Avoid Early-Stage Renovation Mistakes
Match Me! Your key collection date approaches.
😲 You're feeling increasingly overwhelmed about your home renovation...
^Don’t worry! You're in good hands. We've outlined exactly what you need to do before collecting your keys.
Avoid hiccups when you're ready to Reno! Secure access to the
Safest-Smartest Assurance : Contract Checks, Deposit Protection, Dispute Resolution & more
9-12 Months Before: Understand Your Renovation Needs At this stage, your priority is to prepare for meetings with interior designers.
To do that, you'll need a good understanding of your renovation needs.
This includes:
1. Knowing What Type of Renovator to Engage The 2 most popular types of renovators that homeowners engage in Singapore are interior designers and renovation contractors.
Deciding between the 2 comes down to your renovation needs.
Here's an article to help you decide on whether to hire an interior designer or a renovation contractor .
2. Setting a Realistic Renovation Budget Range A realistic renovation budget is about finding the sweet spot where your renovation needs are satisfied while remaining grounded in current market prices.
To guide you, check out this article on the latest renovation costs .
Why is this soooo important?
...because it helps you start the search for interior designers who can work within your renovation budget.
It also provides interior designers with a starting point, as they understand the limits they need to work with when proposing ideas to you.
Additionally, Interior designers often have min. and max. budgets they can accommodate to based on their personal preferences and experience-level.
^A mismatch can lead to issues such as being ghosted or receiving inflated quotations — these are common tactics that interior designers may use to "reject" homeowners.
3. Think About Your Aesthetics & Lifestyle Preferences This involves visualising how your dream home looks like:
Lifestyle: Who lives in the home and what are their lifestyle needs? How does that translate into renovation features? E.g. investing in a kitchen peninsula if you do a lot of prep work when cooking etc. Aesthetics: Start saving photos of homes on Instagram or Pinterest. You can also create a moodboard to help your interior designer visualise the look and feel you’re going forClear communication is essential! Helping your interior designer visualise your dream home will reduce the risk of them proposing irrelevant ideas.
Even simple reference photos of homes you like or description of activities you do at home can go a long way!
Avoid Early-Stage Renovation Mistakes
Match Me! Avoid hiccups when you're ready to Reno! Secure access to the
Safest-Smartest Assurance : Contract Checks, Deposit Protection, Dispute Resolution & more
Ready to Start Planning?
Avoid wasting time with renovators who can't meet your needs. We'll match you with CaseTrust-accredited Renovators who meet your budget, design, and other requirements.
Nobody Around Us Could Recommend a Good ID
It was almost like they didn’t exist - so we started our search on Google. HomeMatch came across as a no brainer for us to try because of their case trust accredited IDs, clear outline of their services and the fact that they came at no cost to us. The communication with HomeMatch were always swift, clear and helpful. From our online form, they called and clarified our needs then set about to match us with five IDs. We were able to view their profiles, portfolios and video snippets which were handy when it came to comparing meeting them in person whether they were authentic. Four of the five IDs contacted us swiftly and met with us twice - the first time to understand our requirements and floor plan and the second time to propose layout and itemized quotation. Same went for the fifth ID who was a later match because the initial match was not able to meet us. HomeMatch really came through with promptly replacing the initial recommendation such that the replacement ID was able to meet us the very next day. We were able to select an ID from the five based on all our interactions and although the process from contacting HomeMatch to signing with ID took 2 months it would have taken even longer had we tried to source IDs from the wild. HomeMatch services didn’t end with us signing the contract. HomeMatch reviewed our contract and advised us of its pros and shortcomings. They also provided critical tips that will help make our renovation journey a successful one. Although our Reno work have not begun we know that clear communication works best and we can always count on HomeMatch should we need them again.
Sit Back — Your Renovation’s in Safe Hands
No more worries. HomeMatch will recommend you trusted & suitable renovators, check your contract, and protect 100% of your deposits!
Recommend Me!
6-9 Months Before: Find Suitable Interior Designers to Meet With
How to Find Suitable Interior Designers to Meet With? You're not alone!
Finding suitable interior designers is the number 1 pain point homeowners face due to the shady renovation industry in Singapore. Trying to shortlist suitable interior designers from a mess of 5000+ firms in Singapore is a severe pain in the (...you know what).
That's why... your life will be much much easier if you use HomeMatch to find renovators:
You'll find the most suitable renovators based on your specific needs (evidence here ) You'll only be working with reliable CaseTrust-accredited renovators . We have the most stringent screening process (evidence here ) You'll be protected with the most comprehensive guarantee in the industry, the Safest-Smartest Assurance e.g. 100% deposit protection, warranty, itemised quotation, contract review etc. (evidence here ) Avoid Early-Stage Renovation Mistakes
Match Me! Avoid hiccups when you're ready to Reno! Secure access to the
Safest-Smartest Assurance : Contract Checks, Deposit Protection, Dispute Resolution & more
Ready to Start Planning?
