12 Stories That Prove Home Renovations Are Not for the Faint of Heart

Home renovations might seem exciting at first—new floors, fresh paint, a dream kitchen—but reality often tells a different story. From budget-busting surprises to contractors vanishing mid-project, these 12 stories reveal just how quickly a simple remodel can spiral into a full-blown nightmare.

1. “Home renovation not going as planned”

2.

• My brother-in-law swore he was an “expert” at electrical work and offered to install new light fixtures in our living room. I came home to find him standing in the dark, confused, with wires hanging from the ceiling and the power completely out.
  An hour later, we smelled burning plastic—he had somehow melted part of the circuit panel. We had to call an emergency electrician, who told us we were lucky the house was fine. Never again.

3. “My father forgot to tell me the renovations would be taking the stairs out today.”

4.

• My husband and I spent months designing the perfect nursery for our baby—soft pastel walls, a cozy reading nook, and furniture we carefully picked out. We wanted it to be calm and modern, nothing too over-the-top. While we were out of town, my mother-in-law texted, “I have a surprise for you!” My stomach dropped when I checked the security camera in the nursery and saw painting over everything.
  The soft pastels? Gone—replaced with a horrifying circus-themed mural in garish reds and yellows. She had dragged in mismatched furniture from her own house and hung a massive clown portrait over the crib.
  When we confronted her, she cheerfully said, “I just knew the baby would love this! Nurseries should be fun!” I could barely speak. We spent an entire weekend undoing her “gift,” and to this day, I still can’t look at clowns without getting angry.

5. “Currently renovating our floors. Seems everyone has come out of hiding.”

6.

• I promised my stepdaughter we’d redo her room together, but work got in the way, and I had to postpone. One weekend, while I was out, she and her friend decided to take matters into their own hands. They painted the walls black, stapled LED strip lights into the ceiling, and glued posters directly to the wall. When I confronted her, she just shrugged and said, “Well, at least now you don’t have to help.”

7. “A friend is renovating his house. He also has a cat.”

8.

• We pulled up the old carpet, expecting to find hardwood underneath. Instead, we uncovered decades-old water damage, rotting subfloors, and mold climbing up the walls. What started as a simple flooring project turned into a full-blown biohazard cleanup. We had to move out for weeks, pay for mold remediation, and basically rebuild half the house.

9. “Ducks walking across finished concrete.”

10.

• There was a century home at the end of our street that had gorgeous gardens, absolutely full of these rare colors of delphiniums every summer. Perfect for the house. When it went on the market some company showed up and ripped out the entire gardens, threw in some bushes, looks terrible and broke my heart. Spiritual_Worth / Reddit

11.

• My husband and I decided to handle renovations ourselves to save money. His mom offered to help, saying, “I’m great with DIY projects!” I came home and found her standing in the living room, proudly holding a paint roller.
  My jaw dropped when I saw that she painted our walls a blinding shade of hot pink. My husband and I spent the entire weekend repainting the walls back to a neutral color, trying not to hurt her feelings. Lesson learned. Now we politely decline her help.

12.

• Contractors installed our new toilet. Everything seemed to work perfectly. The next day, my mom went to use the bathroom. Within seconds, I heard her shout, "Help!" I panicked, rushed there to find my mother in the corner, drenched.
  The toilet had sprayed water everywhere when she flushed it. The contractors tried to argue it wasn’t their fault, but luckily, we had the photos to prove otherwise.

Stuck with bland walls and boring fixtures but don’t want to risk your deposit? These eight genius rental-friendly décor hacks will upgrade your space in style—no damage, no stress!