Over the past 18 months, Canadians have spent more time than ever at home enjoying their outdoor living space. For us, a backyard renovation was always in the plans, but the global pandemic made this project more of a priority, given that we were spending most of our weekends outdoors.
Any home renovation can mean a large budget and a lot of work — but we wanted to find a way to manage both of these costs and the amount of time we could invest in our backyard.
Our home was in reasonably good condition when we purchased the property in 2019. However, now two years in, we had nearly enough of staring at a multi-colour deck and fence and a railing that was blocking our view. There were also a few pain points on the deck that didn’t work particularly well for a family that had one toddler and a baby on the way.
With safety and price in mind, we started to make a timeline to tackle our first backyard renovation.
Step 1: Determining a Plan and Budget
To start, we knew we should sit down and map out how much each of the expenses we planned to take on might cost. The average cost of a backyard renovation can cost upwards of $20,000 — and with a small budget of $7,000, we weren’t exactly sure what we could afford to do in one swing.
Looking at the before picture of our backyard, I’m sure you can imagine all of the changes we hoped to make. From repainting the fence to redoing the deck, there was a long list of tasks to manage. But, we were willing to work with what we had — within reason.
Here are the changes we wanted to make:
- Remove the deck railing
- Add new railing that could block wind and avoid restricting our view
- Fix the stairs and level unsafe steps
- Create a shaded area that would work for a lower deck in the future
- Buy furniture and build a play area for our daughter
Realistically, we just wanted to create a safe and comfortable space that had everything we need to keep kids busy during the day but transform into a lounge-like area in the evenings.
How We Saved up for the Cost
As soon as we became homeowners, we took inventory of all of the house’s changes we had planned to make. Then, each month, we would put as much excess income as we could into our renovation fund to save for these changes.
We save all of our short-term financial goals, such as home renovations, in a high-interest savings fund to maximize our earning potential without the risk and keep the funds easily accessible.
Initially, we were working on more minor home improvements, but at the start of 2020, when we realized that things would be shifting towards staying at home, the backyard became a need.
We decided that we would save as much as we can from March 2020 to March 2021 and see what we could do with those savings. By the end of March 2021, we had saved up $7,000 for our backyard, and we were ready to get to work.
Step 2: Demolition and Preparation
After speaking with our friends at Fitz Painting in Calgary, they found a reasonable price to have our deck and fence painted before we made any significant changes. That was an easy decision.
With their guidance and to help cut costs, we opted to do a lot of the prep work ourselves, including pressure washing and removing the deck railing. This way, all that would be left was sanding the deck before painting and taping to paint the fence.
Thankfully, my dad helped remove the railing, which only took a few hours of hard labour — or sweat equity — and minimal clean-up. We borrowed a pressure washer to get the deck ready, and within two days, the backyard was ready for painting, and we could begin to look for a new railing.
Step 3: Hiring the Right Contractors
Hiring a painting company was easy because our close friends owned a business, and we knew we could get a great price and reliable service. As for the railing, we had to do a lot more research.
After plenty of online searching, we figured it might be best to seek a connection through our own network. So we asked some close friends who had experience with renovations, and they lead us in the direction of Home Rail Limited. They were a local company that had options to buy and complete install by yourself or buy your materials and hire a contractor through their services.
All we had to do was measure our back deck to determine an estimated cost for the railing. We asked for two quotes. One was a plain black aluminum railing, very simple, and the other was a black aluminum railing with glass panels. Ultimately, we wanted the glass panels to protect us from the wind in the evenings, but we wanted to see both prices to determine the most realistic option.
After noticing that the cost to hire a contractor was only around $800 more than do-it-yourself (DIY) installations, we knew it would be worth the price and save us a ton of time. We also decided to splurge for the glass panels and find a way to cut costs in furniture by purchasing second-hand or sale items.
Within two weeks, we had a fresh coat of paint, a brand new railing, and furniture on the way. All that was left was making things pretty and building my three-year-old’s brand new playset — which took longer than all of the renovations combined. We can laugh about that now.
The Before:
The After:
What Was Our Bottom Line?
In total, on renovation materials, labour and furniture and accessories to complete our backyard, we spent $6,700, coming in $300 under budget thanks to some great furniture sales and Facebook marketplace finds.
Here is the cost breakdown:
| Item | Total cost |
| Fence Paint | $800 |
| Deck Paint and Sand | $850 |
| Deck Railing and Install | $3,200 |
| Patio Furniture Set | $400 |
| Lower Pergola with Shade | $450 |
| Outdoor Dining Set | $300 |
| Outdoor Play Set | $700 |
| Bottom Line: | $6,700 |
Home renovations can cost as much or as little as you’re willing to spend, and by doing more of the manual labour yourself, you can cut easily cut costs. Our backyard renovation worked out exactly as we had hoped by speaking to professionals, asking for advice, and being open to working with a realistic budget.
