How To Budget for an Interior Design Project
The first step when planning for an interior design project is both the most challenging and the most important: preparing a budget. Whether it’s building from the ground up, tackling a home renovation, or furnishing an entire room or rooms, having a budget will guide the project’s style, quality, and design and give clarity into what is possible. Having a budget of $200,000 for a kitchen versus $25,000 for a kitchen will yield a very different process, team, and result.
Homeowners often have a beautiful vision in their heads, but aren’t quite sure how to translate it into a budget. As an interior designer, a large part of my role is helping clients to understand what things cost (especially when it comes to renovating and building as those numbers aren’t readily available like a coffee table price or rug price might be) and then working within their budget to design a functional space they love.
If I’ve learned one thing throughout my 23+ years as an interior designer, it’s that there is no one-size-fits-all budget for designing a room because of the various elements that contribute to a final design.
A general rule of thumb for full service design projects is to budget about $120-175 per square foot for your furniture investment, not including design fees. This often breaks out to roughly 20-30% of the total value of the house but depending on your needs, goals, and style it could vary greatly.
A piece of advice I always give to clients to help them understand the cost of things is to look around their room and write down what each piece of furniture would cost if they bought it new today.
I’m talking:
Window treatments (drapes, shades, valances, hardware, etc.)
Rugs and rug pads
Sofa(s)
Chairs (lounge and accent)
Ottomans
Pillows
Throw blankets
Coffee table
Coffee table accessories
Console Table
Mirror
Artwork
Side tables
Side table accessories
Lamps (floor and table)
Ceiling lighting
Wall sconces
Paint
Wallpaper
Decorative moldings
Plus, don’t forget to add:
Sales tax on all those items
Delivery and shipping for all those items
Installation for any of the above items (electrician, carpenter, painter, etc.)
You can see that once you consider the cost of furnishing an entire room all at once, the budget ranges become more clear. From my experience, it’s not often that a client has the opportunity to furnish or design an entire room from scratch, so it makes perfect sense that coming up with a budget could be difficult. Yet another reason to work with an experienced designer who will help make the most of your investment and guide you to make the right decisions at every turn.
Next, it’s important to understand your space – how much room you have to work with, what is your vision for the project, what are your must-haves. A few questions to ask yourself while budgeting:
Does the project require any skilled trades, like carpentry, paint, wallpaper, electricians, plumbers, etc.?
What is the total square footage of the space?
Is there anything you’d like to keep, or is everything being replaced?
Is this a forever home, or are you planning on moving in a few years?
What type of materials are appropriate for your lifestyle? Family friendly with high durability, organic and natural fibers, or luxe fibers that will be cared for?
Do you have price limits for specific pieces, or just an overall budget? For example, some clients simply may not be able to justify spending a lot on a lamp, however they may be able to justify spending a lot on a sofa.
How much assistance do you need? Do you want to manage contractors, or would you prefer that someone else does?
Are you quick to make decisions, or do you need a lot of time to think things through?
When designing and there’s construction involved it’s also important to account for going a little over budget. I know, isn’t the point of a budget to not exceed it? But, as you’re putting the finishing touches on your project it’s all too common that last-minute additions, discoveries, or changes get added on. For construction projects, I recommend setting aside a contingency fund of about 20% of your construction budget.
Whether your cap is $50,000 or $500,000, nailing down a budget when you start an interior design project will set you up for success throughout the whole process and align expectations if you are bringing on professional help. If you’re renovating, building, or furnishing your home, I’ll help you to develop a budget that is in alignment with your goals and allows you to move forward confidently with your project. Learn more about working together by filling out a Project Inquiry Form.