Straight from 2018, which was a lifetime ago, but I guess it takes a while to come up with this stuff. These are some statistics that Houzz just posted.
Why Homeowners Renovate and What They Care About Most


So if you have wanted to renovate your own home all along AND you want to personalize or customize it, then DO NOT waste your money and try to go it alone. You may be one of the fortunate ones that gets everything perfect and stays within budget, but if there is even a chance you won’t, why risk it?
Your home is likely the biggest purchase of your lifetime, don’t just wing it. This also from Houzz:
“Once homeowners made the decision to renovate, their top priorities for the outcome of the renovation were clear. Improving design (88 percent) and functionality (81 percent) drove most of the process. Other priorities were financial considerations, such as increasing resale value (67 percent), minimizing costs (63 percent) and improving energy efficiency (62 percent).”
A designer can look at your home with clear eyes and no bias. They have not lived there for years and they have no emotional attachment so they can often see what you can’t or what you have overlooked for years. Plus, if you set a budget they are less likely to move that number because they just “had to have that $5000 range.”
You wouldn’t try to do electrical or plumbing all by yourself (or maybe you would if your name is Shawn Bradley), so why would you try to redesign your home by yourself. Call an expert, it may not be as expensive as you think and he/she may bring ideas that you had never even thought of.
Case in point: When I told a client the laundry room was way too big for how they used it and we could easily put an extra bathroom in, they were surprised, but more importantly, they were grateful to have another option that they would have never thought to try.
So here it is: call your friendly neighborhood designer, give local business a boost, and save yourself money and stress.