one of the thousands of people who have found their new properties to be less than substantial.
In Britain, new homeowners are complaining about problems in their new houses. These range from poorly fitted doors, incomplete electrical wiring, to missing insulation. Some have even had to renovate their entire kitchens and bathrooms. For many parents, this is an additional burden during a lockdown.
With schools and many offices closed, you might think that more people would have time to clean, fix, or repair their homes. But the opposite is true: many people are working from home, with parents having the additional burden to manage their children’s school lessons at home. Add to that the addition of repairing or fixing a new house, and the result could be a stressful time for a family moving to a new place. Here are some things busy parents can do to make the family work together during a home renovation.
Create a workspace for parents, play and learning spaces for children.
Plan the renovation in a way that doesn’t disturb your personal spaces. Create a play space for the children and a working area for parents, so you will not bother each other when work is being done. If you hire workers, the separation areas also maintain social distancing measures. Creating work, play, and relaxation zones will also help ease stress and anxiety for the family.
Allow children to make design decisions.
If you decide to do the work yourself, allow your children to make design decisions for their rooms or communal areas such as the living room or kitchen. Ask for their opinions for the wall color or the kind of couch they want in the area. Giving them this choice makes them feel part of the team and makes them willing to help in the work. At the same time, you could give them tasks they can do so they can do their part in the renovation.
Plan and pick a project.
If you moved into a new house with several problems, make sure to pick one project at a time. Focusing on one project increases your focus and lessens the stress and anxiety in the home. It also makes it possible to stay in the house in the middle of a repair or a renovation. You could spread the improvement in weeks, or depending on the kind of repair you need, for several months. You could focus on rooms or specific parts of the house. However, if the house requires a serious makeover, you might need to move out for the duration of the repair.
Moving houses is never an easy thing, but it can be especially tricky when you have a family, and you need to do it amid a pandemic. But there are ways you can make it easy for everyone, especially for you.
