Comments on: Do It Yourself or Hire Help? Personal Finance Bloggers Sound Off

By: Debt Free Diva

Debt Free Diva — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 01:00:53 +0000

As long as you can pay cash – then go for it.

By: anp

anp — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 19:00:39 +0000

if paying someone is an option then you probably can afford it

By: Sean

Sean — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 16:24:57 +0000

I’m all for people saving their hard earned cash. When doing upgrades or repair on the general trades please check with your local building codes. If the repair or upgrade isn’t done according to the local codes you’ll will be responsible for doing it the right way when you go to sell the home. Plumbing is one area that can be difficult because so many states require licenses to perform the work. I’m speaking from a biased position however this is a very real issue with real concerns.

By: JR

JR — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 13:26:06 +0000

I just finished re-doing my entire kitchen…electrical, flooring, cabinets, plumbing, sheetrock, gas lines, everything. While I do have a lot of experience in electrical work and sheetrock, it was my first foray into plumbing, tile, gas line work, as well as my first time planning a kitchen. I did 90% of the work myself, with a bit of help from my father, and my father-in-law. I spent about $5500 on the entire project, including almost $3000 for granite countertops. If I had used a contractor to come in and do the work, I likely would have paid more than $40,000 for the entire job. I saved a ridiculous amount of money, and while I probably had 250+ hours into the project over five months, the feeling of accomplishment far outweighed the time I spent (much of which could have been used making beer!).

By: CreditShout

CreditShout — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 18:50:13 +0000

I try to do everything myself, but when it comes to landscaping, I usually give a neighborhood kid twenty bucks to take care of the lawn. I feel good about helping out a teenager, and my lawn looks great without having to spend hours outside in the heat myself.

By: Samantha

Samantha — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 14:44:49 +0000

Time or money. It’s usually one or the other. Something’s it’s better to pay for than to do yourself since you’d have to invest so much time. Others though it is most cost effective to use your few minutes than to hand over hard earned cash.