Even if you're careful about tracking your income and your expenses so that your checking-account balance always stays at a healthy level, it can be difficult to stick to your budget during a home renovation. You don't want to look at your checking account at the end of the month and see that you don't have enough left to handle your bills, but you don't necessarily have to scrap your renovation plans either. Instead, there are a number of simple strategies that you can use to keep your spending under control and get the job done without draining your checking account. Here are some ideas for proceeding.

Buy Used Supplies

Although you'll likely find yourself shopping at your local home-supply store for many of your renovation supplies, you should also seek out a secondhand store that specializes in building and renovation material. Such stores are commonly frequented by contractors, who both drop off items and buy used items for a fraction of the cost they'd spend to buy new. Whether you're looking for flooring tiles, kitchen cabinets, hardware, or even countertops, you can often find used products in good shape. Buying as many items as possible in this manner will help you control your spending and avoid unnecessarily draining your checking account.

Shop Carefully

For the items that you do need to purchase new, take a careful approach to shopping. If you're buying a set of appliances for a kitchen renovation, for example, don't rush into the process. Monitoring the weekly flyers from your local home-supply store can help you buy the items when they're on sale. Additionally, look for products that have manufacturers' mail-in rebates. You'll spend full price now but get a check in the mail in a few weeks, which you can use to boost up your checking account. Products for many environmentally friendly or high-efficiency projects offer mail-in rebates.

Remove Old Items with Care

Depending on the nature of the renovation project, you may be able to sell some of the old items that you'll be replacing. For example, if you're getting rid of a washer and dryer that work fine in favor of newer models, you could consider having a garage sale and selling them. This will help you avoid the hassle of finding a company to buy them and will also give you some money in your pocket to put toward other renovation expenses.

For more finance tips for keeping your checking account in check, visit with professionals such as Rio Grande Credit Union. 

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