Remodeling vs. Renovating vs. Rehabbing

[updated December 20th, 2023]

Home projects are very exciting endeavours that a lot of homeowners and potential ones look forward to. These projects can upgrade the overall look of their place when done correctly. However, knowing the correct method for the work you want to do is also important so you can prepare for the costs and overall process.

Different terms in building and construction may sound similar to each other and would often cause confusion. I'm sure you have heard of the terms remodelling, renovating, and rehabbing. Although essentially, these terms mean building something, the products and processes are different. To be able to understand how these terms are different from one another, let us talk a little bit about their definition.

The term "Remodel" basically means all about doing a make-over on a building by removing some details that were there before. Remodelling is all about adding new features utterly different from the previous ones, making it look like a totally different structure or form.

The term "Renovate" means to improve something. Renovating a building or a property would suggest doing some repairs, alterations, and some additions as well in order to make the building or property look better and newer. Most of the time, renovating a building or property isn't necessarily about being sensitive to the original features.

The term "Rehab" is also basically about improving a property or building's appearance. However, unlike renovating, rehabbing something should also mean preserving the character-defining features of a particular building while working on it to improve it to become even more helpful and back to the original layout.

Now that we have defined these terms, we will move on to how you will know which route to take. It should depend on the needs of the property or the building, but in case you want to make better and specific choices, here is a guide or the things to remember:

- The remodelling approach is mainly for those clients who would like to follow their own preferences more than the style of the property. However, remodelling costs a lot of money and time. Being patient when remodelling is essential because it will be customised or tailored to their liking.

- When making the renovating approach, finding someone who could help you envision how each room would look and the possibilities and changes that could be made is essential. This way, doing your home or property would be easier to manage.

- Rehabbing is more common for developers than homeowners because it's about making a massive transformation. Some homeowners even transformed other properties into a home. Rehabbing is about bringing it back to its original purpose and more.

- It's also important to be reminded that if the home's condition is worse, it should mean more work will be done.

- Some locations do not just allow changes to be made, so take note of that.

- Patience is needed when making these approaches, so ensure that the construction timeframe is expressed.