Avoid wasting time with renovators who can't meet your needs. We'll match you with CaseTrust-accredited Renovators who meet your budget, design, and other requirements.
Nobody Around Us Could Recommend a Good ID
It was almost like they didn’t exist - so we started our search on Google. HomeMatch came across as a no brainer for us to try because of their case trust accredited IDs, clear outline of their services and the fact that they came at no cost to us. The communication with HomeMatch were always swift, clear and helpful. From our online form, they called and clarified our needs then set about to match us with five IDs. We were able to view their profiles, portfolios and video snippets which were handy when it came to comparing meeting them in person whether they were authentic. Four of the five IDs contacted us swiftly and met with us twice - the first time to understand our requirements and floor plan and the second time to propose layout and itemized quotation. Same went for the fifth ID who was a later match because the initial match was not able to meet us. HomeMatch really came through with promptly replacing the initial recommendation such that the replacement ID was able to meet us the very next day. We were able to select an ID from the five based on all our interactions and although the process from contacting HomeMatch to signing with ID took 2 months it would have taken even longer had we tried to source IDs from the wild. HomeMatch services didn’t end with us signing the contract. HomeMatch reviewed our contract and advised us of its pros and shortcomings. They also provided critical tips that will help make our renovation journey a successful one. Although our Reno work have not begun we know that clear communication works best and we can always count on HomeMatch should we need them again.
Sit Back — Your Renovation’s in Safe Hands
No more worries. HomeMatch will recommend you trusted & suitable renovators, check your contract, and protect 100% of your deposits!
Recommend Me! Why Start Meeting Interior Designers 6-9 Months Before Key Collection? 6-9 months before key collection is the sweet spot as it gives you ample time to prepare and your renovation quotations will be more accurate.
Starting too early (key collection >9 months) is unnecessary as most renovators would not be keen on having discussions with you yet.
Discussions can also be unproductive because: 1) renovation quotations given too early will not be valid due to price fluctuations, 2) you may have a change of mind, leading to changes in the renovation quotation.
How Long Does the Shortlisting Process Take? The shortlisting process typically takes about 1-3 months on average if everything goes smoothly.
Homeowners usually have ~2-3 meetings with an interior designer before engaging them.
If you're curious about what to expect during each meeting with interior designers, check out this article .
The process may extend longer if you cannot find the right fit.
How Many Interior Designers Should I Meet? A good rule-of-thumb is to meet ~5 Renovators .
It helps you make fair comparisons and be extra confident on which renovator to engage.
2-3 Months Before: Decide on which Interior Designer to Engage Deciding on which interior designer to engage 2-3 months before helps you avoid rushing the material and design selection process.
Finding a suitable interior designer goes beyond surface requirements like your budget and aesthetics; it ultimately comes down to:
1. Credibility Treat this as a pre-requisite!
You wouldn't want to engage a shady interior designer and become the next victim of a renovation nightmare .
A shortcut to finding reliable interior designers is to check if they are CaseTrust-accredited .
2. Comparing them Objectively Instead of using your gut instinct, make better decisions by comparing your interior designers based on factors like: 1) quotation, 2) ability to meet your specific needs, 3) vibes and work ethics.
We've written a detailed guide on how to go about choosing the right interior designer here .
1-2 Months Before: Prepare for Your Home Renovation Assuming you've engaged an Interior Designer at this stage (🤭 we hope)... the priority would be to confirm the nitty gritties, ensuring your home renovation can begin immediately after you collect your keys.
This includes:
Finalising on material selections and the design of your home. If you’ve engaged an Interior Designer, they will likely take you for material selection and possibly present 3D renderings of your renovation. Shopping for furniture and appliances. Do keep your interior designer in the loop on purchases you make (especially appliances) so they will take them into consideration e.g. plumbing works and space allocation for a washing machines etc. Preparing for miscellaneous arrangements such as renovation loans, temporary accommodation etc. 👇 Looking to meet Trusted & Suitable Renovators? We will help you get it right the first time!
Ready to Start Planning?
Avoid wasting time with renovators who can't meet your needs. We'll match you with CaseTrust-accredited Renovators who meet your budget, design, and other requirements.
When to Start Planning for Your Home Renovation? You should start planning for your home renovation ~9-12 months before your key collection date. Basically, this is the ideal timeline to ensure a smooth renovation journey — giving you ample time to make informed decisions and meaningful comparisons between interior designers.
When to Start Meeting Interior Designers? We strongly encourage you to start meeting Renovators (Interior Designers or Renovation Contractors) about 6-9 months away from key collection.
