THREE years ago, Jen Atkin thought her dream of renovating her first home was near-impossible – but by employing a series of savvy tricks she has knocked £15k off the cost.
The 30-year-old bought her four-bed home in Grimsby last year with husband Chris, 33, for £165,000, but the place was a “dump” and needed a total makeover.
However, the couple’s dream renovation project quickly turned into a nightmare when eye-watering quotes from builders started coming in.
The escalating cost of living meant they were struggling to save and would never be able to foot the costs – but the house was practically unliveable.
However, admin worker Jen and Chris, an electrical engineer, refused to give up on their “tumble down tip” of a house and set about scrimping and bartering to get the work they needed done for as little as possible.
They’ve now got their dream home renovated for half the price they originally expected.
When the couple first found their first home, it seemed too good to be true for the price and they were excited at the prospect of a ‘fixer-upper’.
“We had planned to buy a new-build, but when the estate agent showed us the four-bedroom house ‘in need of attention’ for £165,000 with a garden we fell in love – it was twice the size of a new-build but without any of the mod cons,” Jen explained.
But once they began looking into how much the renovations would cost, Jen was hit with anxiety and worry.
“I convinced myself it just needed some minor changes, but, when we started making the list of projects we needed to complete, I went from cheerful to fearful,” she said.
“The kitchen wasn’t usable and needed to be ripped out, the bathroom had to be replaced, walls knocked down, heating installed, walls rearranged, floors replaced and ensuring running water was essential.
“When we started getting quotes to renovate even small parts of the house I was in a state of shock. The numbers were huge.”
Jen began fretting they would never be able to get the money together, having spent all their savings on the deposit and legal fees.
But then the couple decided to start “super scrimping” and they looked into bartering and skill-swapping to get as much as they could for free.
“Super scrimping had helped us save for the house deposit and I knew the same approach would help fund the renovations,” Jen explained.
“We couldn’t afford to pay a mortgage and a bank loan to fund the building works. That’s when I decided to turn to barter banking and building to save money.”
Initially, Jen and Chris sat down and prioritised their building plan and needs.
“I made a list of everything we needed for each room from paint brushes to tiles, flooring to doorknobs. Once that was agreed, Chris and I vowed to stick to it,” Jen said.
“I created a spreadsheet on a google document which Chris and I could access. Whenever we found an item to barter or swap, we’d mark it off the list.
“Chris and I are naturally competitive and when I told him we could barter, or skill swap items and no money would change hands, he was all for it.”
Bartering is a simple system where people exchange goods and services rather than paying for them.
On social media website TikTok, #bartering has a staggering 153.2million video views, while Google searches for “bartering” increased 50% in April 2020 compared to the same period in 2019.
The phrase “food swap” jumped 53% and “swap clothes online” soared 100%, according to data provider SEMrush.
“Once I had joined the barter sites, I put together items including old furniture and clothes I no longer needed to barter with and use as currency,” Jen explained.
For Jen, this also included items the couple were ripping out of our house like their old bath, toilet and kitchen sink.
“I found someone who wanted old fashioned bathroom fittings and kitchen fittings to use for a sculpting project, while they had white and cream house paint I needed,” Jen said.
Jen and Chris kept all the old wood panelling and beams they ripped out of their home by bartering or swapping them with a local wood supplier.
“I bartered a table, some old chairs, a beige sofa and even curtains I no longer wanted for window frames and antique rugs using Facebook barter groups.
“Overall, bartering saved us £10,000. It was worth the effort and meant we could start renovating some rooms without having the cash cost in the bank.”
Jen also signed up to skill swapping sites.
“I discovered sites which allowed you to swap your skills in return for someone else’s skills and get work done for free.”
Electrical engineer Chris swapped his skills with a builder who came in and bricked windows, moved doorways and did other renovation work.
In return, Chris helped the builder do electrical work on his house.
“No money changed hands, but the work got done and instead of cash you use your skills as currency,” Jen explained.
“We needed tiling in the kitchen and bathroom, so I listed my pageant coaching and administration skills on a second skill bank site and was contacted by a local tiler.
“His girlfriend was entering local pageants and needed coaching. I am a former Miss Great Britain, so gave her pageant coaching lessons and helped her style her pageant in turn for the tiling work to be done.
“I also swapped pageant dresses and gym kit I had never worn for tiles and carpet which we needed for the bathroom and one of the bedrooms.”
“And a local painter offered to paint three rooms and provide the paint if I did his accounts and admin for three months.”
In total, skill-swapping saved the couple over £3,000.
We break down all you need to know about mortgages and what categories they fall into.
A fixed rate mortgage provides an interest rate that remains the same for an agreed period such as two, five or even 10 years.
Your monthly repayments would remain the same for the whole deal period.
There are a few different types of variable mortgages and, as the name suggests, the rates can change.
A tracker mortgage sets your rate a certain percentage above or below an external benchmark.
This is usually the Bank of England base rate or a bank may have its figure.
If the base rate rises, so will your mortgage but if it drops then your monthly repayments will be reduced.
A standard variable rate (SVR) is a default rate offered by banks. You usually revert to this at the end of a fixed deal term, unless you get a new one.
SVRs are generally higher than other types of mortgage, so if you’re on one then you’re likely to be paying more than you need to.
Variable rate mortgages often don’t have exit fees while a fixed rate could do.
“Treat your skills per hour as currency – that’s my number one rule,” Jen said.
Jen and Chris also saved around £400 by haggling item prices in shops.
When Jen was forced to buy items for the renovation project, she haggled over the price of every item.
“Most store managers have wiggle room for offering discounts – you just have to ask, be polite and insistent,” Jen said.
Jen also found an old sink, a boiler, and old gardening tools in the loft of their new house and took them to a metal swap centre, saving another £1,500.
“We got rid of the old wood, old metal from underneath the property, used bricks and even chicken wire in the garden by using Facebook Marketplace or taking it to junk yards or builders’ merchants.
“Even if you get £1 for a pound it saves money and that goes into the renovation cost pot.”
The couple have now almost completed their renovations, spending around £15,000 in total instead of the £30,000 they were originally quoted.
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