7 Common DIY Mistakes (6)

by Mary Ann Romans | More from this Blogger

29 Oct 2007 11:58 AM

Ooh, we are getting close to the end of our series of the 7 most common do it yourself (DIY) mistakes that people usually make. The sixth one is one that I continue to remind myself about. Over the years, not falling for this mistake has saved us some money.

This next common DIY mistake is one that you might not usually think about. It is missing out on guarantees. Many times we take on DIY projects to save some money. Even if we have the skills and experience, we can't guarantee our own work for free, so sometimes hiring a professional can make the most sense for this reason.

Let me give you an example. Let's say that you replace your roof yourself. A few years later, a problem develops. If you had a guarantee in place with a professional, that professional would be required to replace that roof for free. Roof services often come with 10 or 20 year warranties.

For the past few months, we have been looking at a new large swing-set/play-system for our backyard. There were several ways we could go with this. We could purchase a set of plans and build it ourself, we could purchase a kit and build it ourself. We could buy one used and then reassemble it on our property, or we could buy a swing-set that includes the installation for free. When we found out that the new installed set came with a lifetime warranty, then we knew that building it ourselves would probably cost us money in the long-run.

One way that you can combine having a guarantee with saving money by doing it yourself is by compromising on the job. Talk to your professional and see what you could do on the job that won't affect the guarantee. Demoing the old roof in the above example could save you a ton, and some professionals will allow you to work beside them to reduce your labor cost.

Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.

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Learn more about Mary Ann Romans

Mary Ann Romans is a freelance writer, wife and mother of three children. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, the kids and a 16-pound cat.

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mcmama (51978) 29 Oct 2007 01:08 PM

Thank you for this excellent series. As a realtor and homeowner (who bought a fixer upper) I really have seen all these mistakes. Expensive upgrades that are misplace, overestimating ability and underestimating time, and figuring costs of guarantees are all in there.

Mary Ann Romans (26886) 30 Oct 2007 09:18 AM

Thank you for the comments. I'm so excited to hear that the articles are well warranted. Number seven, the final article int he series is coming up!

As a realtor, let me ask you, what are some of the common mistakes people make when listing their homes for sale?