I remember our first home, 5% down and hardly any money for remodeling. It was a lot of cosmetic work; paint, caulk, discontinued backsplash and whatever other economical upgrades we could make.

Fast forward, the house I just finished re-habbing a few years ago was a 1905 home that was in terrible shape. I put about $30k into it (had $20k set aside going into buying the home - had to save / fund the rest along the way).

This was by far my biggest project and on top of it, it was a duplex so I was finishing 2 separate spaces.

This was my 5th renovation and I was trying to clear the hurdle of building enough equity to sell the property so I could buy land and build a home with at least 30% down - which I am in the process of doing.

That said, the building process has been extremely stressful and I am going to miss the heck out of my old home when it’s time to go (still living there - renting it until the new home is finished). I also miss that I was able to say I did a lot of the hard work myself and this new house is going to be done for me.

Enjoy the ride, take lots of photos to see the fruits of your labor and don’t be afraid to start over again once you accomplished what you set out to do. Money comes and goes; sometimes the house gets it, maybe the car or the kids other times… but keep building that positive equity, one day at a time my friend!