'I bought and renovated my first house fresh out of uni at just 21 years old – THIS is how I did it'

A woman has revealed how she managed to buy and renovate her house aged just 21 – and has shared her top tips to get your home spick and span in no time.

Beth Bird, now 24, bought her house with her fiancé when they were just 21 and 26, and renovated it in just one year – all while keeping costs to a minimum.

She has shared her journey with her 16,000 TikTok followers (@bethsabode) and documents everything from budget DIYs to garden makeovers, sharing top tips and tricks.

In one of her most popular posts, she revealed the stages of her home renovation journey – transforming the two-bed semi that she managed to bag for under £140k.

Deeming her project the ‘worst house on the street' in her videos, she describes her fixer-upper as being the worst house on a nice street and was eager to get stuck into her big plans.

Now, she and her partner have given the property a complete overhaul – and it looks unrecognisable.

By working different jobs while at uni, including cleaning caravans at local holiday parks and running her own sweet bouquet biz, the savvy saver managed to put aside more than a 10% deposit, shared it with her fiance and purchased the home in April 2021

“I'd never even painted a wall before this renovation and it's amazing seeing how far I've come with my confidence and skills,” Beth, an ed tech worker, told NeedToKnow.co.uk.

Managing to purchase her house whilst still completing her Psychology degree, once Beth had graduated it was all hands on deck to get the renovation underway and turn the fixer-upper into her dream home.

Beth explained: “I lived at home while at uni in order to help with saving.

“We were super lucky to be in a position to buy while interest rates were still low from the pandemic.

“The area we live in, though beautiful in places, is deprived.

“House prices are much lower than other areas, particularly anywhere down south.”

Going into the initial process of the renovations proved more exciting than scary for the psychology graduate.

The self-confessed ‘all sort’ was eager to get stuck in and overhaul her new home from top to bottom.

She said: “I felt excited over anything.

“[I was] a little disgusted at the state the last owners left the house too, but mainly excited.

“After months of waiting to get moved in, I couldn't wait to get started with the process.

“I ripped up the carpet in the bathroom the morning after getting the keys and started stripping the wallpaper the same day.

“Walking on the bathroom carpet for the first night was pretty horrific.”

To save cash, Beth wanted to do everything “as budget-friendly as possible” and managed to complete most of the graft only six months after moving in.

Spending approximately £6,700 including a new bathroom and boiler, the pair had workmen fit the new appliances as they “didn’t want to make any costly mistakes in those areas.”

By doing all the work herself, Beth says she’s saved herself thousands “A new kitchen alone could have easily cost the total we have spent on all of the renovations.”

She transformed her kitchen using vinyl, simple paint and cupboard paint, saving on paying out for fittings, workmen and additional materials.

Instead of using wallpaper, she also painted simple wall art costing just £2 for her office and guinea pig’s room.

“We up-cycled a very old TV cabinet and coffee table that we got for free and only £10 on the Facebook marketplace saving hundreds on new furniture.

I have DIY'd wall art for every room at this point I bought huge canvases for £12 from The Works and used cheap all-purpose filler to create the texture and acrylic paint”

Sharing her top tips to enjoy the renovation process, Beth explained that snapping before and pics can help with motivation as well as seeing how far you have come.

“Enjoy the process, take your time, and document everything!

“Take as many photos and videos as you can. It sounds silly, but you really do forget what it looked like before.

“Having those photos reminds you of how much you have achieved [and] it's also super satisfying to see the difference.”

Beth has many more DIY projects in the works, sticking to strict budgets and showcasing her skills.

She said: “I'm currently transforming my mum's bathroom with vinyl and vlogging the process on my TikTok.”

“Much like I did with my kitchen, it's a budget transformation to save ripping everything out and starting again.

“I've loved the whole process [of renovating the house] – I've learnt so many new skills from doing a lot of the work myself and I love looking back on the before pictures to compare the transformation.”

ENDS