To DIY or not

[bjl584]

When do you DIY a project versus hiring out?

Time versus money?
Skill set?
Convenience?
Not trusting someone else to do the work?
Some other factor?


I personally handle most jobs around our properties.
I hire out the larger projects and things that I don't have time to deal with.
We have a pretty good network of contractors, so no trust issues with pricing or quality.

[disneysteve]

A combination of the options you listed. If I feel comfortable doing the work, have the necessary tools, and am willing to put in the time, I do it myself. If I don't have the skills or equipment or it will suck up too much time, I'll hire it out. Also, it depends if the task is time-sensitive. If it needs to be fixed ASAP I'm probably calling someone. If it's the sort of thing I can do at my leisure, I may do it myself. Except for minor stuff like installing a new light switch or outlet, I generally won't touch any sort of major electrical work. Same for plumbing. I'll replace the toilet flusher but I'm not cutting pipes or replacing fixtures. And I won't go near any gas issues. I let a pro handle that.

I hire someone to mow the lawn but I do all of the other yardwork, trimming the bushes, pruning the trees, handling the weeds, etc.

[Fishindude77]

My buddies and I have a running joke ......... You can hire that done for $100 or I can do it myself for $200

Anymore, I just self perform projects that I can complete rather quickly. I don't want to get tied down to a multi day, multi week project.
Too much other fun stuff to do.

[disneysteve]

My buddies and I have a running joke ......... You can hire that done for $100 or I can do it myself for $200

There's a similar crafting joke. Buy it for $19.95 or make it yourself for $75.00.

[ua_guy]

DIY Vegetable/produce gardening comes to mind with regard to the jokes above.

I feel like we just had another version of this thread.

DIY when I can and want to, and the savings are enticing. Hire/outsource for things beyond my skill/ability or desire, when it makes financial sense.

A recent example is we had a power surge which damaged a hot tub, car charger, possibly the car (still finding out) and we thought it may have damaged the main electrical panel. I'm leaving the diagnosis and repair to a professional electrician. I'll replace a 120v electrical outlet or install a lighting fixture. You won't find me diagnosing live 240v equipment.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

My buddies and I have a running joke ......... You can hire that done for $100 or I can do it myself for $200

Anymore, I just self perform projects that I can complete rather quickly. I don't want to get tied down to a multi day, multi week project.
Too much other fun stuff to do.

i'm going to repeat that for my DH every time he does it himself. And then buys a tool or something to do it.

[msomnipotent]

I will watch a few videos of the repair before I decide if we should bother trying it. We found out the hard way that some videos are deceptively simple. We recently repaired our dishwasher and we would have hired someone if we could go back in time. It took several days and a few trips to the hardware store, but that was mainly because my husband didn't listen to me.

But I will always do painting myself, unless it's the two story foyer. My height limit is a six foot ladder. It might take us 3 days to paint one room, but it will be immaculate. Every painter we have hired got paint splatters everywhere and didn't do the prep work they promised. One even painted over a large, very noticeable spider and gave me attitude when i asked him to scrape it off and repaint.

[disneysteve]

I will watch a few videos of the repair before I decide if we should bother trying it.

YouTube has become such a tremendous DIY resource. I've posted about it before. I've fixed our washer once and our dryer twice thanks to YouTube, as well as several other things. It has saved us hundreds of dollars in repair costs.

[srblanco7]

YouTube has become such a tremendous DIY resource. I've posted about it before. I've fixed our washer once and our dryer twice thanks to YouTube, as well as several other things. It has saved us hundreds of dollars in repair costs.

YouTube is a great resource. I’ve used it recently to learn how to fix the LED lighting in our refrigerator, as well as snowblower and lawnmower repairs.

[riverwed070707]

I generally have trouble paying for something I can do myself. Painting immediately comes to mind. I despise it. And as a landlord, I need to paint 700-1200 sq ft apartments a couple times a year. Just can't justify the cost of a pro no matter how much I loathe it. I did find a good handyman a few years ago and I now let him handle the water leak/locked out/small repair type of calls. His pricing is so reasonable it hasn't been hard to justify on an income producing asset. I think there's a mind trick with it being a cost of doing business because when its my own home, I'm not paying if I have the ability

[disneysteve]

I think there's a mind trick with it being a cost of doing business because when its my own home, I'm not paying if I have the ability

I don't think that's just a mind trick. There are also practical considerations. The rental property needs to be fixed right away. You can drag your feet on the home repair or work on it a little each night after work. You can't do that with the rental property. In your own home, you may not even fix something minor, but that's not a good option as a landlord.